Close your eyes and think about the last coffee table you saw. We promise we’re not purposely setting you up for a struggle, but we wouldn’t be surprised to hear that you can’t remember much about it. Coffee tables are often an afterthought. Everyone knows they need a surface for people to put their beverages on while they’re sitting together having a conversation or watching TV, but most don’t put much effort into what that piece looks like or how it fits into the overall style of a home.
Since you’re here reading this post, we’re guessing that you’re looking for something with a little more style and personality—something that will not only be a piece you and your loved ones gather around, but one that becomes a topic of conversation in and of itself. At Smith Farms, we’re here to tell you that that’s possible, even for a humble coffee table.
We have created some truly stunning coffee tables over the years for our customers, and whether someone wants to build a piece from one of our award-winning designs or work with us to create something entirely new, we’re happy to do it. One of our favorite requests is for a live edge coffee table. Making a piece with a live edge is where nature and design really come together, and our live edge coffee tables are as sturdy as they are beautiful.
We realize this may be your first time even thinking about a live edge coffee table, much less the idea of working with custom furniture makers to create one just for you. If that’s the case, you are in the right place! As you continue reading, you’re likely to have questions, which is perfect. Once you’re ready to get started with us, we’ll answer all your questions in your initial consultation.
What Is a Live Edge Coffee Table?
Let’s begin with the basics. For many decades, uniformity was the goal, so furniture makers milled edges into perfectly flat or perfectly round edges. If you go to your nearest furniture warehouse or retail store, you will see this in action—you’ll see tables, chairs, and bookcases that all have identically shaped edges so there is really no difference from one piece to the next. That has its purpose in mass-produced furniture, and it can also be a design preference for some customers.
On the other hand, furniture with an edge that looks like it was left in its natural state is a “live edge” piece. For much of modern American history, live edges were not as popular and only used out of necessity. Leaving an edge alone was not considered to be an elegant or stylish choice—it was typically done to save time and/or cost in making a piece.
That all changed in the 1950s, when an architect-turned-furniture maker named George Nakashima gained prominence for his unique designs that preserved the natural quality of the woods he used—knots, swirls, and all. His philosophy was that trees are living and breathing, even as they are cut and milled for use in furniture, and that the beauty of each piece created lies in the unique characteristics and personality of the tree it’s made from. He also believed that preserving live edges was a way of paying respect to the tree.
As more caught on to the stunning live edge pieces Nakashima was creating, this style came to be seen as higher quality, and it became clear that the craftsmanship required to create such pieces was at a much different level. It may look like those edges were just left alone after the tree fell, but the work it takes to preserve a live edge and highlight its beautiful qualities is a special skill that takes a lot of practice.
Nowadays, live edge pieces are highly sought after, especially by those looking to enhance the style of their home with something entirely unique. No two live edges will ever be identical, even if they come from the same tree! By commissioning a live edge coffee table with us at Smith Farms, you are sure to end up with a table that tells a story all on its own.
For a Live Edge Coffee Table Made by Custom Furniture Makers, What Is the Best Wood?
The short answer is that any wood can be used for a live edge coffee table, but the look and feel will be very different, depending on what type of wood you choose. We are so fortunate at Smith Farms to have access to a wide array of domestic woods, many of which are local to our region of California. We also have great relationships with sawmills across the United States, so we are able to source beautiful slabs and cross cut pieces from just about anywhere.
Here are some of the options we would suggest for a live edge coffee table:
Claro Walnut, which is native to Northern California. It is a rich, chocolatey brown, and tends to have gorgeous burls. It is also a very dense wood, which makes it a great choice for custom furniture. Claro Walnut can be found in large slabs, so if your live edge coffee table needs to be on the larger size, this would be a good wood for consideration.
Northern California Redwood, which is found in northern parts of California, most commonly near the coast. Its warm, reddish hue is unmistakable, and it is incredibly sturdy, despite it being a soft wood and relatively easy to work with. Many of the homes in San Francisco that were built in the early 1900s are framed with Redwood, if that gives you an idea of how sturdy it is! It typically has a straight grain pattern and would make for an elegant live edge coffee table.
