Make a folding stool with your own hands. Features of making a folding stool with your own hands

We make a comfortable and stylish folding stool with our own hands

There was a dystopian story by Sheckley called “This Mad, Mad World.” It described the world of the future, where “disposable” things reigned. Costumes falling apart, food turning sour in fifteen minutes, furniture falling apart within a week. And the action revolved around a man who gave his wife a real wooden stool as a gift. Today we will try to make a beautiful and durable folding stool for ourselves and our loved ones with our own hands.

The appearance of a do-it-yourself folding stool

This is not so easy for a beginner, but the main thing is desire.

Required Tools

As in any good undertaking, we immediately encounter obstacles and obstacles, and the first of them is the availability of the necessary tools. I won’t talk about my tool cabinet - you’ll be jealous, but I will pull out the necessary devices and units from it and list them:

• Manual frezer.
• Electric jigsaw with a set of files for finishing wood cuts.
• Screwdriver. It should be powerful enough so that you don’t have to take out the drill as well.
• Sander.
• Long clamps.
• Roulette.
• Pencil.
• Right construction angle.

I will pull out small tools as needed, but I can say this: A good set of tools always pays for itself. Never buy a cheap power tool - it looks attractive, but is only suitable for competitions in aimed throwing into a trash can.

Materials and accessories

I did not set out to set up production, but only researched the question: How to make a folding stool with your own hands. Therefore, I did not purchase materials separately, but purchased a beech furniture panel measuring 1120x400x24 millimeters, from which I cut out the necessary parts. The thickness is quite suitable for all parts - we leave it as such.

Fastening is also minimal:

• Butterfly loops 35x35 millimeters in span, 4 pcs.
• Stud 8x250 mm with double threading and end nuts.
• Dowels or in other words “dowels” 8x50 mm.
• High-quality wood glue or PVA emulsion.
• Tinting varnish - beech wood looks especially “juicy” under it.

The dimensions of the entire sawing are clear from the drawing, so there is no point in listing the details as separate items. But processing them requires some concentration.

Processing parts of a folding stool

Cutting a perfect circle with a diameter of 350 millimeters from beech wood is not difficult for a person with a steady hand. But a folding stool, made with your own hands, requires the presence of a handle. In order to make the handle visible in the pictures, you need a feather drill. I took the first one that came to hand, 22 mm in diameter, and used it to drill two holes in the future seat, maintaining the same distance from the edge of the circle. The distance between centers is approximately 120 mm.

By connecting them with cuts, we get a comfortable handle.

Comfortable handle

There were no special problems with the milling cutter either - I took a regular semicircular end cutter and processed all the parts on both sides. It is clear that there is no need to process the parts of the legs from the inside and the jumper.

But an 8.5 mm straight cutter, which we need to cut a groove in the inner frame of the legs, can pose a problem - they are not sold everywhere. There are two alternative options for cutting this groove:

• Drill holes along the entire length of the groove and knock out the jumpers between them using a thin chisel.
• Drill two end holes (as when milling) and cut a “channel” between them with a jigsaw. In this case, you will have to buy a special saw for longitudinal cutting.

Groove in the inner frame of the legs

The legs on top must be cut at an angle of 30 degrees. The angle is critical, so if you don’t have a miter box, contact a carpentry shop.

The legs must be cut at an angle of 30°

Attention! Do not try to make this angle “by eye” or “at random” - it must be clear and even, otherwise all the work will go down the drain.

It’s better to just round the legs at the bottom.

The jumpers between the legs are placed on dowels with glue. Coat the completely adjacent surfaces and do not forget to drop glue into the holes for the dowels. Tighten the leg parts with clamps and leave until completely dry, removing excess glue.

Finished legs of a folding stool

Assembling a folding stool

The folding stool is assembled with your own hands strictly according to the dimensions indicated in the drawings. Only in this case you will not have problems with this design. The hinges are screwed onto 3.5x16 mm self-tapping screws.

The legs are attached to the seat with hinges

From the scrap of the shield, carve a tube covering the middle of the pin. I have a small lathe, but you can do without it by making a multi-faceted tube instead of a round one using a regular plane - it looks no worse.

Folding stool is ready

Good luck to you.

“Can you put together a box? Yes? Okay, you’ll make stools for now.” This is from a conversation with a new job seeker in a small furniture company. Indeed, making a simple stool with your own hands is no more difficult than making a box. That one may be more difficult if it is retractable in a nightstand. Therefore, for those interested in carpentry, it is better to master it by starting with a stool. You won’t save a lot of money on this, stools are inexpensive. But the acquired skills will allow you to start working on large cabinet furniture, which will give you significant savings, plus unique items in the interior.

A stool as a starting object in the furniture business has another advantage: it requires little planing and sawing work with the inevitable debris, you can test your carpentry abilities on the balcony or even in the kitchen. Having made sure that things are going well, we will think about a carpentry workshop with a workbench and other things; Without it, you won’t be able to make the furniture more impressive.

The device and something about the terms

A classic kitchen stool made of wood is constructed as shown in Fig. It can also be seen there that its design is a bit complicated for a beginner, but we will get to it through simpler samples, but no worse. In this case, the picture is needed for something else.

The reader may think that calling the support beam a drawer, and the ties/spacers with legs is a purely furniture-specific feature, sort of like a sailor’s bench is a bank. As for the kings, this is not so. Drawbars can also be found in other branches of technology, and there they are by no means beams, either in appearance or in the nature of the load.

In fact, the drawer is a structural element that distributes multidirectional loads across the components of the power circuit. When distributing the load, it is impossible not to experience it, therefore it is structurally, technologically and economically justified to make the drawers also load-bearing, i.e. make them work.

In furniture production, the frame is most often combined with a support beam in the form of a board or beam placed on the edge. This idea is so ingrained that some experienced carpenters consider any such board to be a tsarga. However, drawers in furniture are very diverse.

For example, at pos. 1 pic. (underneath a stool with legs in sockets) the drawers are still quite drawer-bearing beams, only made of timber. But already at pos. 2 kings are scarves, and their frame does not hold anything and is only decorative; on pos. 3 tsar-kerchiefs can do without it. And at pos. 4 (dressing table) drawer - a jib, which is a beam no more than a gusset.

Table with removable legs, pos. 4, the case is generally interesting. When it is disassembled, the drawer will be a shaped steel brace, because only in this case it keeps the boards of the underframe from breaking out of the tabletop when pushed, or simply from falling apart if the tabletop is also removed. But when the legs are in place, their heads are pressed into the corners and the table is standing, the boards of the underframe will become both beams and frames, because support both vertical and lateral loads. In this case, it is even legitimate to talk about attaching the legs to the drawers (!), because the product acquires proper strength and rigidity only when the mounting units of the legs are assembled and loaded.

