Coffee Tables, End Tables, and Sofa Tables for Your Living Room

Decorating your living room can be an exciting and fun task. From lighting and wall colors to furniture and fabrics, there are many components to properly decorating your living room area. One important aspect of this is picking out tables that match the style of your home.

Coffee tables, though perhaps the most important of living room tables, are just one type of what we call "occasional table." Occasional tables are just that - tables for specific occasion. In the case of coffee tables, we find a wide array of occasions. Coffee tables are the central table that people sit around in a living room. Usually it complements the sofa in both length and height, and it becomes both a decorative and functional table.

Coffee tables are used to display items in the household, and depending on the household, they're usually used for gathering. The extent to which the coffee table is functionally used really varies from household to household. Typically coffee tables are the most functionally used table in the living room.

End tables, also called side tables are usually placed at the end of the sofa or next to a chair. End tables usually hold a table lamp and some decorative items. Similarly, sofa tables are also highly decorative; these high standing tables are usually placed behind the sofa or against a wall and serve to hold decorative items. Unlike coffee tables, end tables and sofa tables are used primarily as decorative pieces in a room.

Depending on the style and theme of your living room, it's possible to mix and match pieces of living room furniture, including tables. Your end tables do not need to be from the same collection as your coffee table and sofa tables. The only thing that matters is that your tables are thematically consistent. You want your furniture to work well together. If you have a thematically rustic furnished room, for example, you want all of your furniture to follow suit. Beyond theme, however, your individual pieces can come from a variety of collections.

Some coffee tables come in a complete set with matching end tables and sofa tables. This might be an option for some people who prefer consistency, or who have little time to devote to redecorating. You might also consider whether you need each time of table in your space.

Although coffee tables are standard in every living room, not every room has space or need for a sofa table. You need to think of the room, and your needs in terms of space, decoration, and function; whatever your decorating desires, you will find occasional tables that work for you.