Mesquite, which grows in hot, dry climates, like Arizona and Texas. Mesquite slabs tend to have a lighter hue than Walnut or Redwood and can have some very interesting knots and grain patterns. This is a perfect choice for a live edge coffee table with a rustic style, but it could also made into something sleek and modern with the right finishing touches.
Olive, which in the United States is mostly found in Southern California. It has a more yellowish hue to it, and the swirls and grain patterns can be incredibly complex and beautiful. Olive trees are on the smaller side and tend to twist quite a bit. As such, you will not commonly find large slabs of Olive wood, so this is a good choice for either a smaller live edge coffee table or a table made from a cross cut piece.
Cypress, which grows in wet, swampy areas—mostly in the southeastern United States, but there are types that grow on the Pacific coast as well. Cypress wood can have varying characteristics, depending on its type. It has a lot of natural oils in it, making it both a pest- and rot-resistant wood, so if you will be using your live edge coffee table outdoors, Cypress is a great option. Of course, it would be beautiful inside as well!
Maple, which is generally found in the eastern half of the United States and most commonly in the New England states. Maple can have some incredible grain patterns as well as natural knots and burls that would be stunning on a live edge coffee table. The bark on maple trees is sturdy and stable enough that it can be left on a live edge for a rustic look, or it can be removed for a more refined style.
Cherry, which is most commonly found in the Midwest and eastern parts of the United States. Like Cypress and Maple, Cherry can also vary quite a bit in its appearance, which makes it incredible versatile for use in furniture. It can accommodate any style you like, and its tight grain makes it very robust. For a piece that will get heavy use like a live edge coffee table, Cherry is an option that will be relatively resistant to nicks and dents.
This is just a handful of the woods we have on hand at Smith Farms. In addition to the woods listed above, we also have access to Black Walnut, Ash, Acacia, White Oak, Mappa Burl, Mahogany, and Sycamore. All of these are domestic varieties and would be exquisite as a live edge coffee table.
We are proud of the vast selection of domestic woods available to us, and we’re fairly certain that you’ll find something you love amongst the options, but if you’re still not finding quite the right wood from the domestic choices, we can source an exotic wood for you instead. That is the beauty of working with custom furniture makers like Smith Farms—we want you to have the exact table you are dreaming of, and if that means using a wood that takes a little more work to track down, we’re happy to do it.
Do Live Edge Coffee Tables Have to Be a Certain Style?
When talking about furniture, you’ve probably heard about a bunch of different styles: Craftsman, Victorian, Mid-century Modern, Scandinavian, Traditional, Rustic, and more. You may even know exactly what style you like and what style you want your live edge coffee table to be. If you don’t, though, and all those options sound intimidating, don’t worry. The most important piece of information we need from you at Smith Farms is a basic idea of what you want the piece to look like. If you can describe that, then we’ll be off to a great start.
If you are able to, bring some reference photos along to your initial consultation. Simply saying that you want a live edge coffee table in a Traditional style gives us a good idea of the direction we’re going to go, but photos give us so much more information. There is usually a spectrum within each style, and you may decide that you like some elements of one style combined with another. That’s part of what will make your piece unique.
If you’re having some trouble describing what style you want for your live edge coffee table, we may have you look at some options for wood to help you. Wood choice and style can go hand in hand, and one may end up dictating the other. For example, if you know you want a rustic style table for your ski cabin in Mammoth Lakes, then you might lean towards Mesquite or Maple or one of the Walnut species. If you are going for a mid-century modern style table for your loft apartment in downtown San Diego, you might choose Cherry or White Oak. You can mix woods if you so choose, and we also have options for metal legs if you prefer that look.
Basically, what we’re saying is that there are no hard and fast rules. At Smith Farms, we’re able to create a table of any shape, size, or style, and the wood you choose comes down to the look you want. We will have suggestions based on the most common choices for certain styles, but they are just suggestions. As custom furniture makers, we make the piece that’s right for you and your home!
How to Ensure Your Live Edge Coffee Table Looks Good with the Rest of Your Décor
Again, we strongly believe that style is personal. You have the freedom to create whatever type of piece you like, regardless of what the rest of your home’s décor looks like. That said, for those who are looking to stay within a theme or create a whole-home look that is consistent, you can do that by considering what design elements tie your home together and incorporate that into your new live edge coffee table.
