Our recent garden furniture focus articles have proven to be quite popular according to the visitor stats, and the long term aim is to try and do one for each range in the Lazy Susan collection.
Last month we looked at our Mia Round Garden Table and Alice Round Garden Table, so this month we’ve decided to take a look at the popular Catherine Oval Garden Table range.
With Alice and Mia both on the more compact side, Catherine is a 208 cm long x 103 cm wide oval dining-style garden table, perfect for those with a large family or who like to entertain friends.
Catherine is available to purchase as a 6 or 8 seater set, and this beautiful table features a classically styled intricate, woven metalwork tabletop with recessed legs.
Weighing in at 30kg, our Catherine table is robust enough to withstand the British weather, yet light enough for two people to easily pick up and move around your garden if required.
Our Catherine Garden Table range has long been a customer favourite and, in our opinion, it is the perfect choice for all your outdoor dining needs. If you and your family like to enjoy a spot of al fresco partying in style, then this could be the set for you.
If you’re undecided on which shape or size of Lazy Susan garden table is right for you, or what will work best on your patio, then hopefully this Garden Furniture Focus post will help not only introduce you to the full Catherine Oval Garden Table range but also provide some helpful advice on how to make the right purchase.
About our Catherine Oval Garden Table
Catherine is available in a choice of our Antique Bronze, Slate Grey or White painted protective finishes. Proving popular since launch, the Lazy Susan website features hundreds of positive customer reviews and photographs of each Catherine table in our range.
The full collection is centred around our design ethos of classically styled outdoor furniture constructed to sit in your garden in all weather. Each piece combines durability and weather-resistant materials into a table that is both practical and designed for the Great British patio.
The larger sizing of the 208 cm x 103 cm oval table means that you can comfortably sit up to 8 of our Garden Chairs around it, and depending on what you need, it is available to purchase as a 6 seater (picture above) or 8 seater (pictured below) set.
The Catherine oval garden table range is available in Antique Bronze, Slate Grey and White
We’re only a month or so away from the start of our busy summer season, so now is the ideal time to purchase new patio furniture. Our popular ranges such as Catherine are in stock, and we can guarantee delivery in time for summer.
Our Antique Bronze 6 Seater and 8 Seater Catherine sets (pictured above) continue to be one of our best selling garden tables. This timeless black finish with subtle bronze stippling offers a classic style that will contrast perfectly with your patio.
If you wanted to mix it up a little and put a modern twist on our timeless design, then our contemporary Slate Grey 6 Seater and 8 Seater Catherine sets (pictured above) combine modern sophistication with our trademark elegance.
Alternatively, you could add a little Parisienne chic with our White 6 Seater and 8 Seater Catherine sets (below), which we guarantee will add a little romantic charm to your outdoor space.
We tipped our white colourway to be one of this year's most popular trends in our recent top 20 garden furniture trends for summer 2022 article, and from the customer photograph above, it is clear to see why!
If you’re still undecided which colour is right for you and your patio, then please order one of our Free Sample Packs. As an online retailer, this is the best way to see both the quality and colour finish across the Catherine range.
The full Catherine Oval Garden Table range
Catherine 6 Seater Oval Garden Table in Antique Bronze
Catherine 6 Seater Oval Garden Table in Slate
Catherine 6 Seater Oval Garden Table in White
Catherine 8 Seater Oval Garden Table in Antique Bronze
Catherine 8 Seater Oval Garden Table in Slate
Catherine 8 Seater Oval Garden Table in White
Why purchase a Catherine Oval Garden Table from Lazy Susan?
We’ve published a number of articles on our Lazy Living Blog that discuss which material, size, shape and style of garden table are best, and they will often weigh up the pros and cons of the various options.
When the Lazy Susan customer service team speak to those who’re unsure of which size and shape of garden table is best for them, then their advice is always to purchase a table based on the following 4 components:
- A garden table that fits with how they like to use their garden?
- A garden table that fits with who likes to use their garden?
- A garden table that fits into the free space on their patio?
- A garden table that fits with the shape of their garden?
If you’re lucky to have a large garden/patio, then you have the option of purchasing a larger garden table such as Catherine. If space is limited then you may need to look at our smaller 4 seater and 2 seater bistro-style sets. However, if you have a large family or you like to entertain a large group of friends, space permitting, then Catherine could be the perfect table for you.
