NORDEN Gateleg Table / IKEA
The NORDEN is a birch gateleg table that solves a space problem with a mechanism centuries old. Folded, both leaves drop to leave a 26cm-wide console against a wall; raised, it seats two to four; the pivoting gate legs swing out to carry each leaf, and the structure is left exposed rather than hidden. Six drawers under the top hold cutlery, napkins or candles, so the storage is part of the object rather than an addition. The legs and underframe are solid birch, clear-lacquered. It has been in the IKEA range for decades, and that longevity reflects genuine usefulness: the gateleg idea has not been improved on since the form first appeared, and the table does exactly what it has always done, tool-free and with nothing to store separately.
Design intent
- +The gateleg mechanism is the whole proposition: the table folds to almost nothing and opens to seat four, tool-free, with no parts to store separately.
- +Six integrated drawers fold the table's storage into the object itself, so the dining surface also keeps cutlery and napkins to hand.
Trade-offs
- -Raised fully, the pivot leaves a visible seam down the centre of the top, read as honest construction by some and a limitation by others.
- -The solid birch components want occasional oiling or waxing to resist cracking in dry conditions, more upkeep than a fully veneered surface.
The NORDEN is a birch gateleg table that solves a space problem with a mechanism centuries old. Folded, both leaves drop to leave a 26cm-wide console against a wall; raised, it seats two to four; the pivoting gate legs swing out to carry each leaf, and the structure is left exposed rather than hidden. Six drawers under the top hold cutlery, napkins or candles, so the storage is part of the object rather than an addition. The legs and underframe are solid birch, clear-lacquered. It has been in the IKEA range for decades, and that longevity reflects genuine usefulness: the gateleg idea has not been improved on since the form first appeared, and the table does exactly what it has always done, tool-free and with nothing to store separately.
Design intent
- +The gateleg mechanism is the whole proposition: the table folds to almost nothing and opens to seat four, tool-free, with no parts to store separately.
- +Six integrated drawers fold the table's storage into the object itself, so the dining surface also keeps cutlery and napkins to hand.
Trade-offs
- -Raised fully, the pivot leaves a visible seam down the centre of the top, read as honest construction by some and a limitation by others.
- -The solid birch components want occasional oiling or waxing to resist cracking in dry conditions, more upkeep than a fully veneered surface.
