Sideboards, buffets and coffee bars

Length first, everything else after

A sideboard is chosen by length. Too short against a long wall and it looks like a mistake, too long and it blocks a doorway swing. This department runs 29.5 to 65 inches, which covers a compact unit between two doors and a full dining-wall run.

The rule of thumb worth having: a sideboard under a piece of art or a mirror wants to be wider than what hangs above it, by a comfortable margin on each side. Our home page has a fit tool that takes your wall measurement and lists what goes in it, which saves the arithmetic.

Inside, which is where they differ

14 of the 14 sideboards here carry adjustable shelves, and that is the specification that decides whether the cabinet can hold what you own. A fixed shelf at the wrong height turns a dining sideboard into a place for placemats and nothing taller.

Doors come three ways in this department. Hinged doors need swing clearance in front. Sliding doors need none but only ever open half the cabinet at a time. Barn-style doors run on a track across the front and look the part in a room with other timber in it. We name which one a piece has rather than calling them all sliding.

Coffee bars and the drinks cabinet question

Several pieces here are built as coffee bars, with an open middle bay sized for a machine and the cabinets around it for cups and beans. The bay matters because a coffee machine needs headroom for a water tank lid and clearance behind for steam.

The same shape works as a drinks cabinet, and the fluted walnut fronts are the ones that suit that job. Finish across this department runs walnut, oak, natural, grey, black and white.