The popularity of our larger 8 and 6 seater outdoor dining sets is primarily down to it being the perfect size for entertaining and the practicality of oval-shaped garden tables on large landscape-shaped patios. And by landscape we mean as in the painting format, and wider than they are long.
Size-wise, Catherine is the perfect set for a large family, and with the average size of patio in the UK for a 4+ bedroom property being around 25-30 metres square, it will fit on the space in terms of scale and proportion.
You don’t want it to fill the space, there needs to be room when both table and chairs are in situ for other items such as a BBQs, planters, etc, and that you have enough free “working” space so that people can walk around safely and the space still “flows” (more of that later).
In terms of the oval shape, it has always been a popular option, and for good reason. The elongated form provides a more formal style of seating that works well in both kitchen and dining rooms and transfers perfectly to the outside of our homes too.
Not only is it a very appealing looking shape, but it also has some practical advantages over round or rectangular tables. For a start, no sharp corners make it easier to pull up additional seating and squeeze a few more guests around it, while the curved edges also help to create the illusion that they take up less space, and can help to soften a large rectangular patio.
In terms of the actual footprint, there's not that much difference between a rectangular garden table and our pill-shaped oval, however, the curves trick the eye into thinking there is, and although they do reduce the space a little, the overall effect is always a lot more dramatic.
If you’re deliberating what shape table will work best in your garden, then our oval garden tables are a safe bet. In a way they offer the best of all shapes, combining the linear dining-style benefits of a rectangular with a little more of the intimacy and flexibility of a round table.
Oval garden tables fit well on a larger size patio whilst helping to create good flow around the space. They function well in terms of both informal and formal-style dining, while the rounded edges are great for complementing the curves we often find in our gardens or contrasting against/softening a straight-edged patio space.
If you have quite a square/rectangular space, then a large oval garden table such as Catherine will help to soften it, whilst the long straight edge still fits perfectly with the lead edge of the patio.
Why purchase cast aluminium garden furniture?
Our Catherine range is constructed from high-grade sand-cast aluminium, which has a number of advantages over other popular materials sold in the UK.
Is it designed to not rot, pit or rust and, our durable painted finish protects the metal from the elements, so it will not fade in the sun and is water-resistant.
Cast aluminium is extremely low maintenance compared to other materials, and you don’t need to store it inside or cover it in the winter (although I do just to keep it clean and ready to use).
To keep it clean all it will need is an occasional wash down with warm soapy water and maybe a little car wax to keep its lustre.
The design-ethos of our garden furniture collection are built around classic style in a modern package. We offer pieces that won’t go out of fashion in a few summers.
Our traditional sand casting technique is combined with a sophisticated protective finish to create high quality and highly durable garden furniture, and you can find out more about how we make our cast aluminium on our how it is made page.
When Michael Scott started Lazy Susan he selected cast aluminium as our core material after much research and deliberation. His choice was made after rigorously testing a number of options but it proved to be the perfect solution for the UK climate, with a number of distinct advantages over other materials such as wood, steel, resin, and rattan:
- It will not pit, rot or rust
- Low maintenance
- Long-life guarantee
- Designed to be left outside all year
- Protective painted finish
- UV & water-resistant
- Easy to assemble
- Safe to ship
- Aesthetically stylish and sophisticated
- Ergonomically designed
- High-quality look, finish and feel
Cast aluminium is a great material in terms of both durability and value for money. Our recent what garden furniture is best for the UK climate post looked in detail at the pros and cons and why we feel it is the sensible choice for gardens that can see snow, rain, wind and shine (and that can be in just one day).
Upgrade the garden chairs with your Catherine oval garden table
Our Catherine Garden Tables come as standard with our April Garden Chairs (shown above). April features an intricate traditional metal-work design with overlapping arcs and a gently curved back with a lattice-work seat. Weighing in at just 6kg, it’s a lightweight chair that is easy to pick up and pull in and out.
There’s also the option with each Catherine Garden Table to upgrade to our Rose, Emma or Kate chairs (as pictured below).
When we designed our Garden Chair Collection, the aim was to create a range that combined comfort, stability, weather resistance and classic design.
Our chairs won’t go out of fashion, are ergonomically designed, compliment our garden tables and are designed to fit with the style of our homes and gardens.
Save on accessories when you purchase Catherine
As well as the option of upgrading the Garden Chairs with Catherine, you can also add our fab bundle deals to your basket and save on our Parasols, Lazy Susans, and Outdoor Cushions, with discounts of 30-70% off RRP.
