I recently had my 40 year old table and chairs refinished. I was considering getting a table pad, but wanted to be able to see the beautiful new finish of the wood. I decided on purchasing Pimpernel placemats and coasters for my table. They are: durable and heat resistant to 212 degrees, finished with a high quality soft cork backing that is kind to your furniture, simply wipe clean and dry the product before storage (do not immerse in water). Pimpernel is a United Kingdom company. I love them. I purchased them on Ebay. There are lots s of patterns to choose from. Best of luck on your journey.

Thank you @kculbers! Very pretty and I will definitely look into those. I understand wanting to see the beautiful finish of the wood - my current table has a beautiful inlaid top and we always had it covered when we had company so no one ever saw it but us! (Much as it pains me, we're replacing that table because it's just too formal and traditional for our new space.)

For every day we'll keep the new table uncovered to enjoy the look; for big parties and holiday dinners I feel safer protecting it with pads so that I don't feel compelled to run around putting coasters under glasses or keeping an eye on the littles.

Today's the day I learned what a table pad is.

I had custom table pads made for the very large desk in my home office I used to have. I had them made locally in the days before the internet.

There are custom table pad companies on-line.

When I host, I put a pad like this one underneath the tablecloth. I got mine at BB&Beyond years ago, they're felted on the back, this link will give you an idea what I'm talking about: Hotel Quilted Tablecloth Pad (kohls.com)

Thank you @porkchop_z5b_MI! The one you posted is certainly way less than the custom-fit pads I've priced!

Growing up, my mother had custom table pads for the formal dining room table. They came in sections, and connected with metal tabs that slid into slots of the adjoining sections. They were thick, and fairly heavy, and stored in the upstairs linen closet. Everytime my folks entertained, which was frequently, my sister and I were tasked with lugging these pads downstairs, for the ceremonial putting together of the pads.

Once I had my own home, I looked for an alternative, and found protective table cloths, much like @porkchop_z5b_MI shows. Got them at the now defunct BB&B. Felted on the underside, plastic on top. Have them in two sizes…one for the table opened to its fullest, and the other for when the leaves are removed. Convenient easy on, easy off, easy to store, slim profile, and inexpensive. Still use them to this day, some 40+ years later.

Berger's. Go to tablepads.com . I had a custom pad done for a quasi-live edge table and it has been perfect. If you have a standard table from a known supplier, they may already have the template and it's as easy as just ordering. If they don't already have a template they will send you a kit to do a template and you send it back to them and then they make the pad/s (mine came in three sections that magnetically attach to each other).

Could a glass top be an alternative that would show the beauty of the wood? We had a local glass company make one for a large desk many years ago.

This is a photo from online of what appears to be a coffee table, but you get the idea:

https://glasstopsdirect.com/pages/table-protectors

It would be a problem if you have extensions.

Note this old discussion from Houzz which is generally positive except for the last comment from two months ago: https://www.houzz.com/discussions/3597465/protect-wood-dining-table-glass-top

I have a glass top coffee table. It shows EVERYTHING -- every fingerprint, smear, moisture ring, food spill, you name it, it never looks clean. I relegated it to the basement man-cave, DH can have it down there I don't have to look at it. Lesson learned -- never again with a glass-top table, life it too short to be a slave to the Windex bottle.

Thanks all! I should have mentioned that my table has two leaves, so a glass top wouldn't work. My current table has the big, velvet-backed pads, which as mentioned above can be a pain to store. I will check out tablepads.com as recommended by @rmsaustin as well as the padded tablecloths mentioned by others. Thanks again!

I’m glad that mxk3 z5b_MI gave real insight after practical experience to my idea of a glass top. Please let us know chicagoans what you decide on and how it works out.

Thanks for your response. I forgot about this thread! (2 years old.) We got custom table pads at Superior Table Pads in Chicago. Great folks, great work, very happy with what we got.