THE ART OF THE COFFEE TABLE

How to make it look collected, not decorated.

By The Magazine

A good coffee table tells you something about the person who lives there.

The book they couldn't leave behind at a museum shop. The strange little object they brought home from a trip. A candle that's actually been burned. Something old next to something new.

The tables we love most don't look styled within an inch of their lives. They look collected.

There is, however, a little bit of an art to getting there.

1. START WITH THE BOOKS

Coffee-table books create height, color, and personality. Choose books you actually want—not just covers that match the sofa. Fashion, photography, architecture, food, travel, art.

Stack two or three, with the largest on the bottom, and don't be afraid to mix sizes.

The Ėditure rule: A beautiful cover gets our attention. What's inside earns its place.

2. GIVE THE BOOKS SOME COMPANY

Put a small sculptural object, box, bowl, something brought home from a trip—or even your sunglasses—on top. It doesn't have to be precious to be interesting.

The Ėditure rule: Put something unexpected on top.

3. PLAY WITH HEIGHT

Books keep things low. A vase or candlestick brings the eye up. A smaller object connects the two. Step back and look at the table as a whole.

The Ėditure rule: Flat is for the table, not everything on it.

4. ADD SOMETHING ALIVE

Flowers, branches, a plant, or a bowl of lemons instantly makes a table feel less arranged. And the arrangement itself shouldn't look overly arranged.

The Ėditure rule: Nothing too perfect.

5. SOMETHING OLD MAKES EVERYTHING BETTER

A vintage brass dish, a flea-market find, your grandmother's ceramic, or something you inherited gives the table a little history—and keeps the room from feeling like a showroom.

The Ėditure rule: Not everything beautiful needs to be new.

6. LEAVE SOME ROOM

You still need somewhere to put your coffee. A coffee table isn't a display case; a little negative space lets the objects breathe—and lets you actually live around them.

The Ėditure rule: Know when to stop.

Start with books you love. Add something with height, something personal, something alive, and something with a little history.

Then remove one thing.

The goal isn't a coffee table that looks perfect in a photograph.

It's one that looks like you live an interesting life around it.

— The Magazine