Bourton Round Coffee Table

120cm across is large for a round coffee table. Most run 80cm to 100cm.

A round table needs more floor than a rectangle of the same seating value, because the space at the corners goes unused. Allow at least 200cm of clear floor across, and 40cm to 45cm between the table edge and your sofa.

The 43cm height is slightly below most sofa seats, which suits a lower modern sofa well. Against a higher traditional sofa you will be reaching down a little more than with a 45cm table.

Round works best with a corner sofa or an L-shaped arrangement, where a rectangle leaves an awkward gap at one end. It also suits a room where people walk past it constantly, since there are no corners at shin height.

On a rug, the whole table should sit on it. A 120cm round wants a rug of at least 200 x 300cm, or a large round rug if the room suits one.

Round, and larger than most round coffee tables bother to be.

Most round coffee tables stop at 80cm or 90cm, which looks neat and holds almost nothing. At 120cm this is a proper surface, with room for a tray, a stack of books, a bowl and a cup all at once without anything competing.

No corners is the practical argument. In a family room or a busy open plan space, a round table is the one piece nobody catches a hip on, and it lets people move around it from any direction rather than walking the long way round.

It is also a design argument. A room is full of straight lines: sofa, walls, doorways, rugs, television. A circle is the relief, and it is why designers reach for a round coffee table in a rectangular room.

The legs are splayed and set inboard from the edge of the top, which does two things: it gives the base a stance rather than a straight drop, and it means the overhang lets you get your feet under when you lean forward.

In a pale weathered timber with visible grain, so it sits with warm neutrals, linen and jute rather than demanding a matched scheme.

• No corners, so nothing catches a shin in a busy room
• 120cm across, a proper surface where most round tables are token
• Suits a corner sofa, where a rectangle leaves an awkward gap
• A circle in a room of straight lines, which is the relief a rectangular room needs
• Splayed legs set inboard, so you can get your feet under the overhang
• Approachable from every direction, unlike a rectangle against a sofa
• Pale weathered timber that sits with warm neutrals, linen and jute
• Low at 43cm, which suits a modern sofa well

Three groups arranged in a loose triangle rather than a line, which is what a circular surface wants. A tray with a candle, a stack of books with something small on top, and a bowl or foliage at the third point.

A round table has a natural focal point that a rectangle does not. A single low bowl or a vessel with greenery in the middle reads better than a scatter, and it leaves the ring around it usable.

People sit around a round table rather than along it, so anything tall blocks a sightline across the room. Low arrangements only.

A round rug beneath a round table can look either deliberate or accidental. If you go that way, size it generously so there is a clear margin all round. A rectangular rug is the safer choice.

Pale weathered timber wants warm neutrals: off white, oatmeal, clay and mushroom. Dark glazed stoneware from pots and vases gives the contrast that stops a pale scheme reading flat.

Use coasters. The care advice that genuinely matters on a coffee table, since this is the surface that takes mugs and glasses daily.

Dust along the grain with a soft dry cloth and wipe spills promptly rather than letting them sit. A pale finish shows a water mark more readily than a dark one.

Refresh with a clear furniture wax once or twice a year to nourish the timber. Avoid silicone polishes and all-purpose sprays, which build up and dull the surface.

Keep it clear of a radiator and out of prolonged direct sun, which lightens a pale finish unevenly.

What to expect. Grain and tone vary across the top and between pieces, so yours will not match the photographs exactly.

Your table travels with our specialist furniture courier, who will call ahead to arrange a time. Current timescales and charges are set out on our delivery page.

Not sure whether round suits your seating arrangement? Send us the layout and we will tell you honestly. Reach us via our contact page or live chat.

If it is not right once it is in the room, our returns process is straightforward, and everything is covered by our guarantees and warranties.

0% interest-free finance is available at checkout, and our price match promise stands if you find the same piece for less elsewhere. Furnishing a holiday let? Ask about trade accounts.