Drawers made from boards can also be vertical posts rather than beams. In this case, they are called combat drawers, pos. 6. In general, with frames you need to do the same as with beams: first of all, look at how they work in the structure, but how they look is the second to fifth question. It was necessary to immediately be distracted by the drawers, because... in furniture they are found all the time.

What do we do?

To make a stool, let's see what you can do. Not everything, there is an endless variety of stools, but for starters, typical examples. Our task is to choose what is simpler and better for a specific purpose.

The classic kitchen stool can be both utilitarian and very artistic, pos. 1 and 2 in Fig. Its design has evolved over centuries and such stools serve for many decades. The strength of the structure allows the stool to be used as a work table, everyone knows this. You can start working on a classic stool from the very beginning, having learned a few woodworking techniques, see below.

In lightweight stools, pos. 3-8, the legs are attached either without drawers at all, in sockets in a thick, durable seat, or in sockets in kerchief drawers. In the first case, both the seat and the legs have to be thickened, so such stools are inferior to others in strength, and often in appearance and position. 3.

To make a lightweight stool strong, its legs are tied with tie rods: the lower, the stronger and the thinner the tie bars can be, pos. 4 and 5. But the low frame made of ties interferes with the legs of the person sitting, and cutting into the thin legs of the stool weakens them. Therefore, instead of a simple frame, they often make an H-shaped one, pos. 6, or place ties at different levels, pos. 7.

The greatest strength and convenience is provided by the X-shaped tie system (tie cross), pos. 8. With a certain configuration of the legs, it is possible to do without the lower cross; One example of this kind will be discussed below.

Important subtleties

If you ever decide to make a lightweight stool, keep in mind, firstly, that its legs should be slightly apart, i.e. the axes passing through the centers of the heads and heels of the legs should deviate from the vertical by 7-12 degrees outward relative to the axis of symmetry of the stool. The second option is that the legs should be arched and expand upward, see below. Without one or the other, the legs may break even when slightly rocking on a stool. Moreover, both solutions are valid if the stool is symmetrical about the vertical axis, i.e. not extended in plan. An exception, up to a proportion of 1:1.5, is a stool with ties at different levels; it can be pulled out in the direction of the lower ties.

Second, in order to cut the heels and heads of the legs to the required angle, their blanks need to be collected in a tightly tightened bag and cut in 1 pass. Otherwise, the stool will remain an oblique spread: the vertical legs can then be adjusted to the length along the length, but the accuracy of the angles required for processing the legs one by one is simply impossible to achieve on wood. The angles will already go half a degree or a degree away from the drawing, but this is not so important, as long as all the legs are the same.

Stools-cabinets, pos. 9 and 10, are heavy and material-intensive, but very durable, because consist, from a mechanical point of view, of 3 sides located in mutually perpendicular planes. These same stools are easy to make, and it’s better to start mastering furniture making with them. In such a case - in Fig. drawings of 2 types. At pos. on the right, the details of the cabinet also cut into half the tree, see below; The groove for insertion is not shown. The seat in both cases can be of any centrally symmetrical shape; they place it on dowels, see below. The covers on round pedestal stools make them look indistinguishable from more labor-intensive poufs if you make an upholstered seat, as described below.

Note: in the inset at the bottom left of Fig. variant of a stool-cabinet for a summer residence. It requires 4 parts, but it does not get bogged down in loose soil.

Box-shaped or panel stools (items 11 and 12) require 4 parts, but are lighter and less disturbing to the legs. Making them is no more difficult than the previous ones, and all connections are dowel, which makes the work somewhat easier. Box stools can be extended in length until they become benches, and their strength and stability depend very little on height. The well-known utility stool (item 12) is from this breed. In general, stools made from panels are also a rewarding object for a beginning carpenter, so we provide drawings for them of several types: a normal room height, on the right in the figure, a lower utility height, on the left in the same place, and below - the construction of a very small children’s stool.

Note: in Fig. on the right is a diagram of a reinforced box-shaped stool. Pos. c) there is a way to make it look more attractive by veneering the sides. This stool is well suited for a dacha: it is simple, light, inexpensive, looks good, and is not inferior to the classic one in terms of durability and convenience.

Stools for pos. 13 and 14 only look like box-shaped ones, but in fact they each have 4 wide and flat legs. Therefore, such stools must be made with drawers made of boards or beams, and the legs must be fastened with a leg. True, in this case there is only one and can be located so that it does not interfere with the legs at all.

The next variety available for beginners to make on their own is step stools with X-shaped legs. To give them the required strength, they require either 2 drawers and 2 legs, located mutually perpendicular, pos. 15, or 4 drawer-beams forming the upper frame, and 1 tie between the crosses of the legs. The latter option can be fit into the interior of a living room or bedroom, but most of all the spreaders are made folding. If you suddenly become interested, see Fig. folding country stool, drawings and folding method. You can assemble a country house set from these and a garden folding table. In general, there are many designs of folding stools for different purposes, from a fishing stand to furniture for picnics, and some of them are easy to make with your own hands.

Note: All the described stools are quite plastic and tolerant of the configuration of parts, so their creative executions in different styles and poses are possible. 17-20.

Materials, tools, technology

What to make it from?

The wood is suitable for making any stool. In terms of strength and durability, a wooden stool is second only to a forged metal one, and in terms of convenience and functionality it has no equal among its peers. Any quality wood will be suitable for a stool, except for very soft and easily rotting species: poplar, willow, aspen, alder.

The quality of wood for any furniture is determined, firstly, by the absence of visible defects: cracks, falling knots, chips, wormholes, traces of rot and mold in the form of spots of a color unusual for this species, see fig. Secondly, the wood for furniture must be room-dry, with a humidity of 8-12%. Kiln-dried wood (humidity up to 8%) is of limited use for furniture, because during the drying process, its structure may be damaged and furniture made from it in the room may shrink or crack over time.

Note: cross-grained and twisted wood for furniture in handicraft production is in many cases acceptable, and sometimes desirable, because allow you to get a beautiful texture. The famous Karelian birch is nothing more than an ordinary warty birch, completely curled due to unfavorable growing conditions.

The wood is air-dry, with 12-20% humidity (this is ordinary timber) must be kept in a dry room at a temperature of 15-30 degrees for 1-6 weeks, stacked on stands that do not dampen. The initial plots (boards, beams) are placed on supports at intervals, and the next belt (layer) of the stack is also placed on supports; Now you can use the same plots as them, laying a pair across.

Note: It is impossible to dry the wood under the influence of heating devices or incandescent lamps - we will get very poor chamber wood.

