Brooklyn Side Table

The Brooklyn glass side table was one of the items I bought for my living room shortly after moving into my new home. I've mentioned in a couple of recent reviews that I decided on glass furniture as the simplistic style of design and clean lines appealed to me and whilst I didn't really take into account just how much of a fingerprint and dust magnet glass surfaces can be I do like the overall look that these key pieces of furniture bring to my home and consider this side table to be a handy item which has proven itself to be a worthwhile buy.

Sold in store and online at Asda the Brooklyn side table can either be bought in a clear or black glass finish. It comes flat packed in a large square box and whilst usually I would recoil at the thoughts of trying to assemble any type of flat pack furniture this table is very easily put together. It features two large square glass pieces and silver effect legs and putting it together is straightforward thanks to the clearly printed illustrative instructions which walk you through the assembly process without any problems. It took me 10 minutes perhaps to assemble the table as it's just a case of attaching the legs to the lower piece of glass and then inserting the supporting struts into the predrilled holes before adding the top piece, quite honestly if I can put this together without any problems then anyone else should be able to do the same as I'm normally useless with anything flat packed but managed to do this within no time at all.

The square pieces of glass are large in size measuring 45cm in length and width and are toughened glass with rounded edges and corners. The Chrome legs and struts are quite chunky in diameter and contrast the clear glass nicely and unlike some chrome finishings that can look cheap or tacky these look of good quality and provide plenty of support to the glass shelves. Asda claims that the upper shelf can hold weights up to 50kg's and the lower 20kg's which is more than enough for what I have on mine and I find that the overall look and finish of the table sits in well with my living room and goes with the other pieces of glass furniture I have in there.

It's an ideal lamp table I think which would look good at the side of a sofa or chair and other than being a bit of a dog to keep clean I have no complaints about mine whatsoever. It's very similar in design to the glass TV stands that are available these days so anyone who's looking to co-ordinate their furniture should find this to be a good match, as mentioned I have a few pieces of glass furniture in my living room and find that this blends in well without being a focal point or distraction and is just a well made piece of functional furniture that has a use. I have a tree 'light' and my telephone on mine but it could be used for anything you want really, the glass shelf is of a good enough thickness that it sits firmly in place without wobbles and as the lower shelf is quite close to the floor you will find that there's plenty of space in-between the two glass shelves for something to be displayed should you wish. I don't like a lot of clutter in my home so tend to leave the bottom shelf free although should I find something suitable to display on there I wouldn't have any concerns as to the table's durability or quality as it is very well made and incredible value for money when you discover how much it actually costs.

I haven't got round to the price yet in this review but it might surprise you to learn that this glass side table only costs £10.00 from Asda, it used to be £14.00 but was reduced before Christmas last year and has remained at the lower price where it's still available today. For what you get for your money I think it makes for a fantastic buy and definitely suited my budget when I was buying things for my living room, you don't get much for a tenner these days especially when it comes to furnishing a home so I didn't hesitate in snapping one of these up when I saw its inexpensive price tag. Of course it does come down to a matter of personal taste with items like this and I can see how it wouldn't be suitable for everybody, anyone with children will hate the thoughts of having to clean it all the time as it does show every single imperfection and speck of dust. Because I live alone with my pet dog for the moment I have no concerns about it getting overly dirty as I wipe it over every day but I would imagine that sticky fingers on the legs and shelves would be a real problem for some.

Similarly as it is glass there's the safety aspect to consider too as it's not going to withstand much abuse should anything be banged on to it and whilst it is 5mm toughened glass it is still relatively fragile and a predominately glass item which could be easily damaged and broken so care should be given to it should you decide to give it room space. It's quite heavy too which could be a concern for some, it's not easily manoeuvred around should you want to move it and of course if you pick it up by the top shelf you end up with fingerprints all over it too which can be a bit of a pain. I rarely move mine to be honest, it has a place in my living room where it stands and overall I've been very happy with what it has given me, so much so that I also bought the matching coffee table for a similarly low price.

All in all there's plenty going for this side table from Asda; its low price, perfect finish and simple design appeals to me and whilst it is a bit of a pain to keep clean I can overlook the niggles I have with it for the effect it gives me and for how useful it actually is. It fits in well with the colour scheme in my living room and looks a lot more expensive than it actually costs and I would definitely recommend this table to anyone who might be on the look out for something inexpensive but functional. It's not really suitable for anyone with small children I wouldn't have thought but for a couple or someone setting up a new home with a limited budget then I think it's a fantastic buy and should definitely be something to consider especially as there are matching items which are sold separately which will compliment the overall look.

Five stars as a rating from me, the Brooklyn side table from Asda is a well made, easy to put together piece of glass furniture which looks far more expensive than its low cost would have you believe. Thanks for reading my review.