Tuesday 21 July 2009

The sad demise of the kitchen table



I've spent the last couple of days working on the kitchen table; my table belonged to my Nana, and it was in their London house when they moved in. I reckon it's more than 100 years old, a solid pine table. The top is full of marks, scrapes, scratches, and I've managed to add my own selection to them LOL I've painted the under frame and legs with cream gloss to smarten it up a bit, and when it's dry I'll scrub and polish the top again.
I'm lucky enough to have a big enough kitchen to fit a table into; many modern houses have kitchens too small to put one into. I have a small, narrow work top, which is adequate for what I need. I'd rather have a sit down at the table and work there - reading, podding peas, labelling jam jars, drinking tea, sewing, jigsaws, letter -writing........... Lots of people ask how I can manage with such little worktop space, and seem surprised that I choose to work at the table. In big modern kitchens I see acres of worktop space, but nowhere to sit down in any way to work there. I like to sit down with a cup of tea and get on with what I've got to do, take my time and enjoy the job in hand. I remember my second midwife saying to me "Never stand when you can sit, and never sit when you can lie" LOL
Anyway, horses for courses, some folks like lots of worktop space, I'd rather have the table I think.
EJ suggested I sanded off the top before polishing it, but I've decided to leave it with its domestic scars to tell its own tales.

4 comments:

MelMel said...

I think its looks lovely, well used, well loved...lots of memories!xxx

Simone said...

I love to sit at the kitchen table. It is used for all kinds of things including crafting, reading, homework etc etc. As a lot of people have the fireplace as the focal point of their home; I like to think that mine is the kitchen table with a jug of garden flowers as a focal point.

globeonmytable said...

My boys used to stand on my table, so I had to start a rule: No standing on the table!!

Then they got older and taller and I would ask them to stand on there and try to touch the ceiling. Now I'm not sure they could even stand up straight on there :)

We eat at one end and have toys/papers/items of all sorts at the other. That makes it seem organised, I just shove the junk up a bit so we can sit to eat.

Carolemc said...

I love my kitchen table too, its a square Beech farmhouse style table....bit knocked about, but we love it. I agree I much prefer a table to work at, it was always my dream to have a proper kitchen table, and now that we have a big enough kitchen for it - its great for baking, preparing garden produce, sitting by the fire and reading, doing paperwork.... you name it.