They usually use pine or spruce for the seat of the stool, and harder wood for the legs: birch, oak, maple, beech. Of course, the entire stool can be made from hardwood. Of the fairly accessible imported breeds, wenge, hemlock, and mahogany are suitable.

A complete replacement for wild wood will be modified wood - medium and high density MDF. MDF is not impregnated with anything; it is made from industrial wood sawing waste compressed at elevated temperatures, i.e. The material is completely environmentally friendly. MDF is inferior to wild wood in terms of abrasion resistance, so it is advisable to fill the heels of MDF legs with solid wood soles.

From plywood you can make pedestal and box-shaped stools, as well as covered stools with an X-shaped tie of legs (item 8 in the figure at the beginning) and similar ones in the power scheme. Also, plywood will fit on the seat of any stool. As a rule, only box-shaped stools are made entirely from chipboard, because... in the designs of all the others there are points of concentrated loads, which chipboard does not support. But chipboard will also work well on the seat.

Note: It is highly advisable to impregnate plywood for furniture with a water-polymer emulsion on both sides and at the end.

About the glue

Most furniture joints are glued. Traditionally, bone wood glue is used for this. It is inexpensive, does not require touch-drying before joining parts, and gains strength as soon as it hardens. But to prepare it you need a glue maker, which, however, you can make yourself.

Liquid nails wood glue is very strong. It also makes it possible to hide glue seams, because... it is tinted to look like wood with sawdust, or you can buy a ready-made tinted one. Even better is water-based acrylic wood glue.

Liquid nails and acrylic are quite expensive, so in many cases they are replaced with almost equally durable PVA, but not the usual office grade for paper, but for wood. The corresponding marking must be looked at on the label, and wood PVA is sold not in office supplies, but in construction and hardware stores. It is necessary to glue parts on PVA only after exposure to tack; glue is applied to both parts to be joined. Allow for at least a day to gain strength, only then can you continue working or load the connection.

Note: All adhesive joints do not hold seam shear well, i.e. they need to be reinforced in this direction in various ways; about some, see below.

What to do?

We will assume that since you are a craftsman, you have simple measuring, marking and working tools, including chisels and chisels. It is also advisable to have a caliper with a depth gauge. But in order to start making stools and furniture in general, you need to stock up on a couple more devices first.

Firstly, a surface gauge (reismus) for marking, see fig. You can do it yourself by using a couple of screws instead of a lever lock. If you wish, you can use a homemade surface planer; amateurs do it.

Secondly, wooden panels for furniture are not assembled just like that; they will come out hunchbacked and cracked. Shields need to be united, i.e. When assembling, do not glue the boards, press them tightly against each other with their edges until the glue dries completely and gains strength. See below how the shields are held together, but for now you need to make devices for this: plazas or weims. The basis in both cases is strong, even and seasoned boards of at least 150x50 for plaza and 120x50 for vaym.

A very convenient plaza made from a screw clamp and a stop with a dead center, pos. 1 in Fig. If there are no components for it, then the simplest plaz, pos. 2. The boards in it are compressed with wedges, pos. 2a, alternately beating with a mallet, and roughly matching the size of the shield, place a spacer from the same board as the base of the plaza.

Large shields, approximately longer than 50 cm, cannot be rallied on the plaza, because its base itself bends. In addition, the extension of the edges of the boards beyond the plaza should not exceed 150 mm, i.e. on a plaza from 250 mm boards you can assemble a shield up to the same 50 cm wide. This is enough for a stool, but for the future it is better to get 3-4 wires, pos. 3. The fastening of the end stop bosses in all cases must be very strong, using M8-M12 through bolts with nuts, because Very large forces act on the work stops.

How to do?

To make a stool, you first need to master several types of connections of wooden parts:

• Insert into half a tree (half a tree).
• Tongue and tongue connection.
• Tongue-groove connection.

Half a Tree

Half-tree connection shown in Fig. Technologically, it is the simplest and quite reliable if it is additionally fastened, 2-3 points per connection, with dowels, self-tapping screws, bolts, nails and, optionally, glued. When working with a hand tool, the recesses are first sawed along the edges, not reaching 0.5-1 mm to the desired depth, and the excess material is removed with a chisel. Making cuts deeper in order to knock off the excess with one blow is a manufacturing defect!

Half-tree connections are closed, pos. 1, this is how the crosspieces are assembled, open, pos. 2, for assembling corners, and blind (closed) halfway, pos. 3, for insertion on the run. In addition, half a tree can be connected either side by side, pos. 1-3, and along the edge, pos. 4. In the latter case, if the parts are high enough, the connection holds well and only with glue without additional reinforcements; This is how the supports of stools/pedestals are assembled.

Tongue and tongue and groove

For tongue-and-groove joints, pos. 1-3 in the figure, the 1st point of additional fastening or just gluing is enough. The tongue-groove connection can be open single, pos. 1, open double, pos. 2, triple, etc., or closed, pos. 3. The latter can be separated only by pulling the part with the ridge, and open tongue-and-groove joints can also be done by rotating the parts relative to each other, i.e. a closed tongue-and-groove ridge is technologically more complex (the hole must be drilled along the edges with a drilling depth limiter and then carefully hollowed out), but stronger and more reliable.

Mortise-tongue and tongue-and-groove connections are mechanically similar, so they are often confused. For example, connections to pos. 1 and 2 in old Soviet textbooks for vocational schools are called tongue and groove. But in fact, the shoulder of the tenon, unlike the shoulder of the comb, goes around the tenon on all sides, pos. 4. This makes it possible to hide the semicircular edges of the hole selected by the end mill, and makes the connection resistant to breakout in 2 planes, along and across.

The tenon, like the closed tongue-and-groove, can be wedged when assembled with a wedge made of hard wood, also pos. 4. The connection becomes permanent, but very strong and no visible additional fastenings are required; glue will last forever. The connection on a wedged tenon is generally “dead”; it is easier to break the entire product into pieces than to separate it.

Note: There are many types of tenon joints used in furniture; For example, a small part of them is shown in Fig. on right. We will get acquainted with the necessary ones along the way when describing the corresponding types of furniture.

Dowels

The dowel connection is the most important thing in carpentry, because... it is quite strong and invisible, i.e. completely closed. Actually, a dowel is a round or octagonal tenon made of hard wood, made separately from the parts being connected. How the connection is made with dowels is shown in the figure; for marking, you can’t do without a surface planer.

The dowels can be wedged during assembly, see fig. on the right, then they are called dowels; The wedges must be placed across the grain of the wood of the parts being joined. The dowel connection is permanent, but very strong and reliable. The connections on the dowels are usually glued.

