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A glass dining table is the ideal practical solution if you need a nice, easy and low maintenance option to keep clean. A dining table should be (along side the fireplace) the heart of your home. This is where the family gathers to spend time and discuss day to day things. It is where families laugh sharing jokes and gather around the homemade cooking that mum has been lovingly cooking all afternoon- this is why I feel that the dining table is without a doubt the heart of the home.

In today’s families lives, this image of ‘togetherness’ is becoming more and more scarce and it’s sad to think that the short periods of time that we must grab and take advantage of, we don’t and it becomes an all too familiar scene of the children running in from school, dumping their school bags and grabbing their dinner at random times to everyone else. They then take the food either into their layers or plonk themselves in front of the television and inevitably get lost in a trance mechanically feeding him / herself!
 

Why a glass dining table and chairs are a good choice

On the subject of children, the option of a glass dining table and chairs has to be the most practical, as it is easier to maintain and keep looking clean and withstands all the abuse a normal child throws at it! Being glass it is easy to wipe all sorts of; paint, food and grime that become attached to it.

The glass table is also a good choice because it is safe. It will have been made from toughened glass, which will give you peace of mind with your little ones. Also, If you are concerned about edges of tables for the same reason, you may want to consider a round glass dining table or even an oval glass dining table – this way there will be no sharp corners and lessen the chances of any accidents.

Another excellent reason why glass is generally a good option is because any type and shape of glass table will inevitably look stylish and will not impose on your room as much as a solid table. If you stick to clear glass, the table is almost invisible to the eye and even though it is there, serving a purpose, visually it blends into its surroundings making it a great option for smaller rooms.

If it is glass that you wish to have in your room but you wanted more of an impact than a clear table you may want to consider black glass dining table. Extremely retro in feel, a black glass dining table would look simply stunning in the correct place. Originally, the black glass was popular in the seventies but today it has come back into fashion adding a contemporary twist to its original staging. Glass does come in different colours so you are of course able to get tables in these hues. If you wanted a pop art sixties feel then why not go for a green or red glass table. This way you can get all of the practicalities of owning a glass table together with the style as well. You will also find that you can get functional tables and an extending glass table is perfect for people that infrequently have guests over for meals.

Finding a simple way to clean your glass

A simple solution of white wine vinegar, water and newspaper is a non-toxic way of cleaning your glass wear. Simply rub onto the glass and use the newspaper to polish off, this will leave the glass with a non smeared appearance. An alternative option is to get an off the shelf cleaning product which will usually come in a spray, you can still use the newspaper to polish it off, which again, will help leave the surface non smeary. You can use this technique to clean any type of glass cabinet, glass table or glass shelves.

A glass table is not only a beautiful piece of furniture, it also a very practical and therefore functional piece of furniture that is ideal for any home. Whether you are looking for a glass coffee table or even a luxurious glass dining table the practicalities are universal. This article by the LiveIn|LiveOut team takes a look at the many practical features of owning a glass table, and how they can make your life easier whilst enhancing your home.

A Glass Table is Easy to Clean

Glass as we know is a very smooth surface and this means that it is very easy to keep clean. There are a myriad of glass cleaning products on the market, but the easiest (and cheapest way) to keep your glass clean is a solution of vinegar and water. Apply the vinegar/water solution to the table top and give it wipe over with old newspaper. This is quite honestly the easiest way to clean any glass in your home – it removes all of the grease and grime and is also environmentally friendly. Even though glass will pick up finger prints, so will a polished wood table, and if you have a ‘magic’ duster (the micro fibre type) a finger print is swiftly removed without you having to resort to the fantastic vinegar/water solution.

Glass is Actually Very Difficult to Scratch

Glass and particularly toughened glass is very difficult to scratch. Of course, like any material it will scratch but is certainly more difficult to scratch than say a wooden table top. Knives and forks on a glass table will pose it no significant threat, what you do have to watch out for though is ceramic objects as these may well scratch the glass table top. The bottoms of plates for example where you sometimes have the unglazed ring is a likely culprit for scratching a glass table.

Glass Will Not Stain

One property of glass is that it is inherently a non-porous surface and this makes it ideal for use as a table. In fact this is the very reason that you will see so many glass coffee tables. Spilt drinks, spilt dinner and colouring crayons simply will not stain or mark the glass. A glass table is far more resilient than a wooden one in this aspect. A polished wooden table top may not so readily absorb spilt liquids, but any table tops that are constructed from natural unfinished wood will readily absorb a nice glass of red wine. Rectifying this problem on a wooden table top is extremely difficult and potentially costly – get a table a glass table top though and you have no fear of this happening.

A Glass Table is Ideal for Use in a Smaller Home

If you live in a smaller home a glass table could be the best solution for you, what many sales people won’t tell you is this one big advantage of glass table; they take up no visual space. The very fact that you can see straight through a glass table to floor below means that they won’t impose themselves in your room, and hence they won’t close it in at all. Off course the table still takes up the same amount of space any other table would, but humans tend to only pick up on the visually sense of space and for this reason they are a great investment for the more compact home owner.

Glass is Very Strong

It is odd that we see glass as such a fragile and weak material. Many public buildings are built from glass which is designed to withstand a bomb blast. I’m not insinuating that your brand new glass table will be bomb proof, but it will be very difficult to break. Any glass objects in the home should be made from toughened glass; this term however is slightly misleading because toughened glass is actually no stronger than regular glass, let me explain. The process of toughening glass actually changes what happens to the glass when it breaks. The main hazard with glass is that when it breaks it breaks in to large sharp pieces and this is what people injure themselves on. However, when the glass is toughened and it breaks, it shatters in to lots of tiny fragments that pose no threat to any one.

After reading this article you can probably see why owning a glass table is quiet appealing. There are not many materials that are more special – in terms of there visual appeal and the practicalities – than glass.