Adjustable Coffee Table?

October 5, 2006 8:16 AM

STUDIO APARTMENT DWELLERS... front and center, please. I have a coffee table question.

Has anyone ever seen or purchased a table that can double as a coffee table and an dining table... meaning, you can raise the height to which one could actually sit and eat like a normal person?

Preferrably, I'm not looking for something terribly complicated or that may require additional parts. I'm envisioning a table that you can grab at either end and lift until it "clicks" in at its new height. Then, to lower it, grab the ends again, squeeze the little hand-clip-thing underneath and drop it down to be a coffee table again.

Form is as important as function here, as I'm not looking to put something in my "living area" that looks like it would be better suited for a garage or a workshop.

Ideas? Thanks!

posted by Witty to home & garden (15 comments total)

We used to have something like this at my house.
posted by gregschoen at 8:21 AM on October 5, 2006

The place to ask this question is Apartment Therapy. Oh, look, someone already did.
posted by libraryhead at 8:25 AM on October 5, 2006

http://www.furnituretoronto.com/shopping/product_list.aspx?category=0308


http://www.eco-furniture.com/docs/living_clgrs_ventureconvertibletbl.html

or if you know some one that saves the Times:
ROOM TO IMPROVE


*Please Note: Archive articles do not include photos, charts or graphics. More information. September 21, 2006, Thursday
By MITCHELL OWENS (NYT); House & Home/Style Desk
Late Edition - Final, Section F, Page 2, Column 5, 747 words
DISPLAYING ABSTRACT - Q. I don't have room for a dining table. Where can I find a coffee table that converts? A. Furniture with presto-chango attributes has been a feature of domestic life at least since medieval times, and probably even longer -- as much in reaction to the limitations of square ...

To read this archive article, upgrade to TimesSelect or purchase as a single article.
posted by beccaj at 8:28 AM on October 5, 2006

Here are some working links I gleaned from this thread.

Mascotte convertible table
Esprit coffee/dining table
Folding table
Up&Down legno
Lots of adjustable height tables
The X-Tables

on preview, these links are from the thread libraryhead posted
posted by chrisroberts at 8:31 AM on October 5, 2006

I've seen the types of tables that gregschoen noted and think they are just horribly ugly. And they brought my mother and her butt indentation on the sofa a little too vividly to mind.

I haven't come across anything of the sort, but I know that Ikea carries "flip up/down" tables that you might be able to utilize as an alternative with a regular coffee table. They mount to the wall and are to be flipped down to use, flipped up and out of the way when not in use. I'd link, but the Ikea site is crawling for me right now.
posted by FlamingBore at 8:33 AM on October 5, 2006

search froogle for "adjustable height coffee table", and you will find links to online stores that sell many of the above tables. I won't insult your intelligence by linking to the search.
posted by muddgirl at 8:33 AM on October 5, 2006

I've seen the types of tables that gregschoen noted and think they are just horribly ugly. And they brought my mother and her butt indentation on the sofa a little too vividly to mind.

They work alright to use a laptop on, but honestly that's about it. I would also never suggest using it for an extended period of time, because as FlamingBore suggests, the butt indentation can get pretty annoying as couches don't really make good work chairs.
posted by gregschoen at 8:40 AM on October 5, 2006

There is a few page spread in this months Metropolitan Home magazine about "convertable" furniture, and there is a great coffee/dining table. I would check that out for sure.
posted by meeshelle39 at 8:57 AM on October 5, 2006

Yep, I have one! My parents got it 7-8 years ago and recently passed it on to me. It's spring-loaded, so I can easily pull it up and down with one hand, though I usually use two hands when there are drinks on it. There's no latch or catch or clicking. It's a fairly nice piece of furniture (that cost a good chunk more than the non-convertible version in the same style), and only looks ugly when the top is up and the parts are exposed.
posted by phatkitten at 9:17 AM on October 5, 2006

I desperately want the hydra table!!!! it's pricey, but I love it so.
It doesn't "click up", but rather, it's adjusted with a pump thing that you step on (like on a beauty salon chair).
posted by picture_yellow at 9:29 AM on October 5, 2006 [1 favorite]

Gosh... thanks everyone. You know, sometimes you think of a question (out of need of course) that you think might be somewhat challenging or obscure only to find out that it's not so "uncommon" afterall, and often obviously so. But I certainly appreciate everyone's suggestions.
posted by Witty at 9:58 AM on October 5, 2006

Ikea has one called the "Funka" but it's no longer for sale in the USA (with a name like that, I wonder why!)
posted by misterbrandt at 10:46 AM on October 5, 2006

When I lived in a studio apartment, my solution to this problem was just to get a sturdy coffee table that we could sit around on large pillows and eat Japanese or Eastern or (whatever) style. In the winter, it's a kotatsu!
posted by mattbucher at 11:02 AM on October 5, 2006

I believe you are refering to a "Lift Top Table" like this.

I have used one at a friends house for a dinning table and never had a problem with it. It is weighted to prevent it from tipping.
posted by Chickenjack at 1:05 PM on October 5, 2006

Take a look at the table in The Moon is Blue, a 1953 comedy with William Holden and David Niven. It seems to be exactly what you want---whatever it is.
posted by LeisureGuy at 10:01 AM on October 23, 2006