The attentive reader probably already has a question: where can I get them, these dowels? Random twigs and slivers will not be reliable. It’s true, dowel sticks are available for sale, but you can also make them yourself. In general, the main dowel connection in furniture has a lot of other subtleties, so we give a selection of videos:

Video: dowel connection

Video: making round sticks for dowels and arrows

Video: a device for making dowels with your own hands

Video: homemade jig for drilling holes for dowels

Rally

Boards are assembled into furniture panels in different ways. On a tongue and groove connection (a type of tongue-and-groove connection), pos. 1 in Fig., the easiest way to consolidate is to use tongue-and-groove boards. Due to the large contact area of ​​the surfaces being connected, glued tongue and groove is very reliable and is often used. However, only boards of sufficient thickness can be tongue-tied, because the tongue crest should, on the one hand, be no wider than 1/4-1/3 of the thickness of the board, and on the other hand, it should not be narrower than 10-12 mm. It is believed that the minimum thickness of wild wood boards for joining onto tongue and groove is 30 mm, but it is not recommended to join boards less than 40 mm onto tongue and groove; The dimensions of the tongue for a forty board are shown in Fig. higher. MDF and laminate panels can be tongue-and-groove with board thicknesses of 16 mm or more.

Joining in rebate, pos. 2, secure only if the fold has a lock. A lockless rebate is just a quarter, and a shield made from quarter boards will not be reliable, just like a shield assembled into a batten, i.e. just the ends of edged boards. It is difficult to make a locking rebate at home, so they, like the locking tongue and groove, are used to join panels made of MDF or laminate, see fig. on right. In this case, the thickness of the boards can be from 12 mm.

Rallying on dowels, pos. 3, perhaps solid wood boards from 20 mm and MDF/laminate from 12 mm, but it is labor-intensive and difficult. It is best to join thin boards using a smooth reveal, pos. 4. The grooves for the fugue will have to be selected using a manual wood router with a disk cutter, but the fugue itself can be made from plywood from 3 mm, which makes it possible to join together “wild” boards from 12 mm.

About the seat

Sitting on a hard stool for a long time is uncomfortable, so something softer will do just fine. How the soft seat of the stool is arranged is shown in pos. 1 pic. You should immediately note that it is better to make the external upholstery from burlap, and sew capes for the stools from decorative furniture fabric. The stool is used intensively, often carelessly, and expensive jacquard, etc. It will soon get oily. And the cape can be washed, and sewing it is much easier than a cover for a chair or armchair.

The inner lining is installed on glue with a wing turn of 60 mm, pos. 2. Glue is applied only to the base and the wings are applied, drying it until it sticks. Foam rubber is chosen “by snap”: compressed to the limit with your fingers and suddenly released, it should straighten sharply, and not pull up smoothly.

The outer skin is also installed with glue, with the inner wings overlapping by at least 30-40 mm. To prevent it from creeping, its edges are tied lengthwise and crosswise with harsh threads, and the threads are sealed with thick paper, thin cardboard or just tape, so as not to accidentally break. Upholstery nails, if necessary, are imitated with push pins, pos. 3. The seat is attached to the base when it is completely ready.

The wicker seat pos. does not irritate the “fifth point” at all. 4, but it requires a reliable frame, like a classic stool. Lightweight stools and stools without a tightly attached seat are not strong enough. Modifying cabinets and box stools by replacing the top board with a frame is not worth it for the same reason.

Note: the dimensions of ordinary, not for a bar, stools are 420-450 mm in height; the seat is from 350x350 to 400x400 mm square and with a diameter of 300-450 mm round.

Examples and samples

The most reliable and functional, as we see, is still the classic stool; No wonder she became one of the classics. Therefore, we also provide its drawings, see Fig. Pos. A – general view and structure; B – method of fastening the seat; B – detailing; D – scheme of joining the seat on the dowels; D – base assembly; E – checking for evenness by measuring pairs.

However, established canons do not exclude evolution up to revolutionary changes. Revolutions are generally not necessary for society because they are ruinous, but in technology they are almost always fruitful. An example is a lightweight stool for the kitchen based on a classic one, see next. rice. The use of plywood (top frame), laminate for the seat and, most importantly, the extension of the drawers outside the load-bearing belt, gave rise to a very simple, light, cheap and convenient design - there are no protrusions. And in terms of strength, it will not be inferior to the classics, but you can’t make a wicker seat.

And finally, a version of the base of a lightweight stool without legs. See fig. for assembly method. Material – wood or plywood. The seat can be anything. Thanks to the correctly chosen configuration of the legs, the stool is quite reliable, and in appearance, especially with a soft seat, it will fit into any living room.

Finally

Making furniture with your own hands is not only economical, but also exciting. And therefore - good luck! From a simple stool to a wardrobe or bed that will make the seasoned designer gasp in admiration.

In a modern furniture store you can find a wide variety of furniture: from classic to modern and non-standard. Therefore, anyone can easily choose for themselves what they like. However, recently such a direction as handmade has become very popular. Things, and especially furniture, made with your own hands are very relevant and in demand. If you have the skills to work with tools, then creating something of your own will not be difficult.

You can start with the simplest thing - with a stool, the design of which you can come up with yourself. No special knowledge is required, you just need to follow the step-by-step instructions.

A DIY folding stool is a universal item. This is a necessary thing in the country, for fishing and recreation. Perfect for small apartments: the stool is very stable, and when folded it does not take up much space. You won’t have to run around to your neighbors asking to borrow chairs for a while. The interior will definitely not suffer from such furniture.

Technology for creating a folding stool with your own hands

Detailed drawing

First you need to decide on the layout of the future stool. There are drawings of various types and complexity available on the Internet.

The proposed drawing may seem complicated and incomprehensible, but when the folding chair is ready, you will see how simple everything is. Please note that in the drawing the dimensions are given in millimeters.

At this stage, it is important to determine the size and choose the appropriate material.

Required tools and materials

Having familiarized ourselves with the drawing, we proceed directly to creating our masterpiece. You need to equip yourself with the following tools:

1. pencil and tape measure;
2. jigsaw;
3. screwdriver;
4. a set of screws, the size of which is 4.5-5 cm;
5. bolts 4 cm long and 6 mm in diameter;
6. sandpaper.

Making a folding stool with your own hands, without using expensive material and special mechanisms, is quite possible. All the essentials can be found at a hardware store.

A ready-made furniture panel is ideal; it is better to choose one made from beech. From such a beech board you can easily cut out all the necessary details using a pencil, tape measure and jigsaw, namely:

1. For the chair legs you will need 4 bars. Dimensions: length 47 cm, width 4 cm, thickness 2 cm.
2. You will need to install 4 crossbars under the seat. Dimensions: length 32 cm, width 4 cm and thickness 2 cm.
3. 4 more bars for the seat itself. Dimensions: length 35 cm, thickness 2 cm. But they should differ in width: two bars are 9 cm wide, and the other two are 6 cm wide.
4. You will also need 2 overhead prongs. Length 32 cm, width 4 cm, thickness 2 cm.