If your entire home is decorated in an ultra-modern style with clean lines and minimalist design, then one rustic or Victorian piece might look odd. But your new live edge coffee table doesn’t have to be strictly modern, either. You can go for something with an overall modern feel that has some rustic elements to it. Maybe you leave the bark on your live edge or maybe you choose a cross cut round for the top. You can still create something sleek and modern that still has a natural and rustic twist to it.
In other words, you can combine elements of different styles, and you don’t have to adhere exactly to the style of the rest of your home unless you want to. We mention this because we frequently find that customers come to us for their first-ever piece of custom furniture, and it can be tempting to just try and match it to the furniture you already have. There’s nothing wrong with that, but we want you to enjoy the freedom of working with custom furniture makers to create something completely new.
Live Edge Coffee Tables Designed by Custom Furniture Makers: A Piece That’s Unique to You!
For that perfect live edge coffee table, working with custom furniture makers is the way to go. Here at Smith Farms, we love to hear your ideas and work with you to bring them to life, and if you are envisioning a specific color, size, and style for your new coffee table, we want you to get exactly the piece you’re hoping for.
Custom furniture makers have the benefit of starting each piece from scratch. They are not looking at a warehouse full of inventory and trying to figure out which ready-made piece is going to come closest to what the customer is looking for. They build it with the customer’s parameters in mind, right from the start. You tell us what you want your live edge coffee table to look like, and we will make it happen.
Our process at Smith Farms is collaborative from start to finish. We’ll start with an initial conversation, where we’ll discuss your ideas, look at reference photos together, and talk through the different options for styles and materials. We’ll also talk through all the necessary budget details and give you an accurate estimate. From there, we work up a design and give you the opportunity to provide feedback—we may even do an onsite consultation to see the space where your new coffee table will live. If all goes well, we get going on the build, and we’ll be able to give you a timeline, based on how many projects are in front of yours.
Having a custom piece built is exciting. It’s the only way to be sure you’re getting exactly the piece you want in the end, and with something as unique and special as a live edge coffee table, you want to be as much of a part of the process as possible.
Is It Worth It to Work with Custom Furniture Makers for a Live Edge Coffee Table?
When people ask us about the cost of custom furniture, we have to be honest. Most of the time, a custom piece is going to cost more than what you can find at a furniture warehouse or retail store. But what we also want customers to understand is the true value of a custom piece, and the price tag is only a small part of that conversation.
When you commission a custom live edge coffee table from Smith Farms, you are getting something that is one of a kind. No other coffee table will look the same, even if we were to take another slab of wood from the same tree. In a world where everyone is doing what they can to make their home stand out and reflect their personal style, having a truly unique piece is well worth the cost.
Then, when you consider the quality of what custom furniture makers can do, you realize that you can’t even compare mass-produced furniture with custom pieces. Furniture built by artisan woodworkers is built to last—with quality materials and using time-honored construction techniques. Chances are, with some very basic care and maintenance, your custom-built live edge coffee table will become an heirloom that you can pass down to future generations, which means that it will “pay for itself” over and over again.
Get Started with Custom Furniture Makers for Your Live Edge Coffee Table Today!
Hopefully this has given you a lot to think about and has answered some questions about what you need in order to get started with us for your live edge coffee table. We also expect that this has brought up more questions you didn’t even know you had before, and that’s great! We’re here to answer all your questions and thoroughly inform you on what the process will look like going forward.
We recommend that you gather your ideas and start looking for some inspiration and reference photos. Do a little research on wood types (but don’t feel the need to learn everything—that’s what we’re there for), and that will help you put your ideas into words. Think about the space where your new live edge coffee table will sit, and decide if you want to make any adjustments. We’re not suggesting that you go out and purchase all new furniture or anything major, but we have found that some customers choose to change the layout of their space in order to highlight their beautiful new custom piece.
Then, all you need to do is reach out to us! We can’t wait to hear your ideas and get started on creating a live edge coffee table that you—and future generations—will love.