Custom Inspirations for Your Holiday Table, Part 2: Custom Dining Tables for Any Gathering

If there is a time of the year that will put maximum stress on your kitchen and dining room furniture, it’s the rapidly approaching holiday season.  The challenges are diverse: planning parties for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, or New Year’s; entertaining children home for vacation and family and friends visiting from far away; microwaving bag after bag of popcorn for all those football games.  If you’ve been thinking about investing in a custom dining table, now is the time to figure out what you’ll need to handle the busy season when it comes again next year.  (And once life goes back to normal, you’ll have plenty of time to muse, mark, and measure for your everyday needs, too).  Whether your holidays bring people together from across the country and from multiple generations, or it’s just you and the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade, take a look at some custom dining room tables our CustomMade artisans have designed to fit the needs of their clients.

Watch the CustomMade blog for “Custom Inspirations for Your Holiday Table, Part 3,” where we’ll take a look at custom made kitchenware for your holiday dining.

The Big Show

If you have the space and the need to buck the trend and stick with your dining room, you can have a large dining table custom built in any style to seat everyone at all your special occasions.

Need an individual piece?

Artisan Scott Duffy of Rockledge Farm Woodworks made this canted trestle dining table from a single flitch of Vermont black walnut.  The live edge design showcases the unique natural counters of the tree, and the canted trestle base adds another distinctive touch to this approximately 8’ long, 38” wide, and 30” tall table.  Contact Scott and commission a similar custom design.

Black Walnut Live Edge Canted Trestle Dining Table by Rockledge Farm Woodworks at CustomMade.com

Need an ensemble?

This cherry and maple 14’ dining table by Michael Evans Design is part of a suite that includes sixteen matching custom chairs, a hutch, a serving buffet, and light fixtures.  Furniture maker Michael Leon Evans finds inspiration in the beautiful forests around his rural Indiana home, and you can also see the influence of Frank Lloyd Wright, the Arts and Crafts movement, and Asian design on this project.  Contact Michael and discuss a custom dining room set to fit your needs and style.

14' Dining Table and Chairs by Michael Evans Design at CustomMade.com

Command Performances

If the size of your dinner crowds fluctuates over the year, adjustable custom dining tables can let you enjoy extra space – at the table or in the room – in style and with ease.

Artisan Michael Jesse of Jesse Woodworks can create dining tables with folding leaves that can seat six with the attached folding leaves down or fourteen with the leaves up.  Your custom order can be made from walnut, bubinga, or figured maple, with your choice of base design, and in the style of your choice.  The table shown here is part of an African theme dining room.

Dining Table with Folding Leaves by Jesse Woodworks at CustomMade.com

Remember sitting at the kiddie table at big family gatherings during the holidays? If children are occasional dinner guests at your home, imagine how cool it would be for them to sit at a table that not only looks like the grown-up table but also is part of it.  This copper-topped patinated dining table by Scott Reuman, Conundrum Designs Inc, is actually two trestle tables with mating curves designed to fit together as one long table or be pulled apart for a children’s table at Thanksgiving.  The same amazing patinated copper surfaces, inlays, and cherry surround graces both pieces.  Contact Scott and discuss your seating arrangements at the custom kitchen and dining room tables for your next holiday gathering.

Copper-Topped Patinated Dining Table by Scott Reuman, Conundrum Designs Inc, at CustomMade.com

Intimate Venues

Maybe your biggest holiday dinners are still small affairs.  No matter.  You can still benefit from custom dining tables thoughtfully designed to utilize your space efficiently and beautifully.

Michael Blaustein of m8qlaff designed Aki’s tables for the Aki Japanese restaurant in Bloomfield, NJ.  However, if your home’s dining area is short on space but long on charm, the innovative black lacquer beverage service pull tray is a great way to make a little more room at a table that would be perfect for a few select guests.  Email Michael and make a reservation for a custom table for two to four.

Aki's Tables by m8qlaff at CustomMade.com

Even in the midst of a large holiday gathering, sometimes we need a little space of our own.  When all that family togetherness in the dining room just makes it impossible for you to watch the football game on your smartphone, you can always take your plate to the living room and set it on a sofa table by Craig’s Custom Products so you can catch the action on the big screen.  Lightweight and easy to move where you need it, this table will keep your meal or snacks close to you.  No more leaning awkwardly over a coffee table just to shovel some chips into your mouth.  The table stand even has compartments for your remotes and viewing guides.  Clearly, artisan Craig Smith knows the score, so contact him and customize your own sofa table today.

Sofa Table by Craig's Custom Products at CustomMade.com

Wherever you find yourself sitting at your holiday gatherings, keep your design eye focused on the proceedings.  Watch how people use your dining space.  Take note of their ergonomic needs (and yours).  Take a head count, too.  Don’t forget to check things out again after the holidays when life resumes its normal patterns.  Get your ideas together and then post your plans for custom kitchen and dining room tables that will be just right for your home on our “Get It Made” job board.  CustomMade artisans interested in your projects will then contact you.

If you missed it, read “Custom Inspirations for Your Holiday Table, Part 1: Thanksgiving Themed Custom Kitchen Accessories.”