The process of creating a folding stool with your own hands

Let's move on to assembling the elements. First of all, we install the axle bolts on the legs of the future chair, pay attention to the fact that the axle is located closer to the top, and not in the middle, otherwise you will end up with a very high and unstable stool. The bolts are recessed flush.

The resulting two parts are connected to each other by wide bars intended for the seat, but overhangs of 1.5-2 cm remain. They are attached as follows: one bar to the two outer crossbars, the other to the two inner ones.

Then we proceed to installing overhead legs 10 cm from the bottom of the legs, attaching them with self-tapping screws.

Next comes the most difficult and important stage, on which the convenience and ease of folding and unfolding the stool depends. This is the location of the middle bars. Please note that these bars are placed in the same way as the outer wide ones. They must be attached one at a time to the inner and outer crossbars.

The height of the chair directly depends on where the internal bars are connected. Usually they are attached at a distance of 2 cm from the wide bars of the seat. But the height can be changed if desired; you just need to insert a block with a different cross-section.

Decorating a folding stool

The main stages of production have been completed, let's move on to decoration.

In order for a hand-made stool to become visually attractive, with a pleasant texture and beautiful color, you need to try hard. It should be carefully treated with sandpaper and varnished. If desired, you can paint it in a color that suits your interior.

A chair is one of the most necessary household items. It is equally necessary both at home in the kitchen and in the country house or backyard. And not a single fishing, hunting or picnic is complete without a folding chair. This simple piece of furniture can be bought without any problems at any furniture store, but it will be much more pleasant to make it yourself.

Peculiarities

This chair model is chosen by travelers, summer residents and artists. The practicality and compactness of this model does not require proof. Today, there are folding camping versions of almost all the pieces of furniture familiar to us: tables, stools, folding beds, loungers and the like. The main advantage of such products is, of course, compactness and mobility.

Traveling several tens of kilometers a day, it is pleasant for a tourist to land on a folding chair during a rest stop. When you travel by car, it is important to have a compact chair, and if you move on your feet, then this becomes a necessity. Large items are not suitable for camping. Products with a back will be especially comfortable.

However, do not think that all folding chairs are a cheap and awkward spectacle that is only suitable for going to the forest, tinkering in the garage, or, at best, for country gatherings. Today you can buy or make yourself very stylish and cozy chairs for a modern kitchen interior. There is no shame in showing such products to guests, especially if the item of pride is made with your own hands.

Anyone can assemble a homemade chair, the main thing is to follow the instructions and drawing.

No special carpentry skills are needed for this undertaking. You just need to know how to use a hacksaw and hold a drill in your hands. The folding chair is assembled according to the drawing, like a construction set.

There are three main materials used to make folding chairs: metal, wood and plastic. Plastic is a light and cheap material that is easy to clean. It is not able to withstand a large body weight and becomes deformed if it is located near heating devices. This material is short-lived, so for constant use it is better to choose something stronger. For example, chairs with a metal frame.

Folding models made of aluminum are reliable and strong. They are not afraid of rust and can withstand heavy weight. The best option is wooden products. They are safe, beautiful and reliable. Such a chair will cost more, but will also last a long time. In addition, even a beginner will be able to assemble a folding camp chair from this material.

Without backrest

The design of the folding chair vaguely resembles a clapperboard easel due to the rising seat. The main parts are bars connected by loops that allow one part to move relative to others.

When assembled, the frames fit exactly together. The chair is ready for use when the frames are extended and the seat is raised. The seat is held on by self-tapping screws mounted in the front frame.

To return the seat to its original state, you need to raise it by closing the frames and at the same time lowering the seat. When folded, this item can easily be hidden under a sofa, behind a closet, or simply leaned against the wall.

Before you begin assembly, position the bolts on the legs so that the axle is on the top of the leg. Otherwise, the stool will be high and unstable. We lightly “sink” the tops of the nuts and bolts.

Tools and materials

When you decide to make a handmade chair without a back, make sure you have certain tools. Everyone has most of them in their garage or on their balcony, and if you don’t find something, you can easily buy it in a hardware store. Below is a list of required tools:

• Jigsaw and saws for it;
• Manual milling machine;
• Screwdriver;
• Grinding machine;

• Roulette;
• Clamps;
• Pencil, eraser;
• Construction corner.

To make a chair, you need not only working tools, but also good materials. The store has everything you need, namely:

• Wood blocks;
• Shkantiki;
• Furniture board;
• Self-tapping screws;
• Glue;
• Screws, bolts, nuts;
• Metal rod.

Pine boards are suitable for making chairs because they are very light, but it is better to use ash, since this material is harder. Pine parts are less durable. The optimal board width is 21 mm. Birch is also a very good material.

In principle, you can use any type of wood that you have. You can come up with an interesting product from plywood.

Frame and fastening of bars

At this stage of work, the upper ends of the legs are connected to the crossbars with bolts, on which the seat will later be located. Two crossbars are mounted to the inner legs, and two to the outer legs.

As a result, we have two parts on hinges. They are first connected using external seating bars. We make a reserve of 1.5-2 cm. The bars are attached to the sides of the crossbar: one to the outer, the other to the inner. Between the legs we make small crossbars, the so-called prolegs.

The next important step is attaching the bars. The middle beams will determine how the chair will fold and unfold. The middle bars are placed in the same way as the wide outer ones. We attach one bar to the internal, and the second to the external crossbars.

The height of the chair depends on the attachment points of the internal beams. The approximate distance is 1.5-2 cm. The height of the chair is usually 35-45 cm, but this is determined individually.

To learn how to make a folding chair without a back, see below.

Painting

First you need to decide on the material for painting. Acrylic and alkyd paints are suitable for such work. It is still better to use acrylic paints, as they are more durable. In addition, they do not have a sharply unpleasant odor. Acrylic perfectly protects wood from damage and the negative effects of moisture. You will also need several brushes of different sizes. The work begins with preparing the product: checking the reliability of fastenings, grinding and cleaning.

If you like natural wood patterns, then purchase translucent furniture varnish. It does not wear off and perfectly protects the wood. The varnish surface is easy to clean.

The easiest option would be to buy aerosol paint in a can. Its cost, of course, will be higher, but it will be easier and more convenient to work with.

If the surface has defects, they can be corrected with a special putty. In this case, it is better to paint the product so that the “patches” are not noticeable. It is better not to seal significant chips and cracks with this composition - they may fall off.