You’ll find details of these bulk savings in the gift section (as shown below) on each product page.
How to style a Catherine Oval Garden Table
Getting the right garden furniture, as with any big-ticket purchase, is just down to a little research, and finding a set that fits your lifestyle.
Take a little time to consider your budget, outdoor free space, and how you like to use your garden and carefully take some time to measure up before you buy.
You want a garden table that fits into the surrounding patio/wider outdoor space but doesn’t look lost. It should draw the eye (and you) outside and invite you to sit and use it.
The best way to do that is to frame it, emphasise it and style it… Styling is key to creating an outdoor space that you and your family will love spending time in.
All our garden tables feature beautiful intricate metalwork. They look beautiful on their own but they can be made even more inviting with a few simple styling touches and accessories.
The key to styling our Catherine garden tables is to put your own stamp on them. Make it your own just like you would a table inside your home.
The more your outdoor space showcases your style and is set up with how you like to use it, the more you will do just that.
Add outdoor accessories such as Planters, Cushions, Outdoor Rugs, Accessories, Lighting and Decor. Bring it to life like you would a room inside your home.
Frame the garden table with tall planting or an outdoor structure such as a pergola to further enclose the space for privacy, shade and relaxation.
Good scale and proportion are critical to designing a space that not only works well in terms of flow but looks inviting and is a joy to spend time in.
We looked at this subject in our what size garden table should I buy post, and achieving a balance between a garden table that is not so small that it looks lost and not so big that it doesn’t leave enough room for you to move around the space is so important.
A good garden table should function as an extension of your home, and be the place you and your family spend time when the sun shines.
How to assemble our Catherine Oval Round Garden Tables
Our Catherine tables are shipped Ready To Assemble (RTA) and all our furniture is simple to build. It is securely packaged for ease of transport but when constructed it has the strength and good looks you’d expect from quality garden furniture.
We provide clear instructions (as shown above), parts and tools for the construction, and all fixings are provided for you in a separate card ‘pop-out’ packet.
The video below shows how easy it is to assemble our Gloria oval garden tables, however, the same process applies to our Catherine tables.
The following video shows the assembly process for our April garden chairs:
When you see the crossed through spanner symbol, this means that at this stage of the process, you should only finger-tighten the bolts.
When all bolts are in place, then you can fully tighten with the spanner provided. This ensures that the table or chair legs are fitted evenly and in the correct position.
Our easy to build garden chairs article has some great tips, however, if you do have any questions about assembly, then please don’t hesitate to contact our Customer Service team.
Catherine Technical Specifications & Dimensions
Of course, the big question before you purchase a Catherine set, is do you have the space for it?
The diagram above shows the recommended floor space we suggest for our Catherine Oval Garden Tables, while the dimensions of the table itself are shown in the technical illustration below.
Our Catherine table is 208 cm long x 103 cm wide, so for you to comfortably sit 6 to 8 Garden Chairs you need an additional 75 cm of space around the table.
We would also recommend a further 50 - 75 cm of “working space” so that you have room to pull chairs out and so that you can safely move around when people are seated.
All this is shown in the first diagram (above) but please note that this is just a guide, you might think you can work with less space. Every patio is different and you need to factor in other features such as walls, steps, BBQ, fire pit, etc.
If need be, draw it to scale on a piece of graph paper to help you visualise and plan the layout. This will help to calculate if the table and chairs will fit and if the space will still function.
If you take the dimensions of our Catherine garden table at 208 cm x 103 cm and add on the 75 cm for garden chairs and 75 cm working space then you need approximately 358 cm x 253 cm or approx. 9 m² of free space (give or take) on your patio.
This sounds a lot, but the average size of a patio in the UK is around 20 - 25m², so you can see why Catherine is a popular choice, especially with larger 4+ bedroom homes which will generally have a larger than average patio.
Of course, this also depends on how you plan to configure the seating/the number of seats. For example, if you purchase as a 6 set, you can position 3 seats down each of the long sides, enabling you to push the curved edge close to a wall or edge of the patio.
Catherine Shipping & Delivery
If your order a Catherine set, as with all our larger furniture sets, it will be delivered by Simply Parcels or via the Pall-Ex network.
Depending on the size of your order (if you add other items as a bundle for example), it will either be a 1 or 2 man delivery.
