OT(ish) Table designs

[Nige Danton]

I have a pair of old Chinese doors that I want to convert into a dining table top. The pair of doors measure 2.4 x 1.4 metres. The doors are complete with their original ironmongery so I will have a sheet of glass on the top to provide a smooth surface.

I'm presently living in Vietnam and currently searching for a suitable joiner to make the legs etc but I think it will be much better if I can provide the joiner with some outline designs for discussion.

Does anyone have any suggestions or pointers to resources for alternative designs for the legs? e.g. one at each corner versus a single inverted T at each end etc etc. I suspect there is a great deal more to good table and table leg design than simply something which holds the top above the floor...

Any input or suggestions would be most welcome, many thanks.

-- Nige Danton

[dennis]

Hanging it by a central column to the ceiling sounds fun and different, maybe even telescopic so it moves out of the way.

[Nige Danton]

That's an idea that had not occurred to me - might clash with the loose fitted glass top though...

-- Nige Danton

[dennis]

Well you can attach the column to the glass and hang the doors under the glass at the edges. You might need thick glass if they are heavy.

[Nige Danton]

Heavy doesn't start to describe them. I can just about pick up one door. I think I'll stick to putting legs of some sort under the table.

-- Nige Danton

[dennis]

Shame, I wanted to see what it looked like.

[Andy Dingley]

Find a cabinetmaker with some flair for tradition and give them free rein. Then think about a genuine lacquer finish on it. Vietnam is probably the best place in the world at present for affordable high- end cabinetry: the skills are there and the prices are low enough that you can afford to have the work done. Shame not to make use of the opportunity while it lasts.

I don't know a good English-language ref to traditional Vietnamese furniture, but something like Gustav Ecke (cheap Dover reprint from Amazon) are a good intro to broadly Chinese styles and their distinctive joinery and details. Vietnamese styles aren't all that far from this.