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Coffee tables

The physical centrepiece of an informal space, a great coffee table will be more than just somewhere to place your mug. These are some of the best around.

Portnall Coffee Table Soho Home

The key to this is discipline, but if you can promise to only keep the current magazines and newspapers in the pocket then this is both beautiful and useful and therefore William Morris approved. Also a handy place to chuck the remote so it doesn't get lost down the back of the cushions (just me?) although I suspect the odd cat might find their way in here as well.
Round Marble Coffee Table French Connection

We spend a lot of time thinking about the colours of our decor and much less about the shapes but rooms are often regular shapes made up of straight lines and hard edges so you need to contrast this as much as you can. Round mirrors on walls, pictures with organic shapes and round tables as an easy way to mix things up. This is heavy enough to put your feet on and the metal frame means it will appear lighter in the space and not dominate the centre of the room.
Natural Woven Cane Coffee Table Rockett St George

There are so many reasons why this is a good coffee table. I) round is a good contrast to a rectangle sofa in a square room with oblong windows and rectangular rug. 2)cane is a classic that is having a moment so it will work in a traditional sitting room as well as a garden room or more modern space. 3) its shape means you can group two or three of different sizes depending on how much room you have 4) it allows the light to pass through so it will never appear to heavy in the middle of a room which will make the room feel larger. Enough? You want more? It can double up as a footrest.
Set of Three Amber Glass Nest of Coffee Tables Rockett St George

The Seventies called and they want their smoked glass back... seriously though, not only are these tables a classic that is having a fashion moment but they allow the light to pass through so they don't dominate the space and they fit together so you have three tables for the space of one. These will work in any interior.
Dark Bulb Coffee Table French Connection

Many coffee tables can be a bit spindly, which is fine if you don’t want something heavy in the middle of the room but if your space can take it, or you need an extra place to perch, this is a great piece. Mango wood furniture is made from trees that are no longer harvested and would otherwise go to waste.
Chevron Oak Coffee Table Cox & Cox

If you want a simple table that will sit in the middle of the room and has enough space for a couple of decorative books, a glass of wine, a plate of pasta or, possibly, your feet, this is the one. It’s 1m x 1m so it’s a good size.
Clarendon Storage Coffee Table Cox & Cox

If space is tight then a storage coffee table will be a useful addition to any room. Use it to throw in the toys at the end of the day or even some work items if the living room has become your office in recent times. Alternatively it can house the cards and the board games or even the cocktail glasses. Perfect for when you need to move from office to bar in a hurry.
Two Textured Nesting Tables Cox & Cox

Oval tables can be hard to find and while nests fell out of fashion in the 80s, they are back as one of the most practical ways to keep more furniture in a small space. Again, they take a classic shape and use an unexpected material (burnished metal) to bring a contemporary edge to a classic piece.
Farley Round Coffee Table M&S

There have been a lot of round, brass and marble coffee tables around of late. So if you want one buy a good one and, to coin a phrase, this isn’t just any round, brass and marble coffee table it’s an M&S…. etc. Also the style and pale marble top will allow the light to pass around and under so it won’t look like a heavy dark lump in the middle of the room. That said, it might be too small in the middle of the average sitting room so either move it to one end of the sofa or buy another and make a group. Or buy a plain marble or plain brass one for a family of siblings not twins.
Croft Collection Iona Coffee Table John Lewis

This is all in the detail with the different veneers bringing interest to a simple round shape. It’s a good size at nearly a metre in diameter and the dark one looks more expensive than the pale.