I am without a beside table. Have been for quite some time. In fact if you follow me on Instagram then you’ll remember this photo from weeks ago – it’s of one of my Ercol vintage kitchen chairs being used as a makeshift book-and-vase stand. Rather more attractive than the empty mattress box that was there previously, but not at all ideal, especially because the seat is curved and I can’t safely stand my pint glass of water on it!
I really struggle with finding good bedside tables. I didn’t even find any for my old house, after we’d renovated it – I stuck with the trusty old Malm units from IKEA that we’d used in the house before that one because I had failed to find anything new.
And the thing is, I do actually like having a bedside table. I like to have drawers so that I can sweep all of my crap into them, things like old tissues and spent batteries and loyalty cards for shops I’m never going to visit again. I like to keep my drawers stocked with things I’ll never need and make sure that all of the important things – painkillers, new tissues, lip balms, hairbands, a torch – are kept in far-flung places around the house. It makes life interesting. Seriously, though: I do find at least one drawer to be invaluable. Things that I need at night (including ear plugs and scraps of paper to write ideas on) tend to be the sorts of things that I don’t particularly want on display. Never mind the fact tha...