The Passo: Buy This Transforming Table (And Trim It)

Think you can’t host a proper Thanksgiving dinner or traditional winter holiday meals because you don’t have enough space or the right tableware? Think again. By investing in a few quality furniture and home décor items that will serve you for years to come, you can finally graduate from the metaphoric kids’ table to the head of your very own table. 

While it’s acceptable to ask your buds to balance plates on their knees when the gang orders Thai after shooting hoops or hitting the gym, and it’s even OK to use TV trays for Netflix binge-watching or for January’s Big Game night, you’ll need to get real about hosting etiquette if you aspire to entertain mixed crowds, large groups, and elders, i.e. Thanksgiving. 

Your first order of business: Get a real table. 

We can’t all shoot out of the gate at the top level, spending top dollar on every home acquisition, but buying one right thing (when possible) beats buying a string of wrong things by a mile. And for those of you living in space-limited urban apartments and starter condos, we have found the right thing when it comes to tables: The Passo Transforming Coffee & Dining Table from Resource Furniture.

We get it. It’s expensive. But investing in this sturdy, built-to-last, visually pleasing and practical table that serves multiple purposes will change your life. When you plash out on a show-stopping centerpiece like the Passo, your folding chairs and IKEA rugs get an upgrade by association. 

Attractively designed with a modern flair, the Passo Transforming Coffee & Dining Table functions beautifully in both large and small spaces as a coffee table when set at its smallest dimensions, making it perfect to pair with a two-person love seat or a three-person sofa, giving you room to grow. 

And when its time to dine, as if by magic you can raise the Passo from coffee table height to dining table height in one silky smooth motion due to its ingenious design involving tiny but highly effective wheels. 

As if that’s not enough, the clever engineering keeps on going with the Passo’s unique telescoping mechanism and self-storing table leaves that allow you to effortlessly extend its length from about 50 inches closed to about a fully extended length of about 90 inches. Using the table’s ingenious fold-out leaves, this workhorse of a table expands from an intimate two- to four-diner piece, to a mid-length which allows six to eight diners to eat comfortably, and finally to a to a banquet length, accommodating 10. 

Resource Furniture has not provided a video showing how the Passo table transforms, but watch here to see The Cristallo Expanding Coffee to Dining Table that functions in an almost identical way. 

Made by Resource Furniture, a forward-thinking company with a metropolitan sensibility featuring showrooms in major global cities such as Mexico City, Montreal, New York, and Los Angeles, the Passo table appeals from a functional design standpoint and artistic aesthetic. Resource Furniture’s brand itself reflects values such as a commitment to sustainability, employee happiness, concerns around human rights and fair treatment of workers in their supply chain, and support of charitable and not-for-profit organizations, drawing like-minded customers mindful about the impact of their spending.

The Passo (along with all of Resource Furniture’s pieces) is custom made to order, and takes 12 to 16 weeks from order to delivery. The options are plenty, with 21 tabletop finishes on offer, beginning with real woods such as Canaletto Walnut, Heat-Treated Oak, and Wild Ash. Combine your favorite with a base in shining chrome, or choose a matte finish for your tabletop, coated in High Gloss White, Graphite (grayish), or Tortora (brownish). 

The bold among you might elect to make a color statement with modern lacquered choices, in both open- and closed- pore finishes, that include pure white and black, along with statement colors such as Amaranto (deep wine), Avio (Grecian blue), or Caramello (smooth orange). For aficionados of a more industrial style, the Cemento collection offers tabletops in pale, medium, and dark hues.

Prices vary depending upon finishes and delivery areas. The Passo table’s price ranges from about $3,500 to $5000 at Resource Furniture.

 

Trim Your Table with Pier 1 Placemats

 

Metallics, particularly in mixed hues, dominate the interior design scene this fall and the trend promises to stay strong through New Year’s Day. A simple and fairly budget-friendly way to add dazzle to your holiday table and stay on-point with what’s hot in home accessories is the addition of the woven foil placemat from Pier 1, available in silver and gold. 

Utterly useful, and charmingly decorative, these table toppers serve double duty. At around $10 per mat, we suggest mixing and matching. 

Protip: Buy a larger number than you think you’ll need for place settings. These versatile mats look great under small centerpieces, atop the mantle with an array of holly and pine cones for holiday decoration, or even lining the bathroom vanity under festive guest soaps and hand towels. 

Silver woven foil place-mats and gold woven foil place-mats are available at Pier 1 stores for about 10 dollars each.

Finally… Flatware

 

Whether your dinnerware is an inherited set of family heirloom china, a set of diner white ceramics from Fishs Eddy, or a mismatched set culled from Goodwill, the Lenox eternal gold 5-piece flatware place setting is the perfect side man.

With its two-toned metallic shine, Eternal Gold Flatware plays well with others, making it a perfect choice if a purchase of silver- or gold-rimmed stemware is in your future. Each 5-piece place setting includes a salad fork, a dinner fork, a dinner knife, a dinner spoon, and a teaspoon.

Gorgeously crafted in 18/10 stainless steel with 24K gold accents and a tailored channel design, this flatware is an excellent choice for the long game. As solid as it is elegant, this cutlery is tarnish resistant, and even though the manufacturer suggests hand-washing, countless reviewers report excellent outcomes when using the dishwasher. 

The on-point gold-and-silver combination works stylishly for this season, but remains a classic. Layered with luxury table dressings such as gold, linen, marble, or lace, this pattern adds to the splendor. Or, use this set with materials from the opposite end of the spectrum — earthy naturals like burlap, leather, terra cotta, or wood for a complementary glimmer of shine. 

The Lenox Eternal Gold 5-Piece Place Setting can be purchased for about 60 dollars at Bed, Bath, and Beyond. 

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