Torino Nest of 2 Tables: what the 54 x 37 x 50cm figures cover

The Torino Nest of 2 Tables is listed at 54 x 37 x 50cm. That is one size line for a set of two tables, which raises the question this post is mostly about: the figures read like the larger table's, the listing does not actually say which table they belong to, and the smaller one's size is recorded nowhere on the page.

One size line, two tables

Taken as width, depth and height, the larger table is 54cm across, 37cm front to back and 50cm tall. A nest is built so the second table slides under the first, so the smaller one steps down by whatever its frame needs, and the page does not say by how much. If it is going somewhere particular, a gap beside a chair or under a window ledge, ask us for the smaller table's measurements rather than scaling them off a photograph.

Where a nest beats a single side table

A nest occupies one footprint most of the time and two when you want them. Three situations where that is the better buy:

• A sofa that seats more people than it has end tables. Draw the second table out for the evening and push it back afterwards.
• A narrow sitting room. At 37cm deep the stack takes very little from a walkway, and the second surface only appears while the room is in use.
• Sitting with a laptop. One top for the machine, one for a drink, instead of balancing both on 54 x 37cm.

Measure for the pair, not the stack

Most people measure the stacked footprint of 54 x 37cm and stop there. Measure the open arrangement as well. Side by side the two need the 54cm, plus the smaller table's width, plus a hand's width between them so you are not dragging one against the other, and because that width is not published you should treat it as a question for us rather than a number to assume.

Then check the height. 50cm works where the top of your sofa arm is at or just above it. Over a deep-armed frame the top sits well below the arm, which is fine for a lamp and awkward for a cup of tea.

What the listing leaves open

No material, finish, colour or weight is given, and nothing about whether it arrives assembled. Fourteen photographs are on the product page, so judge the look from those and send us anything they do not answer. We buy this piece in from a supplier, so the copy on the page is the supplier's. Delivery is free within 50 miles of our Glasgow store and £50 beyond.

The rest of the Torino tables

For a third top in the same set, the Torino Nest of 3 Tables carries that same listed size line. If you would rather have one fixed square surface, the Torino Lamp Table is 55 x 55 x 50cm, so its top finishes at the same height as this nest. For a nest from a different range, the Lucca Nest of 2 Tables and the Milan Nest of 2 Tables sit alongside it in Side & Lamp Tables, with their sizes on their own listings.

The figures, the photographs and the price are on the Torino Nest of 2 Tables page, and the smaller table's size is a question we are happy to answer before you order.