Tag Archives: coffee table

This side and coffee tables have sustainability and simplicity ingrained in their DNA

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Once upon a time, buying a table involved troublesome and inconvenient shipping arrangements because the furniture either comes pre-assembled or didn’t have any way to disassemble it anyway. These days, however, it has become trendy to buy flat-packed furniture, especially if they come with minimalist designs. These are easier to transport, sometimes by the buyers themselves, and are possible to take apart store away when they’re no longer needed. The trade-off, however, is often the complexity and difficulty of assembling the things on your own. Fortunately, more creative furniture designers have come up with new ways to simplify that process, and these wooden tables demonstrate how an easier process doesn’t exactly make the furniture less stable.

Designer: Ivan Nuño

Thanks to the prevalence of minimalist designs and the popularity of stores like IKEA, it isn’t uncommon these days for many people to prefer tables and chairs that arrive at their doorsteps in pieces. Logistics like transportation and storage can be cheaper, and it’s also not that much work for those already used to putting things together themselves by hand. The latter, however, doesn’t cover the majority of buyers that need simpler steps to follow. Unfortunately, simplicity can sometimes also mean fragility, and some might find their tables loosening in critical areas.

To correct that problem, Studio Nuño designed a new type of joinery that it says reduces the assembly time down to just a few minutes while still maintaining structural strength to bear the weight of everyday use. You simply insert the legs into the slots beneath the tabletop, slide in a supporting piece, and screw that piece down with an Allen wrench. The legs come in three or four distinct pieces for the side table and coffee table, respectively, so there are no confusing angles or combinations to worry about.

Although not an inherent property of flat-pack design, many products that come in this form often have a pinch of sustainable design as well. Studio Nuño, however, takes it to a whole new level by making sure both the product and its packaging are environment-friendly. The wood for the tables, for example, is made from Baltic birch plywood coated with high-pressure laminate made from recycled materials, while the joinery uses recycled steel. The packaging is devoid of single-use plastic, using 100% recycled and biodegradable materials. It even uses eco-friendly tape to keep things together.

Studio Nuño’s tables don’t skimp on the aesthetics either, fully embracing a minimalist design that blends well with any theme you might have running in your home. Simple and sustainable, this coffee and side table pair offers a fresh look at how furniture doesn’t have to be complicated to be beautiful or sturdy. At the same time, its simple assembly also proves that you don’t have to sweat too much to have a sturdy and reliable table for your use, whatever that may be.

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This distinctive coffee table blends contrasting elements to give it a unique character

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Coffee tables today do more than just hold your coffee or your coffee table books. They have become both literal and figurative centers of a room, providing visual impact through their eye-catching appearances. Some coffee tables grab your attention with their exquisite shapes, while others prefer to do it through remarkable materials. This unique coffee table does both, creating a piece of furniture that could almost be described as sculptural art. What’s more noteworthy, however, is that it uses what seems to be opposing or contrasting materials, giving it a distinct personality that’s like a Yin and Yang of furniture design.

Designer: Donatas Žukauskas

There are some materials, both natural and man-made, that seem to be associated with certain emotions and concepts. Water, for example, can be calming and cleansing, while plastic is soft and pliable. Wood is warm and cozy, while stone, in its many forms, is cold and impersonal. These latter two might seem to stand on opposite ends, but they come together in a harmonious and even artistic way in this sculptural coffee table made of natural wood and a new concrete-like material.

The very shape of the table itself seems to convey this character of combining contrasting elements. The wide, irregularly-shaped wooden top is held up by three conical legs that end in very thin feet that seem to test fate. Its form has elements of both stability and irregularity as if challenging the mind to decide whether the table is steady or is ready to collapse on one end.

What makes this table even more interesting is that its concrete legs aren’t exactly made from actual concrete. Instead, it is a solid yet elastic mass that is actually closer to wood but was designed to look like concrete. It is made from paper mass, which is again the opposite of the rigidity of concrete, but mixed with various other materials to give it the desired texture, water resistance, and rigidity. Fusing this wet mass, which is poured into a mold, with the wood top proved to be a tricky task, but the result was well worth the trouble.

This sculptural coffee table of opposites is definitely a sight to behold in a room, and of course, it’s quite functional, too. So yes, you can place your favorite mug and books on top without fear of breaking down. Its special character, however, doesn’t stop at its aesthetics. Recycled materials were utilized in creating this table, making it a sustainable piece of furniture and sculptural art as well.

