If coffee tables cause too much pain in your household, this may be the answer you seek. Maybe you have kids who jump too close to the corners, or you yourself have knocked a knee against the deadly edge of a glass table one too many times. How about going soft?
Claire, of house tour fame, uses a giant square cushion. When you want to serve drinks or snacks, just use a large serving tray.
This is so timely! We are thinking of an alternative to the wood/glass/metal coffee table and getting a giant ottoman or something like that. Does anyone have any resources for streamlined cushions like the one here? All the ones I've seen online have been either dark brown leather (won't work for me) or fussy or too boring, or something...
Emily, the most recent issue of Domion has a feature on reupolstering big ottomans and using them as coffee tables, and there are tons of options here:
Chttp://www.curranonline.com/benchottoman.php
Emily, the most recent issue of Domion has a feature on reupolstering big ottomans and using them as coffee tables, and there are tons of options here:
Chttp://www.curranonline.com/benchottoman.php
I have to say I've never quite figured out the whole ottoman-as-coffee-table thing. (It sort of strikes me about the same way as women who carry those teeny, tiny little handbags ... how do they do it? Where's the rest of their stuff? Their life?) On my (glass and rattan) coffee table at any given time, I have a plant, a candle, mail I've been opening, a few magazines, samples of fabric, the telephone (if I've been talking while sitting on the couch), a cup or plate (if I've been eating in front of the TV). When it gets too cluttered, I clear it off and bring it back to life with a good spray of windex and a paper towel. How do you do THAT with an ottoman?
Hi Emily,
I saw this online at craigslist this morning and thought it was cute.
http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/fur/220954787.html
Jane, your doubts are mine, too. What do you do with an ottoman/coffee table if you spill coffee on it? Or if your guests ding it with spaghetti sauce? Or if...you need table space for some biggish and flat project, like blocking a sweater or cutting out a sewing pattern?
I really like this idea. AT, how about doing a 10 BEST for this? One possibility for a "movable top" for one of these is a large Moroccan brass tray. Not to everyones taste, but may look good and be practical for some.
A "10 Best" would be very welcome. I keep wanting to like this trend (extra seating! yeehaw!), but Jane's doubts are mine. The right tray...?
I too used to have a large (1 sq.metre) glass coffee table with 4" square tube steel base (custom made)... it was fine until I got married and the wife managed to bump into every corner with the vacuum cleaner, turning the table into a deadly object with 4 SHARP glass corners! :)
I decided to replace it after a few cuts (her's not mine) and the fact that we were expecting a baby... I too opted for the ottoman as coffee table. Instead of buying a ready made unit I opted to build it myself, it's really quite easy.
The main construction is MDF. The top is padded with 0.5cm (about 1/4") foam and the sides are 1cm (or 1/2"). The whole thing is clad in white leather and looks fantastic. Also since the padding is so thin, the top is perfectly flat and no tray is required when serving drinks or snacks.
PS: Leather is a good option for this because it's tough and super easy to clean. If you treat it properly there is almost no way to stain it (trust me), especially if you wipe up spills immediately.
since claire lives near union square will she be at the party at the w tonight? Can we come over and see the apt?
pete,
for new diyers, do you have instructions? perhaps this will win over my husband to the ottoman as coffee table idea. thanks!
Good suggestions - thank you to everyone.
Asli - that is such a cute piece! Too bad the color won't work in our living room.
In response to the "why" question, I think we're trying to get away from the sharp edges of glass or metal, as well as excess wood. Most of our furniture is wood so another wood piece would be too much. Glass is a pain for me - collects dust and it gets under the edge and it's hard to clean. I hate dust as it is and glass top tables are too much work.
Extra seating is very tempting too! And I like the look of a tray on top. The only thing I'll miss is having coffee table books out.
Here's another vote for a top-10 list!
we have an ottoman/coffee table, and it's an ok thing. I don't love it. THe dimensions are a bit wrong, and es, it's a pain to store stuff like art books somewhere else.
However, it still works as a coffee table - I put a stained and faded map of paris into a 16x20 picture frame, and that's my tray. It sits on top with a few magazines, it provides a place for coffee while reading the morning paper. As far as a splash of coffee or wine? i just try to clean it asap. I'm not hyper worried about stains.
> for new diyers, do you have instructions?
(Sarah)
Here are a few quick tips:
- measure your space and make sure you don't make it too big. You want to leave some leg room.
- keep the hight about the same as your couch's seat cushon, it makes it easier to put your feet up on the table! ;)
- Choose a tough material to upholster it. Doesn't have to be leather but should be strong enough to take the abuse. Anything that you can use to re-upholster your regular furniture with will be fine.
- Make sure the person doing the upholstering knows what they're doing! The "professional" I paid somewhat overestimated their own ability and made a mess of my furniture! (I also refurbished two old lounge chairs)
I'll post a little more detail on my site later today with some basic plans for you! (www.modernflat.com)
I use a big ottoman as a coffee table as well.
See here for a photo:
http://www.very-simple.com/iblog/C1855485962/E20060219234007/index.html
The photo is from before it got reupholstered in a red and yellow fabric (from Donghia) that suits my new apartment a little better.
Mine was originally manufactured by Modernica, and I bought it from Circa50.
I then keep a big tray in the middle of it to put things on.
If you do a google search for "coffee table ottoman" you'll come up with a lot of resources.
The ottoman as coffee table has an oafish feel in the room. I wouldn't want an oversized couch or chair overfilling a space -- why would I want large block of furniture plunked in the middle of the room? Our baby proof solution is a round glass table and adult supervision.
This is nothing more than a practical solution for extra seating or childproofing, but concedes serious design points.
btw -- any number of manufacturs sell large storage ottomans for those who dread losing the storage of their coffee table.
"However, it still works as a coffee table - I put a stained and faded map of paris into a 16x20 picture frame, and that's my tray."
Rachel, that's a great idea! I've got a framed print that I'm tired of on the wall but that would make a cute tray - and I like the idea of an ottoman-as-coffee table for my small space as it would serve as an extra seat if needed.