I guess I never think about such things when I dine around Sis’ glass table. The placemats generally hide laps and feet from view anyway. I just really like wood, especially if it has protective coTings to protect against moisture without coasters.
@HiMom: I didn’t think about feet either. Until the time I saw my nephew’s enormous grubby bare feet. And lost my appetite.
^^^Ewwwwww!
I like wood too. Just wanting to try something different. And there’s a lot of wood going on in my new house–not in the dining room but within view.
No matter what kind of table I choose, it will definitely be round. 
That leaf-shaped table is really beautiful. Frankly, I cannot imagine using a lazy susan, but perhaps that’s because I’ve always had a rectangular table or rectangular table plus sideboard. Looking at the Maitland-Smith website, I found the perfect coffee table at last! But I dread to think how much it costs…
I took my broken table leg to The Guy this morning to get it fixed, for a whopping $50. I guess I’ll stick with my current table and save the $20,000 to $50,000 that I would have spent on one of those mechanical round tables.
84 No matter. Free white glove delivery.
Oops, that was a dining table I was looking at. Not sure about coffee tables.
We have a glass table and I haven’t had problems of seeing bare feet - guess I haven’t ever looked! We love the look of our table - and since the room is a bit small, glass does help it look much better. We got a lovely teak base for the table. Like @HIMom’s sister, we too use placemats. Have gotten lots of compliments about our table - it is not as common and people love the look.
One issue with the glass table is that it does collect dust easily - but it is very easy to clean!
@VeryHappy, well I for one enjoyed looking at all these gorgeous tables.
There was a glass table at one of the beach condos my in-law rented one year. I really didn’t like it. It wasn’t so much the barefeet, but just the distraction of everything under the table when what you want to look at is dinner. It did look nice when it wasn’t being used though!
Maybe an etched glass tabletop, or frosted.
I know plywood was discussed. Has anyone brought up wood veneer? It should cost less than $20,000.
VeryHappy, will you be content with the table you have now, and would you prefer to continue or discontinue the discussion? Any further thoughts after contemplating these posts on what would be a match or criteria to help us narrow a search and direct it more specifically toward finding the kind of table you’d like?
@Deborah T: Thanks for asking. I’m “content” with my current table. Well, not really content, but it’s here, it’s “free,” and it’s functional. But IMO, once one posts something, anyone is free to continue or not continue the discussion, so please – discuss away!! It’s not always about the OP.
Re: glass tops-- There’s also a lot time you aren’t actually sitting at the table. We’re currently in a rental (getting ready to build). Because the rooms are smaller I have my dining room rug in the living room. It’s a beautiful rug and I didn’t really get to enjoy it when it was under the table and chairs. If I had a glass topped table I’d really be able to appreciate it.
My current table dilemma is that our new dining room will have walls of windows to the south and east. (Our old dining room was pretty dark.) Unless I keep it covered my cherry table is going to darken and won’t match the leaves. I’m thinking about getting a bigger rug and just leaving it extended all the time. We currently have it open all the way with our drawings spread out on one end while we eat at the other. I can almost imagine getting the NYTimes delivered instead of reading on line and having one end of the table for morning coffee and the other end for dinner.
VH, okay, good. I just wanted to make sure that in the grand exploration of the topic, which I think is fun, we didn’t miss the mark. Since you mentioned you took the leg to be fixed I got to thinking about all the things that could go wrong with the table legs or supporting base and what could be done short of replacing a table entirely, and pros and cons of going this route.
A funny memory, many years ago we had a dining room set that was the ultimate in cheapmo. On the plus side, the chairs all matched each other and the table. However, the metal was so weak the chairs started to go, literally bending when sat down on too forcefully. The tabletop had a glass inset and you had to be sure to keep the part under the beveled edges clean or, yes, what crept under would show from beneath. I did my best to make sure no scum there remained, which is kind of a pain as crumbs or liquids can easily get caught in the area where the glass and wood meet. I’m trying to remember, I think it was when the second chair keeled under that we decided it was time to say farewell to the set. I thought it was kind of cute, hexagon or octagon, but it did not last long.
I wish I could find out who makes that leaf-shaped table. (Not that I am in the market, but still…) I’ve done some googling, but all I get are references to images of it.
I’m probably the only one still interested in this discussion at this point, while everyone else is saying, “Let’s eat!” Nevertheless, tromp forward I will.
I met a woman who covered her table with a clear plastic tablecloth. She would place pages with information or pictures for her kids to see under the tablecloth to be absorbed at leisure, similar to reading the side of a cereal box because it’s there. I thought this was a creative idea.
I like our current dining room table and do not want to replace it. I would like it to blend more harmoniously with its surroundings, but this is requiring some thought because it’s a contrast of sorts. It does share some common elements. First things first. Finish with the windows, then perhaps a rug. We’ll see. It takes a lot for me to allow myself to decorate.
@Consolation http://www.johnmakepeacefurniture.com/john-makepeace-furniture-designer-maker-mulberry-table.html
Well, I have a dining room story that I’m willing to bet will be unique here!
When I got a new flock of day-old chicks in June, I decided that I would keep them in their big box under a heat lamp in the dining room, instead of in the basement, which is what I normally do. This way mostly to take advantage of the natural daylight, rather than having to mimic it by turning lights on and off. It is also the room where it is most convenient to keep both doors closed so that dogs can’t bother them, and we could eat in the kitchen for a while. All was well for a number of weeks, but then one day when they were quite big they all escaped from their expanded box quarters, despite the screen I had placed over it, and unbeknownst to me spent hours running all over the DR pooping on the floor, and what’s worse, the rug. Let me tell you, it is really hard to get chicken poop off a rug.
The rug in question was not a great one, the only non-Persian rug in the house–a 30-yr-old wool dhurrie with some other wear issues–and I went back and forth about whether to try having it cleaned or to get a new one. I didn’t know whether it was worth the $85 it would cost to clean it, assuming that it even could be cleaned successfully. So ultimately I just removed it, and now we have no DR rug at all. Still deciding whether to buy something, probably a vintage, worn Persian rug on ebay…