End Tables – A Pair for Anywhere

End tables were originally designed to function as elements for resting floral displays and photographs at the end of formal sofas. Not many people use formal sofas now, but the idea of end tables has stuck. Taller than a coffee table, but shorter than the side of most sofas and couches, an end table is the ideal place to create an eye-level display for those seated. It helps you take advantage of the captive audience factor.

Most people simply use the space to place magazines demonstrating the sports, hobbies and interests of the household. Others prefer to decorate with live and silk floral arrangements. Though some eschew the idea of a silk floral arrangement, if you have trouble fitting all of your life into the 24 hours a day you get, silk flowers are the best way to set a particular mood in your house, to show off your personality without need for maintenance or fret while traveling.

Most end tables enhance if not complete the look you are trying to achieve in your living room or family room. They are also relatively inexpensive pieces with which to experiment. Spending a few hundred dollars to buy an end table can give you a great idea of how much you like a particular style and manufacturer before you commit to the entire line of furniture. Show your personality when choosing your end tables. Do you want to show off a particular period of furniture history or are you only interested in one style?

The end table developed from the coffee table to provide a taller, eye-level object upon which to place items of importance including candles and now lamps. The largest consistent use of end tables is as a place to put lamps to provide light for the area even if the room has overhead lights. The proximity to the reader makes a lamp on the end table ideal particularly for aging eyes.

Another great use for end tables is as storage devices. Many end tables now have drawers and cubby holes. Some even have hidden drawers for discreetly storing items you do not wish for visitors to your home to see. An end table is a multipurpose table. Many are used for the spill-over of a room as well. All of the clutter that may pile up during the day can quickly be placed in a drawer, under the flip top or discarded. If you make it a habit to spend 5 minutes zipping around the house each evening clearing off the clutter on end tables, by the time you reach the weekend, the house will feel in order instead of chaotic.

As far as shapes, a pair of end tables can look wonderful in many shapes. Most often we find end tables in square and rectangular shapes. They are harder to find in ovals, circles and other fun shapes, but that is part of the fun! I have one that is a pentagon. Enjoy the adventure of hunting for your favorite end tables.