With fabric seat

The advantage of such chairs is that they are extremely simple to manufacture and even more compact. Even a set of such chairs can easily be hidden under the bed, and one can even hang in the garage on a nail. To make such a model, a drawing is not needed, but the materials you will need are:

• A piece of leather or thick fabric such as jeans;
• Self-tapping screws;
• Cuttings from garden tools or metal pipes;
• Washers and nuts with screws.

Instead of wooden cuttings, you can use polypropylene pipes. Prepare the following tools:

• Grinding machine;
• Jigsaw;
• Knife or scissors;
• File;
• Screwdriver;
• Wrench;
• Screwdriver;
• Drill.

We cut off 3 future legs from the selected material, 60 cm long with a cross-section of 4 cm. Then we make 0.6 cm holes on each cutting at a distance of 34 cm from the edge. We drill a hole at the ends to fix the seat. If you choose wooden legs, soak them in drying oil and paint them. This way they will last longer.

The seat will have a triangular shape with a length of each side of 28 cm. We cut the fabric with scissors, and if the seat is planned to be made of leather, then we cut it with a knife. For ease of carrying, you can equip the chair with a belt. The chair can be carried on the shoulder if you attach a belt to it. A loop for attaching it is made at one of the corners of the canvas.

After the legs have dried, we begin assembly. We pass a 6 mm screw 100 mm long through the first leg, after placing a washer on the screw. We put the second washer on, put the screw on the stud with a loop and install the third washer. We attach another leg, put on a washer and nut. The third leg is put on a pin with a loop, then a washer and nut are installed. The fasteners are tightened with a wrench and a screwdriver. We remove the excess threads with a grinding machine, and go through the cuts on the studs with a file.

It's time to attach the seat. Before tightening the screws, place large washers under the caps. If you cut a self-tapping screw with a loop into one of the legs, you can attach a belt to it. The work is completed by installing metal or plastic caps on the legs, which will serve as protection from damage.

A stool is a familiar, comfortable and compact piece of furniture that is most often used in the kitchen or country house. Chairs purchased in a store and made from wood composites do not always meet all consumer requirements in terms of aesthetics and practicality for such conditions, and they are also quite expensive. This is why the question arises of how to make a stool with your own hands from wood so that it is reliable and lasts for many years.

Anyone who started making furniture with such a simple product as a stool, having become skilled at it, may later want to make more complex and large-scale structures, for example, a table, a cabinet, or something, which will save a decent amount of money for the family budget.

Popular types of stools

Even such a simple piece of furniture can be made in different variations and used for different needs. To decide which model you would like to obtain as a result of the work, you should consider several similar products.

Children's stool

This stool option will not be out of place in any home, as it is convenient not only for children, but also for adults. It is light in weight and compact in size, so it can easily be moved to any convenient place in the yard or house where it is needed at the moment, and even a small child can move it.

It is best to make such a model from a solid board, which should be well processed first. If you want the stool to be very light, then dry linden is used to make it, which has a beautiful textured pattern and very low density.

If the thickness of the board taken for a small stool is at least 25÷30 mm, then only three main parts will need to be made - these are two legs and a seat, which can be fastened with dowels, even without the use of additional reinforcing elements.

All parts of the product must not have sharp corners or burrs. The workpieces must be rounded and well sanded so that there is no risk of injury or splintering.

This piece of furniture can be used not only for sitting, but also as an ottoman, placing it under your feet - this is especially often used by older people. Therefore, by making such a stool, you can please both kids and grandmothers, showing them your care.

Stool - box

It's common to run out of space for small items in the kitchen or workshop, and this stool model is perfect for clearing out some of the currently unused items on your counter. The boards that form the walls of the box strengthen the entire structure well and at the same time create a box where things that should always be easily accessible can be placed.

For example, women can use such a box to store needlework, as it is spacious enough and there is room in it for balls of yarn and knitting needles, as well as everything necessary for hand embroidery or sewing.

The male half will calmly hide in a box under the seat some items of his home “arsenal” that are most often needed in the household - a hammer and nails, pliers and other not too large tools.

To make such a product you will need a well-processed timber 50×50 mm, a board 200÷250 mm wide and 20÷25 mm thick, plywood for the bottom of the box and fasteners.

Folding stool

A folding stool is suitable for small apartments with small kitchens or for small country houses. It can be kept constantly unfolded, and, if necessary, put away in any closet or niche between the furniture and the wall, since when folded its thickness will be approximately 60÷80 mm, depending on the material chosen for manufacturing and design features.

The seat for this stool model can be made round or square, but each option has its own design for attaching the legs. The legs for such a stool are made of boards or thick, 20÷25 mm high-quality plywood. The base of the product consists of two frames, one of which must fit freely into the other. The frames are fastened together on one side and the other with special screws with bushings or a pin axis, which allows the structure to fold.

Step stool

Another option for a stool that can serve not only for sitting, but also act as a stepladder. This model is always useful both in a private house and in an apartment. For example, it is difficult to do without a stepladder during general cleaning, and without it it is not easy to get the right thing from the top shelf of a high cabinet.

When folded, this design will be no different from a regular stool, since the steps will be under the seat. Turning a stool into a convenient staircase is not difficult - you just need to pull the top of the temporarily inverted steps and carefully place them on the floor. The result is a reliable and stable stepladder, which can also be used as a comfortable footrest when sitting on a stool.

To make this model, you will need massive boards for the seat and steps, as well as thick plywood for the legs and a stringer for the steps.

Stool for the garden

If you plan to use a stool in a summer cottage according to the type, only in a portable version, then you need to prepare a wooden beam for it, since plywood will not work in this case. It will begin to delaminate under the influence of moisture, and the product will soon be hopelessly damaged.

Larch or oak is best suited for manufacturing. If you choose other wood, then it will need to be thoroughly impregnated with moisture-repellent compounds and then painted. Moreover, the process of pre-processing of lumber is carried out even before the structure is assembled.

Furniture used outdoors differs from that found indoors in that between the parts from which the seat and back are assembled (if a bench is made), gaps must be left so that rainwater does not linger on their surface, and parts were ventilated faster.

Stool drawing

Having decided on the model of the future product, a sketch drawing is drawn up, according to which all structural elements will be manufactured. When drawing up a drawing, all the necessary dimensions are immediately calculated and marked on the drawing. It is not at all necessary to make a diagram, observing all the canons and rules of drawing science - even just drawing it by hand will be enough. The main thing is that you can visually evaluate what will happen in the end, see all the parameters of the necessary materials and the principle of their connection.

In the presented diagram you can see the names of some of the parts that are included in the design of the stool - these are drawers, legs and “crackers”. Let’s talk about them in a little more detail, so that in further descriptions it will be clear what we are talking about. All these parts are necessary to hold the structure together and give it the required strength.