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This mind-blowing coffee table was painstakingly handmade with dozens of wooden strips

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Many design ideas inspired by nature often take cues from natural materials, forms, sensations, or even animals and plants themselves. All of these exist on our planet, often accessible to our senses. There is also beauty outside of our planet, of course, sometimes on a much grander scale. It’s more difficult to observe these sources of inspiration with the naked eye, though, especially when they may not even exist. That said, human creativity and imagination have sometimes given form to these abstract concepts and theories, and one woodworker made the rather long and arduous journey to give one such idea a more physical form, resulting in a rather stunning piece of furniture that looks just as grand as the scientific concept behind it.

Designer: Olivier Gomis

A wormhole, sometimes called by its more technical name, “Einstein-Rosen Bridge,” is a hypothetical structure that no one has been able to confirm exists. That hasn’t stopped scientists, mathematicians, and especially writers from giving it some serious thought. Wormholes that can hypothetically connect two disparate points in spacetime via a tunnel have been one of the favorite narrative devices in science fiction. Despite its hypothetical existence, wormholes have also been given a hypothetical form, one that this wooden coffee table tries to create in reality.

The shape of a table is already quite eye-catching on its own. It’s almost like a wooden plank that has been bent so that the two ends are on top of each other and then joined together by a double cone. It may have been possible to create such a form with simple means, including wood bending and carving, but this table’s creator didn’t take the easy way out. In order to create the grid of lines that covers the entire surface of the table, dozens of air-dried walnut strips had to be cut and made. These are then glued together with sheets of maple veneer in between, which give the appearance of those faint light lines that form the grid.

With almost the same mathematical precision as the wormhole’s foundations, these strips of wood are cut and joined together, sometimes at angles to form a curved shape. A lot of machining was involved as well in order to carve the blocky sides down to smooth curves. Suffice it to say, there was a great deal of patience involved in a process that had very little wiggle room for errors.

To really bring that sci-fi atmosphere to life, a lamp was installed in the center of the hole, giving the table an eerie appearance in the dark. The result is a beautiful homage to something that might not even exist, though you’ll probably want to keep things away from the part of the table that curves downward. Fortunately, things that do fall into that hole won’t disappear and reappear somewhere else, though you do risk damaging that glass-covered lamp if you manage to spill something inside it.

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This graceful coffee table will make you want to wrap yourself up in a comfy blanket

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Coffee tables often serve as centerpieces in a living room, providing a visual focal point for anyone entering that space. It may indeed sometimes serve as a table for resting coffee or tea cups, and it’s also a place where homeowners display their favorite books, magazines, or other reading materials, whether or not they’re actually reading them. Given this purpose, coffee tables are designed to be eye-catching or at least visually pleasing to enamor guests without being overbearing. To some extent, this design concept for such a table does capture one’s attention, but it also evokes feelings of coziness and warmth that will almost make you feel like curling up beside it, along with a good book and a hot cup of cocoa.

Designer: Deniz Aktay

The “standard” design of coffee tables comes in rectangular or circular shapes, the former for space efficiency, while the latter aims for visual impact. From those two shapes, designers try to create interesting forms and combinations that serve to attract attention without becoming an obstacle to the table’s functionality. We’ve seen quite a few designs in this regard, ranging from super minimalist metal furniture to stunningly elaborate pieces of sculptural art.

The Cocoon is a design that embraces all those elements in a rather simple way. At its core, it is just a flat wooden plane where two opposite edges are raised and curved to almost meet, creating an elevated surface that acts as the tabletop. The gap between these two edges becomes a rather unique slot to display part of a book, while the space underneath can be used as storage for small items or other reading materials.

The very form of the coffee table itself is already quite stunning, but the images and emotions it conjures up are just as appealing. The word “cocoon” often evokes feelings of having a snug home or blanket wrapped around you to give comfort. Some people do love this arrangement when relaxing and reading books, so the imagery is quite fitting. Alternatively, the design might also remind one of burritos.

Given how this design needs to bend wood at a rather large radius, it might be difficult to pull off in practice. The coffee table will also take up more floor space than typical tables, though you can always use the open area inside to hide things you wouldn’t be able to otherwise. Regardless of whether it’s a practical design to turn into a real product, it’s undoubtedly a beautiful one that creates a notable presence in a room without being overpowering.

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This quirky red cuboidal coffee table effortlessly stores your books and magazines as well

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I don’t think we always tend to pay a lot of attention to coffee tables when in reality we really should. I personally think a good coffee table can really light up a room. It instantly draws attention and sets the theme for the entire living room. Once a stunning coffee table has been set, you can start building the rest of the space around it – a comfy sofa, cute side tables, exquisite lighting, and elegant decorative pieces, are all brought together by the right coffee table. And one such coffee table I recently came across is the ‘Bookpet’ coffee table.

