5 Unique Coffee Table Designs

By Susan Kleinman

Although the Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams' "Searlate" furniture group actually includes a coffee table, designer Bob Williams chose instead to place three identical Searlate end tables in front of this long sofa.

"It's a fun look and also a practical one," says Mitchell Gold, Williams' business partner and co-author of Let's Get Comfortable: How to Furnish and Decorate a Welcoming Home. " The tables here are on casters and move particularly easily, but most tables of this size would be easy to lift out of the way and rearrange as needed next to other chairs in the room."

Whether you choose three end tables, one coffee table or something entirely unexpected in front of the sofa, Williams recommends that you make sure a piece you're going to use is near standard coffee table height.

"A good height for a table is close to that of your sofa cushions, about 19 to 22 inches," he says. "Also make sure your table doesn't stick out too far into the room, and that you have at least 18 inches between the sofa and the table to be able to maneuver in and out."

Photo by Sally Fanjoy and James Labrenz