• Tsargi are bars or boards located under the seat of the stool and fasten the legs together with tenon joints, creating a strong support for the seat.
• The leg is an element designed to increase the stability and rigidity of the structure. It is located in the central or lower part of the legs (according to their height) and also fastens them together with tongue-and-groove joints.
• “Rusks” are bars, boards or metal corners installed diagonally on the inner corners of the structure under the seat and secured to the drawers and legs.

When drawing up a drawing, it is important to calculate not only the parameters of all visible parts of the structure, but also the size of the internal connecting elements, such as tenons cut at the edges of the drawers, and the grooves in which they will be installed, selected in the legs of the stool.

Tools for work

Without carpentry tools, it is simply impossible to make any piece of furniture from wood. Professional furniture makers have workshops fully equipped with special expensive machines. But just to try yourself as a carpenter, of course, you shouldn’t immediately purchase professional equipment, however, you will still have to prepare some tools.

The list of the most popular tools for working with wood is as follows:

• It’s great if the farm has a set of cutters that will help you process the edges of boards, timber and plywood, drill holes of different sizes, or carefully select grooves and grooves on any of the parts.

• To get rid of tedious operations, you will need a sanding machine with interchangeable wheels of varying degrees of grain to give the wood surface a smooth finish. This work can be done manually, but it will take much longer.

• Electric jigsaw. This tool, of course, can be replaced with a hand hacksaw, but after sawing the boards with it, the edges of the parts will not turn out neat, and you will have to work hard on them using a router. Again, cutting the material by hand will take much longer.

• will be necessary not only for screwing in fasteners, but also for drilling holes in parts. Therefore, it is necessary to prepare a set of screwdriver bits and drills of different diameters. Instead of a screwdriver, you can use any drill and a set of hand screwdrivers.

• Clamps of various sizes. If you want to make a really high-quality and durable thing, then you must have clamps on hand, since when gluing boards into a solid panel or individual parts together, they must be strongly compressed and left in this position for a fairly long time, and besides these no other instrument can do this.
• You always need a hammer and chisels of different sizes. Sometimes you have to resort to using a plane - it can also be manual or electric.
• Measuring and marking equipment is being prepared - tape measure, construction square, wooden ruler 500÷1000 mm, simple pencil, surface planer, etc.

In addition to these tools, to carry out the work conveniently, you will need a fairly large and durable table - a workbench.

Making stools

folding stool

Traditional simple stool

The designs of even the simplest products may differ from each other in some elements, which, as a rule, are intended to give the stool additional strength.

Materials for production

A simple model of a stool looks like this and consists of parts indicated in the drawing by numbers:

1 - Legs.

2 - Stool legs.

3 - Tsargi.

4 - Seat.

5 - Connection elements - supports for installing the seat.

6 - Connecting grooves.

7 - Connecting grooves.

To make traditional stools with a height of 500 mm, a seat of 450x450 mm and straight legs, the following parts will be required:

• Four well-processed, smooth beams for the legs, cross-section 50x50 mm, height 485 mm. They can be straight or have narrowed cuts on the inside.
• For the seat you need to prepare two or four boards 12÷20 mm thick, 450×225 mm or 450×112.5 mm in size, or a plywood panel 450×450 mm, 12÷20 mm thick.
• To give the stool strength, in different types of structures 4 legs and 4 drawers can be used, made of timber with a section of 30×30 and a length of 441 mm, or only drawers - 4 boards, with a cross-section of 30×60 and a length of 441 mm.
• Additionally, connecting elements can be used in the form of small pieces of bars fixed on the inside, in the middle of the drawers, but you can do without them if bars of sufficient thickness are taken for the base under the seat.
• 30×30 mm timber for making “crackers” if they are intended to be installed.
• Wooden dowels (chops) for securing the seat to the finished base - 4 pieces, 30 mm long and 8÷10 mm in diameter.
• Self-tapping screws.
• Wood glue.

Assembling the stool

Illustration
	The first step, in order not to waste time, is to glue the boards for the seat if it will consist of several elements. To do this, well-fitted and polished end sides of the boards are coated with glue, connected to each other and tightened with clamps. This design should dry thoroughly, and while it is setting, you can start assembling the frame base of the stool.
	Next, the bars for the legs are prepared. They must have perfectly even cuts and be the same in height, which can vary, depending on the wishes of the master, and range from 450 to 500 mm.
	The next step is to mark the legs and determine the location of the connecting grooves for installing the tenons of the legs and drawers in them (or just the drawer, if the legs are not included in the design). The holes are selected using a router or chisel.
	Next, the edges of the drawers and legs are processed. Tenons are cut out on them with a width, height and depth that is 1÷1.5 mm smaller than the holes in the grooves in the legs intended for them. The tenons should fit fairly freely, but still fit tightly into the grooves.
	After this, the legs are assembled in pairs, fastened together by means of legs and drawers - their tenon parts are glued into the grooves of the legs. Each of the resulting frames is tightened with clamps. Then, after they have dried, the legs, tied in pairs, are also connected by drawers and legs into a single structure for the base of the stool and again compressed in clamps until they are completely glued. After the glue has dried, all connections are additionally secured with self-tapping screws.
	If it is intended to strengthen the stool with “crumbs”, then they are screwed to the sides and the leg of the stool. This element, installed flush with the top edge of the drawers, will create additional support for the seat.
	The next step is to mark and secure the stool seat. To do this, glue is applied to the back of the panel according to the markings, and then it is laid on the finished base of the stool, leveled and pressed. Next, in the corners, through the seat panel, one hole is drilled, the diameter of which should be 1-2 mm larger than that of the prepared dowels, and the depth should be 5 mm less than their height. Glue is poured into the hole, and then the dowels are driven in. Exposed glue is immediately wiped off. The top of the dowel is cut off using a router, and this area is sanded smooth. Additionally, the seat must be tightened with the frame using clamps until the glue dries completely.

The adhesive can be designed for different drying times, and this is usually indicated on the packaging by the manufacturer. It is possible to operate the products only after the specified period has completely expired.

Folding stool

The folding version of the stool is convenient because, thanks to its compactness, it can not only be stored in a small living space, but can also easily fit into the trunk of a car for transportation to the country.

children's stool

Materials for production

To make such a stool model, you will need slightly different materials than those used for the traditional product. Thus, some craftsmen prefer to purchase ready-made furniture panels made from natural wood. They are excellent for cutting design parts, since, having cut them out of this material, all that remains is to process their edges.

For the presented version of the stool, the master required a panel measuring 1120×400×24 mm, and in addition to it, additionally, the following materials:

• A stud with threads cut on both sides and end nuts, 250x8 mm in size, for through installation, or a stud with blunt ends for installation in blind grooves.
• Furniture butterfly hinges size (when opened) 350x400 mm - 4 pieces.
• Dowels or choppers 50×8 mm.
• Wood glue.
• Stain and clear varnish or tinted varnish.
• Self-tapping screws 15÷20 mm long.