Designer: Deniz Aktay

But here’s what makes the Bookpet extraordinary, and sets it apart from other coffee tables – it’s not simply a coffee table, it is a ‘coffee-book table’. Let me elaborate. First things first, the Bookpet is designed by Deniz Aktay, which is instantly enough for you to know, that this design is surely more than meets the eye. Aktay’s prolific designs have enigmatically taken over the online design world, and the Bookpet is no different.

Besides functioning as an eye-catching and visually intriguing coffee tablet, the Bookpet also serves as a great storage space for books and magazines. The Bookpet features a sculptural shape that evolves from a double-bent cuboid. The free-flowing and flexible structure of the piece seems to twist and turn through the air,  looking almost like a Dachshund or sausage dog to me for some reason!

The cuboidal form of the furniture allows for a sturdy tabletop at one end, which functions as the coffee table part of the design, whereas the rest of the piece has been integrated with little slits and nooks that can perfectly hold your favorite books and magazines. Bookpet has a compact and space-friendly size, allowing it to be ideal for tiny homes, and modern apartments with space constraint woes. Despite having a tiny structure, Bookpet manages to pack immense functionality in its little body, as it serves as not only a coffee table but as a book/magazine rack as well.

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Stare into the ocean’s abyss through a coffee table

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What is it that famous quote from Nietzsche says? “…when you gaze long into the abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.” When you’re drinking coffee or reading a book and you gaze at the table in front of you, you’re probably not thinking of abysses gazing back into you. But what if you could have a coffee table worth gazing into that might even cause you to lose focus on whatever it is you’re actually doing? I probably will not have museum piece like tables at my house but this is definitely worth looking at.

Designer: Duffy London

The newest addition to the Abyss Horizon collection is a coffee table that tricks you into thinking you’re going down an aquatic rabbit hole and that it’s somehow free floating on your floor. The table has a deep turquoise blue color that plays around with lines, colors, and shapes, and together with the natural Birchwood coloration and the sculpted blue glass, it gives you a three-dimensional look into the depths of the ocean sinkhole. I could probably spend a few minutes looking into this sort of abyss.

The coffee table also has three curved legs to support the surface while its contoured base looks like it’s actually diving down deep into your floor. The clean edges of the table also enhance your view of the aquatic abyss and let you focus on the sinkhole at the center. Think of it as looking at all the different ways we see the colors of the ocean become different at the various depths of the water. But this time, it’s right in front of you at your table.

If you’re thinking of getting this table for your gazing pleasure (and to use as a table as well), you probably have to move now since this is a limited edition product. There will only be 25 handmade pieces that you need to order from their London studios. You can choose from two different sizes (120×40 cm and 140×40 cm) and choose between two materials: Birchwood and glass or White Carrara marble and glass. I guess I’m stuck with my boring, old coffee table for now.

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This bench and coffee table is an interesting place for transient people and things

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Not all seats are meant to encourage people to lounge for hours, and not all tables are designed to be permanent homes for stationery or decorations. There is furniture that is meant to be a brief oasis of rest for a person on the move or a temporary holding ground for stuff in transit. Benches, stools, side tables, and even coffee tables are examples of such furniture with impermanent functions, providing a comfortable pit stop that doesn’t require a longer commitment of time and effort. Just because people and things often pass them by doesn’t mean they don’t need to be attractive and interesting, and this combination of a bench and a coffee table is one such curious twist that seems to contradict its very name.

Designer: Ricardo Sá

Compared to other pieces of furniture, seats and tables often convey a sense of rest and stillness. After all, you have to stop to sit down, and an object placed on top of a table stays still unless you move it. Compared to a lounge or a sofa, however, a bench also implies a sense of motion after a temporary pause, where someone sits for a while and then resumes their activity. Similarly, a coffee table is often a place for cups and books waiting for a brief period before being picked up again to be used.

Wait, then, is the perfect name for a multi-functional piece of furniture that embraces these passages of time. But while the word itself carries the meaning of stopping briefly, the design of the bench almost contradicts this identity. A horizontal slab of wood intersects a wave-like form that gives it a character of dynamism and an illusion of movement. It’s like it’s lying in wait, ready to jump into action at any given moment.

That dynamism is also present in how the furniture can be used. It takes very little to change the function of the piece; simply removing one or both cushions frees the surface to be used as table tops. You don’t even have to stick to one or the other mode since leaving one cushion creates a half-and-half that serves both purposes.

