Taking a cue from Barry, a friend from whom I have stolen several good gardening ideas, I bought this $20 metal side table from Ikea over the summer with the purpose of using it to display some of my 16 agave plants (or is it 17? Someone make me stop.). For months I scoured the thrift stores for something used, hoping to find a table that would match Barry’s, a quality, heavy metal base with what may be a granite top. Luck was not on my side so I gave up and opted for Ikea.

I chose metal because it is lightweight and can hold up to the weather outdoors. Unfortunately, I can no longer find the product on the Ikea website — they may have discontinued it. However, if you are interested in something similar, I also purchased this metal, white side table with the intention of painting it a bright (yet undetermined) colour.

Here you can see that I have tucked the table into the junction between two raised beds. It looks great here but is a bit of a hazard as we have to be conscious of the big blue agave in the centre (ironically named ‘Spineless Blue’) when picking beans or herbs from the bed. We have both poked ourselves on it countless times and I very narrowly avoided getting stuck right in the face just the other day.

Form over function, baby!