Goodbye 2013, Hello 2014!!! Ah, the coffee table. The finishing piece of a living room. It’s like the shoe of an outfit – a proportionately small piece that makes all the difference in the overall result. It’s common to see a variety of coffee tables in living rooms – size, color, material, style, and shape. Rounded coffee tables have the advantage of minimizing potentially hazardous corners; plus, they never look askew. Rectangular coffee tables mimic the shape of most sofas, so they automatically make sense. But what about a square coffee table? Is there a place in design for them? Indeed there is.

This large coffee table, in a light grey with clean, minimal lines, actually leaves a pretty small visual footprint, despite its size. The table’s large size makes it useful for people at all seats in the room, and the four neat stacks of objects on the square table are balanced and organized.

A low-slung square coffee table gives off a nice loungey feel in this eclectic living room. Especially because it contrasts so perfectly with the small tulip side table. The shape is an appropriate choice, given the other impactful squares in the space (namely, the feature art and large mirror).

Casual and homey, this two-tiered wood and iron coffee table is a perfect addition to this country sitting area. Its simple, sleek form is an excellent balance for the warm honey tones of the wood and casual book stacks, not to mention the comfortable looking wicker seat nearby.

It is said that the square is the most basic of shapes. Whether or not this is true, it certainly provides a subtly stabilizing force in this delightfully, stylishly busy living room. From cowhide rugs to angled lamps, from an imperfect starburst mirror to a vivid ikat chair, there is a lot going on. Which is why a simple black table in the classic black-and-white color palette of the space works so well.

Bold and bright living spaces often make for easy coffee table choices – whatever is the most visually unobtrusive is the best. Which makes this square Lucite number the clear winner in this nautically styled space. Plus, it kind of mimics the reflective transparency of sunlight on the water, which is a thematic bonus here.

Four smaller squares can easily become one larger square coffee table, as is the case in this open contemporary living room. This arrangement is highly versatile for entertaining, either with large or small parties.

I can’t help but fall in love with a huge, worn leather ottoman-turned-coffee table like this one. In a rather delicately hued space, the square piece is standout. It provides a decided sense of history and familiarity and ruggedness.

Speaking of ruggedness, how about the squarishness of this large, low, contemporary coffee table amid a delicious industrial space of crumbly exposed brick and concrete? Perfection.

A square two-toned rustic wood coffee table like this one is unique and perfectly at home here among the leather and hides. An eye-catching planked wood top in a contrasting shade of greeny-blue mimics the steel wall coverings and makes this a conversation piece in an already interesting space.

Picture sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7and 8.