There are more permanent structures to hold objects, though they’re not exactly designed to keep them there forever. The bottom spaces can hold books, magazines, or even the unused cushions, while the middle cavern can be a spot to hide phones and remote controls. The hump in the middle could be a place for a cup, though its somewhat curved shape doesn’t exactly inspire confidence. Whichever way you combine the functions or whether your place it off to the side or in the middle of a room, Wait will be ready to give you and your stuff a place to catch your breath before heading off to your next adventure.

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This coffee table with multicolored and oscillating legs was inspired by orbits found in outer space

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I personally think a good coffee table can really light up a room. It instantly draws attention and sets the theme for the entire living room. Once a stunning coffee table has been set, you can start building the rest of the space around it – a comfy sofa, cute side tables, exquisite lighting, and elegant decorative pieces, are all brought together by the right coffee table. And one such coffee table I recently came across is the ‘Orbit’ coffee table.

Designer: Deniz Aktay

Designed by Deniz Aktay, whose prolific designs have enigmatically taken over the online design world, this coffee table is distinguished by its multicolored and interloping legs. Aktay drew inspiration for the table legs from the orbits you find in outer space. According to NASA, “An orbit is a regular, repeating path that one object in space takes around another one. Now compare the coffee table to the images we’ve seen in our school textbooks of planets orbiting the sun – pretty similar, no?

The coffee table features a round glass tabletop that is supported by three oscillating metal tubes. The tubes are interestingly intertwined, creating an intriguing visual mesh, which is further enhanced by giving each of them a different color. Aktay gave the tubes separate colors, to provide each element with a sense of individuality, and to help segregate them distinctly. This ensures that we notice and appreciate the unique construction of the table thoroughly.

In a time, when coffee tables are usually paid less heed to, if not ignored, Aktay’s Orbit coffee table instantly commands attention. It’s the kind of innovative design we all need as a centerpiece in our home, especially since the coffee tables found nowadays tend to be boring wooden rectangles. It’s a fascinating change, and I would love to see this concept as a tangible reality very soon.

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Mobius-shaped continuous coffee table takes inspiration from the Google Drive logo!

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Is it a coffee table? Is it a glorified logo? Is it an edgy conversation piece? Is it a demonstration of a geometric illusion? How about all the above! Meet the Möbelius, a rather simple-looking coffee table that has a lot happening under its benign avatar. Inspired by the möbius strip, the table too boasts of a single continuous surface running along the table’s form. If you were to trace a line from one point and move in the direction of the Möbelius table’s path, it would wrap around the inside and the outside, finally meeting up right where you began. Coincidentally, the coffee table also takes the shape of a broad-ish triangle, looking simultaneously like Google Drive and The Verge’s unique logos!

Designer: Deniz Aktay

Designed by Deniz Aktay, who’s known for his unique expressive yet minimalist style, the Möbelius is a coffee table that comes with multiple layers and surfaces to place glasses, store magazines, and display collectibles. The low-standing table comes with a broad hexagon silhouette that fits perfectly into Scandinavian-inspired minimalist living spaces, and the red colorway adds a beautiful vibrant pop to any interior.

What’s rather interesting is the geometric phenomenon that the Möbelius coffee table takes inspiration from. It comes with a singular surface that flips over just once before connecting with itself. This makes the Möbelius have a continuous surface that blurs the lines between 2D and 3D. Obviously the table is 3D, but the fact that it’s made from a single continuous 2D surface tends to become a pretty fun optical illusion!

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Peel is a coffee table design with different layers

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Coffee tables and side tables have become more than just furniture to place your coffee cup or book on. People expect them to not just be meticulously designed but to also have more purposes than just be a simple table. There are a lot of good designs out there already but there’s always room for more of course. There are also concept designs out there just waiting to be crafted into actual furniture that people can buy and place in their living rooms.

Designer: Deniz Aktay

The Peel all-around coffee table design is something that I, for one, will want to have by my couch. The name is pretty obvious once you see the design as it is like a banana being peeled. Of course, it uses wood and not any fruit. He designed it using three plywood sheets but put together using a triangular outline. Originally, they have the same height but then they are bent at different levels so you get a table with different layers for different purposes.

The final design of the coffee table does look like a piece of wood being peeled open. So now, you’ll be able to place different items at different levels. Your coffee cup or cocktail can be placed at the tallest part for easier access. You can also place your phone at a lower level so it will not be easy to go for it when you’re supposed to be reading a book or talking to someone and not scrolling through your phone. The other level can be for some decorations or ornaments.

Because the plywood are peeled, then you get a solid triangular wood element in the middle. This not only gives your coffee table a stable center but you also get a storage area for your magazines or books. So your side table gets several purposes and you also get a nice-looking piece of furniture to adorn your living space.

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