For all 2 man deliveries, your furniture will carefully be delivered to your garden, patio or outdoor space, ready for you to assemble.
For orders being shipped by Simply Parcels, you’ll be contacted via text or email within 7/10 working days of your order to arrange a suitable delivery time.
For orders delivered by the Pall-Ex network, it will leave our warehouse within 7 working days and be delivered by pallet and placed in front of your property, for you to take charge of.
Our couriers will aim to contact you as soon as possible, to keep you updated with tracking information and let you know when you can expect your furniture to be delivered.
We ask that you please provide a mobile number when placing your order so that Simply Parcels or Pall-Ex can contact you.
If at any stage of the process you have any questions regarding your delivery, please contact our Customer Service Team or contact the courier direct.
Full contact details for all our providers can be found on our Track Order page.
What our customers are saying about our Catherine Oval Garden Tables
With hundreds of positive customer reviews, Catherine is one of our best selling sets.
Here are just a few examples of what people have been saying about our garden furniture:
We have just had our old pond renovated and wanted a comfortable seat so that we could sit and watch the wildlife. We did a good search of the Internet and Lazy Susan's rose garden seat came top of the list. Not only that, it was so reasonably priced, in comparison to some that we saw, we also bought a cushion to fit and a small table on which to place our cups of tea while we wait for the wildlife to emerge.
Mary B.
Had my eye on this garden set for years! When our holiday was cancelled, I managed to persuade my husband to spend some of the holiday money on this. The entire time my husband was putting it together I could hear him saying 'this is a lovely bit of kit' That says it all. We are truly delighted with our purchase. Thank you.
Sally Z.
A great company to deal with: friendly, knowledgeable and quick. The goods were very well packed to exclude any possible damage during transportation. The instructions and the assembly are clear and easy, the quality and the sturdiness are impeccable. We are overall very delighted, even with the price, can only recommend.
Wolfgang K.
As always, I am absolutely delighted with the item I purchased from you. Over several years, I have bought six chairs and three tables, and they all still look as fresh as the day I first assembled them. I fully expect the bench I bought the other day will perform just as well. Thank you for a really fine product, which is quick and easy to assemble, and looks stunning.
Alan W.
I love my garden table. Sturdy yet light to move around the garden. And the metal finish means it will always look smart.
Alison W.
Stunning furniture. Easy to assemble and looks fabulous on our new patio. Looks great with or without the cushions and equally comfortable. Excellent customer service and arrived earlier than expected. Highly recommend.
Diane E.
Lazy Susan is a beautiful addition to any outdoor space. It is attractive in design and practical in use. It does not need to be treated or covered. It is also not so heavy that It cannot be moved easily. It gives me great pleasure and I would recommend it to anyone thinking of buying it.
Mary S.
The communication between company and customer was quick and uncomplicated. The design was exactly what we wanted and the items were easy to assemble. The seating is an absolute eye-catcher in our property
Pia R.
You can see all our 2700+ product reviews on our Trustpilot page.
Customer photos of our Catherine Oval Garden Tables
As well as our testimonials we have some fab Customer Photos of our Catherine Tables that can help you visualise what this beautiful set could look like in situ on your patio.
Help us Do Some Good when you purchase Catherine
For every Catherine customer photograph we receive, we donate to one of our charity partners.
To find out how you can get involved and to read more about the charities we've donated to, head over to our Charity page
Contact our Customer Service Team
The Lazy Susan team are always happy to answer any questions you may have.
If you would like to know more about our Catherine range, then please don’t hesitate to give us a call on 01243 717197, or drop an email to [email protected].
At Lazy Susan we endeavour to answer all emails within 2 hours during normal office hours.
We’re also happy to send out samples of colours for cushion covers and the metal finish of our Mia tables. They’re sent by post and can be ordered on our Free Sample Swatches page.
Why purchase our Catherine Garden Tables?
Our Catherine Oval Garden Tables are just one of the many beautiful outdoor dining sets in the Lazy Susan collection. If you decide it’s the right set for you, measure carefully, and make sure it works in the space. Purchase the right size table and number of chairs for how many people you want to comfortably sit.
Our garden tables aren’t just for dining, we are drawn to them for many reasons when the sun shines, from coffee with friends to a spot of crafting with the kids. A good garden table such as our Catherine will form the focal point in your garden. They are designed to be comfortable to sit for long periods of time and the material used is durable and weather resistant.
Shop our full Catherine Oval Garden Table range today.