Choosing a Dining Table

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Choosing a Dining Table

Sizing for people and the room, shapes, materials and living with it

A dining table is one of the few pieces of furniture bought for decades, and the most common regret is size rather than style.

Space per person

Allow around 60 centimetres of table edge per person, and at least 30 centimetres of depth each so plates and glasses do not collide in the middle.

A table seating six comfortably is usually around 180 centimetres long. Manufacturers' seating claims are frequently optimistic.

Space around the table

Leave at least 90 centimetres between the table edge and a wall or another piece of furniture, and closer to 120 where people walk behind seated diners.

Mark the footprint plus that clearance on the floor with tape and live with it for a day before ordering.

Shapes

Rectangular suits long rooms and seats the most. Round encourages conversation and wastes less space in a square room, and becomes impractical above about 150 centimetres across.

Oval gives some of both. Pedestal bases remove the leg that always ends up between two chairs.

Extending tables

Genuinely useful and only if the mechanism is good. Check how the leaf is stored, how heavy it is and whether one person can operate it, since a mechanism needing two people is used rarely.

Materials

Solid wood can be sanded and refinished repeatedly, which is the real argument for it, and it moves with humidity. Veneer is stable and can be sanded back once at most.

Laminate and ceramic resist heat and marks and cannot be repaired if chipped. Choose for how the table will actually be used.

Buying chairs

Sit in them for longer than a moment, since dining chairs are used for hours at a time. Check the seat depth and whether arms will fit under the table, which is the most common oversight.

Upholstered seats are comfortable and need cleaning; wooden seats last indefinitely and suit a cushion.

Living with a wooden table

Use mats and coasters from the first day, and wipe spills immediately, since water marks on oiled wood appear quickly. An oiled finish can be repaired locally; a lacquered one cannot.

Keep the table out of direct sunlight, which bleaches wood unevenly.

Buying second-hand

Solid wood dining tables from decades ago are frequently better made than new ones and can be sanded and refinished. Check the joints are tight and the top is flat before buying.

Measure before committing, since second-hand pieces rarely come with dimensions.

Chair height

Around 28 to 30 centimetres between seat and tabletop is comfortable. Check this before buying chairs separately.

Measure the route into the room as well as the room.

WHERE TO BUY

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