BH | Studio Adare Three-Leg Side Table

Three legs have a long country pedigree. On the flagstone and earthen floors of farmhouses and Irish cottages, three legs always find their footing where four can rock, and country makers relied on the principle for the milking stool, the tripod stand and the small three-legged table that stood by many a turf fire.

This small table is made in solid hardwood: a round top, thick and gently rounded at the edge, raised on three tall cylindrical legs that stand close together beneath it like a cluster of short columns. The compact footprint lets it slip beside a sofa arm or into a corner where a larger table would crowd the room, and it is rated to hold 200 lbs, enough for a heavy lamp and a stack of books. The finish, in Chestnut or Jet, brings out a lively grain, felt pads protect the floor, and it needs a little assembly.

Keep it beside a reading chair with a lamp, a cup of tea and the book you are halfway through. It makes a good bedside table in a guest room, with a carafe of water and a small clock, or a perch for a trailing plant in a bright corner. Either finish sits happily with olive and ochre textiles, a worn Persian rug and brass, and a pair either side of a sofa gives a living room a balanced, collected look.