Choosing a dining table

Scale up, scale down
It’s worth stating the obvious here: the large dining room demands a large table, but the small dining room is dwarfed by one. There are a few good rules of thumb in determining which size table to buy. Ideally your dining table should be no narrower than 36”/90cm. Any less than this and you’ll struggle for central serving space. While you’ve got your tape measure out make sure there’s a minimum 48”/120cm clearance from the back of the chairs to allow for traffic to pass comfortably. And work on the basis that each diner will need approx 24”/60cm of space. Top tip: use a calculator!

About the size of it
If you only ever need increased capacity on occasions like Christmas and the odd dinner party, a smaller table with leaves is the smart bet (three people sitting at a 10’ expanse of mahogany just feels spooky). John Lewis and Habitat always carry an excellent selection of extending tables in wood (Ligne Roset offers a very stylish extending glass table but that’s the exception to the rule.) If you serve roast beef and trimmings to the masses every Sunday you’ll need a big table that stays big.

Raw materials
Contemporary tables are available in stone, glass and steel (visit Heals for statement pieces) while wood remains the traditionalist’s choice. Walnut and mahogany lend quite a formal boardroom feel whereas oak and pine have a less polished finish which you’ll feel less precious about when the kids do their colouring and sticking! Glass tabletops are reinforced which makes them surprisingly durable but the flipside is the painstaking fingerprint removal. A sound investment is a funky Cath Kidston oilcloth that can be whipped away after daytime use for chic soirees.

Shape of things
Rectangular tables are the norm in most households as they best suit the dimensions of the classic dining room shape. Circular and octagonal tables encourage the flow of conversation and are said to symbolise stability in the practice of feng shui, but they don’t work in narrow or small rooms. Also bear in mind that circular tables are best suited to smaller groups of less than eight. Any more and you’ll have to shout to make yourself heard, which rather defeats the object!

Take your seats
Will you go matchy-matchy with your table and chairs or will you go off piste and source them separately? The beauty of going freestyle is that you can throw the rulebook out of the window. Who says you can’t team an antique table with Philippe Starck Perspex chairs? Do bear in mind that if the table you’re buying has leaves you’ll probably need chairs that are portable. Heavily upholstered chairs aren’t easy to manoeuvre and they often weigh a ton – not ideal for frequent trips to and from the garage.