Calligaris Extending Dining Tables

An extending dining table makes sense when you want to keep your room comfortable for everyday use but still have space for additional guests. Calligaris has been an important dining brand for Vale Furnishers for more than 20 years, and its extending mechanisms remain one of the things we particularly value about the collection.

Choose the everyday table size before the extended size

It is easy to start by asking how many people you need to seat for a large family occasion, but first think about how the table will work for the people using it every day. As a useful starting point, allow around 50cm of table length per person, then consider the width of the room, space for pulling chairs out and the routes people use to move around it.

Once the everyday size is right, look at what the extensions add. Depending on the table, one or two extensions can give you considerable extra capacity when you need it without leaving a large table dominating the room for the rest of the year.

Four legs and pedestal bases have different advantages

On many four-legged extending tables, the legs move with the end of the table as it opens. This keeps them at the corners when extended and can allow chairs to tuck well underneath when the table is closed. The compromise is that corner legs dictate where some chairs can sit.

A central pedestal gives greater freedom around the edge of the table and can be particularly useful when you occasionally need to fit more people around it. It can also work well alongside bench seating or where someone needs to slide sideways into their chair. However, some pedestal designs prevent chairs from tucking as far underneath, so consider the table's footprint when it is not being used as well as when everyone is seated.

The extension mechanism is worth trying for yourself

Calligaris has a long history of developing extending tables, and from years of demonstrating them alongside other brands we particularly value the simplicity and refinement of its mechanisms. On a typical four-legged design, the extension stores beneath the tabletop: the end moves out, the leaf rises and rotates into position, then the table closes back around it. Details such as rollers, stops and safety features help make the operation controlled as well as straightforward.

Pedestal designs can offer different possibilities, including tables with extensions at both ends. On suitable models these can provide more flexibility between the table's everyday and fully extended sizes rather than giving you only two seating capacities.

Think about the top as well as the mechanism

Ceramic is particularly popular on Calligaris dining tables because it suits the demands of an everyday surface. Matt ceramic copes particularly well with normal everyday scratching, staining and heat, although the edges still require sensible care. Gloss finishes have different characteristics and can show marks and surface scratching more readily, so the right finish depends on how you expect to use the table as well as how it looks.

At our Ash Vale Calligaris Studio you can operate different mechanisms, compare finishes and try your preferred dining chairs at the table. If you do not need additional capacity, compare our fixed Calligaris dining tables instead.