Whilst most us pay a lot of attention to wall art and decorating all the vertical spaces in the room, we most often forget the horizontal sections in our apartments. Coffee tables, console and side tables are either often left bare or filled with utility items or as temporary means of storage. With a little bit of attention, the horizontal spaces can become the perfect examples of how form and function unite.
The most often used table in any apartment is the humble and very often overlooked coffee table. Used either as a stool for our feet, storage for remotes and other accessories or even as a dining table, the coffee table serves many masters. But whilst serving its utility, one should never forget its form. There are a few design ideas one can adopt to make this space both user-friendly and decorative at the same time.
For starters, if you are in the market for a coffee table, buy one according to your needs. If storage is a key concern, then it is most advisable to purchase a table with shelving or storage drawers to assist with your storage needs. In this manner, you free up the table top which would have otherwise been wasted space. One of the rules of decorating a coffee table is to always create various levels of height and scale differences. This provides a very creative visual aspect, as well as gives you the freedom to add a variety of knick knacks on your table. Normally, books are the element of choice in order to provide this variation in height. Coffee table books (known for this exact reason) can be placed towards one side of the table or opposite edges for symmetry, along with other sculptural elements, like candle sticks, bowls and other products. These items can be placed directly on the table, or on top of the books for added style.
It is important to maintain a neat and clutter-free appearance to your table. Very often, remotes, tissue boxes and loose papers can spoil the design of the space. Trays and boxes come in handy in situations like these. Remotes should be stored in cane or lacquer trays, whilst loose papers can likewise be stored in boxes stacked one on top of the other. Tissues should be placed in decorative tissue box holders. Trays can also be used as decorative structures holding a variety of the other elements on the coffee table. The beauty of this is that when space is required for utility reasons, such as serving and writing, instead of moving one item at a time off the table, in this case, all you have to do is remove the entire tray.
There’s nothing like an organic approach to decorating for bringing life into the set-up. Fresh flowers will spruce up your table in an instant. These need not be a grand decoration… even small vases filled with wild flowers will do the trick. If fresh flowers prove to be tedious to maintain, try indoor potted plants. An orchid plant for example needs very little maintenance and goes with any décor. Herbs or other similarly potted will provide you with the same organic look and feel.
And to give your coffee table the unique factor, throw in an oddball product. This could be anything, from a framed photograph to an old memento or cute artefacts found at the flea market to just about anything random and whimsical.
But remember, you don’t have to crowd your coffee table while decorating. Always place enough, just according to your needs. The most common products used to decorate a coffee table are: books, candles, bowls, trays, boxes, decorative balls, glass holders, shells, small sculptures and ashtrays. These elements can be used individually or in varied combinations with each other, providing you with a very interesting visual focal, bang in the centre of your room.
The writer is an interior designer, with offices in Delhi and Mumbai. E-mail her at info@fleurxavierdesign.com