“Customers have been asking us for an extendable table for a long time,” says Johanna Vuorio, owner and CEO of Nikari.

Since listening is at the heart of Nikari — whether to the material itself, wood, or people — Nikari’s Creative Director Jenni Roininen started designing a table to meet this need.

Nikari’s design furniture is always made from solid wood, with an emphasis on understanding and respecting the character and soul of the wood material. For this reason, Roininen began to explore how the sliding mechanism for an extension table could be implemented using traditional woodworking techniques, without relying on ready-made hardware solutions.

Roininen also wanted the table to be part of the already existing Basic series, continuing its minimalistic and serene aesthetic.

“The extension mechanism had to be completely hidden so that it would not affect the table’s appearance in any way,” Roininen explains.

Over the years, Nikari has tested many types of sliding mechanisms, preserving and developing traditional Finnish woodworking skills. Roininen combined existing in-house knowledge with new insights gained from various experiments.

The result — two different extendable tables, including a rectangular shape and an oval shape. Both versions can be extended with one or more leaves that are hidden within the table’s structure when the table is kept at a smaller size.

“The tables work equally well in both long and short versions,” Roininen says.

In order to achieve the desired effect, Roininen realized that the wood grain on the new extendable tables, which usually runs lengthwise, must be made to run crosswise. This solution gives the tables a distinctive character and ensures that the table surface looks unified, where the wood grain leaves no visual breaks when the table is extended with one or more leaves.

The Extendable Basic Table Doesn’t Compromise on Aesthetics

Wood is a living material. The grain patterns on solid wood surfaces, the rings that tell the story of years gone by, are like the most beautiful marble patterns. Roininen didn’t want the extension leaves to disrupt this but wanted the wood grain to align even when extended.

In order to achieve the desired effect, Roininen realized that the wood grain on the new extendable tables, which usually runs lengthwise, must be made to run crosswise. This solution gives the tables a distinctive character and ensures that the table surface looks unified, where the wood grain leaves no visual breaks when the table is extended with one or more leaves.

The first versions of the tables were ready at the start of the year, but like all Nikari products, they went through extensive product testing, in which seasonal changes and weather phenomena were thoroughly evaluated.

“Because wood is a living organic material, it reacts to heat and humidity,” Roininen says.

That’s why the tables were tested in a room that experienced the biting cold of winter, the damp chill of spring, and the heat and high humidity of summer. The product development team monitored the wood’s surface to evaluate how the material behaved across these different extremes.

“The extension mechanism had to be precisely the right size. It can’t be too loose in dry air when the wood shrinks, nor too tight in humid air.”

The Basic Table is a Solid Base for Celebrations

The safety and durability of the extension leaves were also tested multiple times, given that the tables need to be able to withstand regular use and lively celebrations.

Roininen herself dreams of taking the extendable oval version of the Basic table to her home in Hanko, where she already has a Basic oval table in her kitchen. The extendable version offers more flexibility in everyday life — it works as a kitchen dining table in its smaller size, but when extended, it can be moved to the living room or even the porch, becoming the centerpiece for larger gatherings. The oval table can accommodate eight people with the extension leaves, and the rectangular table can seat up to 12 people, allowing for both family and friends to sit and dine together.