With the rise of Ikea and other large furniture outlets which bring affordable furniture to most markets, we’ve noticed a growing homogeneity in furniture. One easy way to break out of the big-box furniture mold is to build a piece of ‘live edge’ furniture, like a live edge coffee table.
What is ‘live edge’ furniture? Simply stated, it’s furniture which isn’t cut to conform to an artificial shape…it retains the natural shape that the tree cultivated in the wild. Here in Colorado, we have numerous wood types available to us, but we see lots of amazing designs made out of high altitude pine trees, which grow in amazing shapes and sizes.
Selecting your own piece of live edge wood from the wild would certainly guarantee a unique coffee table, but most people probably don’t have time to find the wood and obtain the proper permits. Instead, check in with your local lumber yard or tree maintenance company and find out what kind of rough cut wood is available. Even if you don’t live in a heavily wooded part of the country, there is always tree work being done and the species growing all around you can be turned into a wonderful live edge table or bench. Once you select the right piece of wood, you can sand, seal or stain the wood to your liking and order some legs to finish it off. We like the simple elegance of hairpin legs on a live edge coffee table or bench, although you can use angle iron legs or bench legs as well. Here are a few examples of live edge coffee tables made with our hairpin legs:
Once you have legs attached to your one-of-a-kind tabletop or bench, send us a photo! We love seeing the amazing designs our customers come up with…especially when they are made from wood that retains some of it’s natural beauty and contour.
