We gave our furniture away first and then set about looking for a replacement. It’s very liberating to spend your time either in bed or sitting on hard wooden rockers. Frees the mind. But all good things must come to an end and so we bought a new sofa and a chair.
But that’s not what this is about. This is about a side table to go next to the new chair. Now I am going to show you two tables that I find quite enchanting:
I want one. I just can’t decide. One has a drawer and one has a glass top. One is wood and the other is resin. They are both charming, eye-catching and a little bit horrible all at the same time. I don’t care I want one.
But! I also have a set of old World Book Encyclopedias in dark green and ivory, almost exactly like this:
So what if I made my own stack table? These books have shiny gold page ends and I could twist them this way and that into an attractive arrangement. I am married to a man who has drills and long rods and all kinds of glue and I know where the auto glass place is in town to make a little top. It could be done and I think it might be damned lovely. (Said man, by the way, is completely horrified by the very idea has been walking around muttering in Arabic for a day and a half already.)
Anyway. I recently gave away a big pile of good looking hardcovers to a little bride who used short stacks of them as centerpieces on her wedding reception tables, so I’m pretty limited re: free materials right now. Too bad! When we took the dust jacket off of my copy of Yes I Can, there was a silvery silhouette of SDJr in mid-step as Mr. Bojangles. That would have been great as the top book. Ah well. I went to a good use.
Anyway. Homemade stack-of-books accent table. Yes or No?
Cripes Suzette 
YES!!! If I had some leftover big and classy looking books, I’d send them to you so you could have extra. As it is, do it. I’ve seen those tables before and I loved them.
YES.
I would like the glass topped one with real books. Perhaps you could find some lovely tomes with leather at an antique shop or estate sales if you don’t need immediate gratification. Or, I know!!!!!!!!! Find some on eBay.
Yes! But, I too would be muttering in Arabic (if I knew any) over the thought of using the encyclopedias.
I like the glass top. Like Scarlett said, look for old, useless leather books. I’m guessing that Big Lots has plenty of Deluxe Limited Editions of “Dreams From My Father” and “The Audacity of Hope”.
I like the one one the left better. I just do. More organic or something, like it would blend better with the surroundings no matter what. I’d have to see the whole room to know which was better, of course. No I’m not an interior designer but I play one on TV.
If it were my choice, I would go with the wood one instead of the resin one. If it falls over and breaks or gets chipped, you can glue the wood one back together where the resin one can’t be glued and would be basically ruined.
The real books could be too heavy once assembled. First of all, stack them to the height you want, add the top, then try and lift them. This could be a deal breaker.
As the self-appointed Wizard of Home Decorating of the NorthEast section of my street, go with the glass-less stack of faux books. Real books would be heavy-heavy and the glass top makes the faux books look, well, faux.
Add a wagon-wheel coffee table, and you’ve got a stunning theme going.
You can cut the insides of the pages out, like you would to hide something in a book. You’d save a lot of weight that way.
Yes! I can’t decide between the tables, though. Each has its own draw…
two words
library sales
How old is that set of World Book? (Looks like the early-1960s version we had.)
A few years back, we stayed for a week in a condo in Sarasota Fl. that had been leased by our friends for 3 months.
One of these tables was in the living room, at first, I was very taken with it, it seemed such a clever idea. By the end of the week, the attraction was over. I confessed this to my friend, since it was not her furniture this was not insulting. She said she had the exact same reaction to it..
Inexplicable, but there you have it.
Then again, my favorite table at home is from a thrift store, so what do I know?
On second thought, maybe you could rescue some Korans from the upcoming burning on 9/11 to use instead of using the vintage encyclopedia set. You’d rescue Korans and get a new coffee table, killing 2 birds with one stone, pun not intended.
Say no to the stack of books tables.
Add a wagon-wheel coffee table, and you’ve got a stunning theme going
And roll out the whiskey barrel armchairs!
One would have to keep house much better than I do to pull off that side table. We always seem to have a lot of books laying around so I’d probably lose track of the table.
Yeah, I’m with gd. Looks too much like bad house keeping.
Don’t use the books, make wooden boxes and paint them to look like books!! Girl, it will be sturdier and look better.
The plus will be in the cleaning of the table, much easier with varnished wood or paint. (take it from a carpenter/builder with some knowledge of putting things together)
Oh, and 1/4″ luan underlayment is perfect to make the books from, small blocks on the inside to keep the screws to attach them together and washers too. Will be great.
[…] things occurred: 1. I actually did purchase one (the one with the drawer), but I used the new account that we opened when we bought the furniture and it turns out my name […]