Table Manners

Sitting down to a beautifully set table to enjoy a specially prepared meal is one of the nicest ways of spending time with friends and family. Even if you’re just helping the children with homework or trying to include everyone in a conversation, a well designed and well placed table is the centre of a home.
As we approach the winter holidays, with Christmas and New Year celebrations, that table becomes even more important. Can everyone fit round it? Is the chair comfortable for Granny? Should we just do a buffet? Whichever way you look at it, a lot of people find this is the time to think about a new dining arrangement and you should just have time to order. Here we pick out a few of our favourites.

Rectangular

John Lewis
Maharani
Solid rustic dining table that seats six with ease. Based on traditional Indian Thakat styling and combining quality sheesham wood and iron fittings for a look that betters with age. Exclusive to John Lewis. Partial self assembly required.
Two sizes, Large L180 x W95 x H76cm at £395 and Small L145 x W90 x H76cm at £295.
Choose from a matching bench at £175 or chairs at £99.
Free standard delivery is a bonus!

John Lewis
Gene Table
Utterly simply styled, a solid oak cross frame is topped with a sheet of tempered glass to make a dining table that will throw light and soften a contemporary look with the beauty of wood.
Size L170 x W90 x H76cm £395.
Has matching coffee table, lamp table and console table.
Free standard delivery is a bonus!

Why not team it with Cotswold’s
Tuscany leather Dining Chairs
These sumptuous chocolate-brown leather chairs have double-stitched seams, amply padded seats and backrests, plus solid beech legs for maximum durability.
Size 95 x 45 x 57cm, seat height 45cm
Set of 4 £549 plus £24.95 delivery

Exclusive to The Cotswold Company, the Cheltenham collection personifies the natural beauty of oak.
Scaled to suit today’s homes and priced to make quality wooden furniture more affordable, all pieces use solid smooth-sanded oak.
Fully assembled except table which requires simple self assembly.
Table 78 x 140 x 86cm. Chairs 109 x 47 x 47cm.
Supplied with removable cream cotton seat cushions.
£999 the set plus £24.95 delivery.

Round Tables
Parents prefer round tables as they are less hurtful to toddlers’ heads! They can also be said to be more diplomatic as no-one is at the head of the table.

Cotswold
Albany Pedestal Dining Table and Chairs
Antique elegance brought up-to-date, these exclusive to Cotswold Albany table and chairs are graceful, stylish and comfortable. In beautiful mahoni hardwood with a soft ‘heirloom’ finish, the circular table has a turned pedestal base, and a channel-carved top.
The co-ordinating chairs have a textured woven backrest and deeply padded seat.
Table 78 x 120cm diam. Requires simple self assembly.
Chairs 102 x 57 x 52cm, seat height 43cm, fully assembled.
Table £699 Table and 4 chairs £1247 (save £100 when ordered together) £24.95 delivery.

John Lewis
Polar Table and Ice Chairs
Here’s a neat table that won’t break the budget. Add the feel of light and space to a kitchen or dining room with this modern chrome plated pedestal round table with 10mm thick clear tempered glass top.
The clear acrylic Ice chair is the perfect match.
Table Height 74cm. Diameter 100cm. £195.00
Ice Chair £89.00 Free Standard delivery

Extending Tables
These come in all sorts of ingenious styles and allow you to switch between family mode and full-scale entertaining mode.

John Lewis
Hampton Dining Room Furniture
Made from birch, with a white painted and lacquered finish, this lightly distressed dining furniture is evocative of clapperboard houses and relaxed New England coastal living.
Size L180 x W90 x H77cm extending to 230cm.
Exclusive to John Lewis.
Extending table £495 Dining chair £150 Sideboard £695.
Free standard delivery is a bonus!

Cotswold
Wiltshire table and Chairs
Hand-crafted in solid pine, this table has a pull-out extension leaf which allows it to seat six.
In beech, the rustic ladder-back chairs have a cream paint finish and comfortable woven rush seat.
Table 110cm diam. extending to 150 x 110cm, simple assembly.
Chair 99 x 46 x 43cm, seat height 46cm
Delivered fully assembled
Table £549. Table with 4 chairs £1097. Table with 6 chairs £1396. Delivery £24.95.

Space Savers
When you really don’t have space for a full size table and chairs, here are two great ideas.

John Lewis
Butterfly folding table and chairs.
Ideal for small kitchen/diners or studio flats, this is an ingeniously-designed folding table in eco-friendly rubberwood with a natural finish.
Comes with 4 matching folding chairs which can be stored within it.
Table: L32-132 x W85 x H75cm.
Chair: H71 x W41 x D35cm £195.
Free standard delivery is a bonus

Scotts of Stow
Sofa Table
Specially designed at just the right height for sofas and armchairs, this clever sofa table has a large, stable base and a useful magazine rack.
Wood veneer with a rich mahogany finish.
Measures 24″ high x 11″ x 14½”. Self assembly.
Just £19.95 + delivery which varies according to order and location.

Scotts of Stow
Foldaway Banqueting Table
This foldaway circular table is just like the ones used by caterers for weddings and marquee functions. It will accommodate eight formal place settings and as many as ten informally.
The steel frame gives the feel of a conventional dining table and the moulded plastic surface wipes clean in a moment.
Full-skirted banquet cloth (100% polyester, fully washable) and matching folding chairs also available.
Size 59″ diameter storing to just 4″ deep and 29″ wide. Height 28¼”.
Exclusive to Scotts of Stow.
Table £99.95. Chairs £64.90 for 4. Plus delivery which varies according to order and location.