The dimensions of all structural parts are clearly visible in the presented drawing.

The folding stool consists of the following parts:

• The seat is round, with a diameter of 350 mm.
• The frame is 166 mm wide, consisting of two bars measuring 500 × 48 × 24 mm, and a cross member 122 mm long.
• Frame 122 mm wide from two bars 500x48x24 mm with cuts at the upper ends at an angle of 30 degrees, and crossbars 70 mm long.

Making a stool

Processing of parts and their assembly is carried out in the following order:

Illustration	Brief description of the operation performed
	It must be said that the seat can have a round or square shape with rounded corners, at the choice of the master. In this case, a round seat with a diameter of 350 mm was chosen. For the convenience of folding the stool, a curved hole should be made in the upper part of the seat, approximately 120 mm long and 20÷25 mm wide, so that it is convenient to grasp it with your hand. It can be cut using a router or drilling two holes with a diameter of 20÷25 mm at a distance of 120 mm from each other, and then connecting them by sawing out the wood between them using a jigsaw, making two cuts. In order for the hole to be neat and smooth, its edges must be processed immediately.
	Processing the edge of the seat and the inner edges of the “handle” hole is most often done using a semicircular cutter. But if this tool is not available, then they are put in order by first using a file with a large notch (rasp), and then sandpaper of different grain sizes, gradually bringing the wood to smoothness.
	The next step is to process the prepared bars of the legs. In two of them, which will form the outer frame, you need to cut a groove 180 mm long and 8 mm wide, and 42 mm deep, along which the pin will go. Sometimes the grooves are made through - it is for this case that a stud with threads at the ends is selected, onto which a special cap nut is screwed. In the other two bars, according to the diagram, through holes with a diameter of 8 mm are drilled through which the pin will pass - these elements are intended for the manufacture of a narrow frame.
	The grooves are cut using a router, or holes with a diameter of 8 mm are drilled along the intended line, which are then combined into a common groove using a jigsaw. The work is carried out on a special machine, or the beam is rigidly fixed in a vice, and then holes are drilled in it using a drill or screwdriver.
	The bars that will form the inner, narrower frame of the stool must be carefully sawed off at the top at an angle of 30 degrees - this process can be done on a machine or using a miter box. The corner must be cut perfectly accurately, so this work cannot be done “by eye”. On the lower part of the legs, it is recommended to slightly round the corners and edges.
	The crossbars installed between the legs are mounted on dowels, which are glued into the drilled holes. This process can be done in different ways. Most often, the jumper is first installed with glue in the place intended for it, the legs are compressed in clamps, and left to dry completely. Then, through the outer side of the legs, through holes are drilled, which go deep into the end sides of the jumpers by at least 20÷25 mm. After this, dowels are carefully driven into the holes using glue. Each side of the jumpers will require two fasteners.
	On the back of the seat, according to the drawing, the places where the butterfly loops will be attached are marked. Then, the loops are laid on the marked place and outlined. Further. From this place, a landing “nest” is selected with a depth equal to the thickness of the loop, that is, when secured, the loop should be flush with the main wooden surface.
	Next, the loops are secured on the upper end sides of the legs. They are screwed on with self-tapping screws, the caps of which must be in the same plane as the surface of the hinges. The next step is to attach the second side of the hinges to the sockets prepared for them on the back surface of the seat.
	To make the structure look neat, it is recommended to cover the pin with a tube carved from wood. You can replace the wooden version of the element masking the pin with a plastic tube, since turning this part out of wood is not so easy. The length of the tube should be 68 mm, the internal diameter 9 mm, the thickness of the tube walls can be from 2 to 10 mm.
	Next, the pin is inserted into the narrower frame through a prepared decorative tube, and its ends are inserted into the grooves of the outer, wider frame, along which they will move when folding and unfolding the stool.
	It must be said that a folding stool may have a slightly different design. It uses not one, but two studs, and instead of an internal frame, a solid board is fixed, and it serves as an equally reliable stool leg. The second, outer frame has a jumper at its very bottom, at such a level that when the structure is folded, the leg board fits neatly into it, creating one panel. The fastening of such legs to the seat is carried out in exactly the same way as in the first version of the folding stool.
	For comparison, you can see what one and the other model of the finished product looks like, and choose the one you like best for production. It is probably not difficult to understand that the second design option is simpler to implement.

Stool with wicker seat

A stool with a wicker surface can be made in a low or full, high version - it will be comfortable in any case. Its seat can be made of various materials - durable fabric, belts (including old car seat belts), cord and even plastic-braided cable. It is quite possible to come up with your own version.

Materials for production

The frame for such products is mounted, in principle, according to the same scheme, however, if a high stool is made for an adult, then the design should be more reliable, that is, it is advisable to strengthen it with durable drawers and legs. We must not forget that in a traditional stool the seat is also a reinforcing part of the structure, and its wicker version itself requires a particularly strong frame.

So, for the frame of a rectangular stool measuring 500×400 mm, you will need:

• Wooden blocks 50x50 mm for legs - their height can be selected individually.
• Bars for drawers and legs, section 50×25 mm.
• Metal or wooden corner elements - “crackers”.
• Self-tapping screws.
• Leather or synthetic belts, or durable rope in one or two colors.

Let us immediately note that the model shown in the example has a fairly large seat, which reduces the overall strength of the stool. Therefore, it may be more reasonable to make this structural element a little smaller, for example, 350x300 mm.

Find out by reading the options from “classic” to “transformer” in a special article on our portal.

Making a stool

The manufacture of such a stool is carried out in the following order:

Illustration	Brief description of the operation performed
	The structural elements of the stool are cut from the bars prepared for work. The legs can range from 300mm to 500mm in height and the model shown is 400mm high. In order for the legs to be stable, their end parts must be perfectly flat. Therefore, they should be marked using a construction square, and preferably sawed using a circular saw, which will give a perfect cut.
	The next step is to prepare the bars for the legs and drawers. In this case, 4 beams with a length of 450 mm and 4 beams with a length of 300 mm are cut. These elements should also have smooth edges for a snug fit to the legs.
	To make holes for fastening structural elements at a certain angle, a special tool (jig) is used that can guide the drill bit in the desired direction. This device is fixed on a block, and two holes are drilled through its guide holes on each side of the wooden part. After all the elements of the stool are ready, they should be thoroughly cleaned - this process is best carried out before assembling the structure, as it will be easier to see all the problem areas on the wood.
	This photo shows what such holes look like inside the beam.
	Additional fastening of the drawers and legs with the legs can be done using tongue-and-groove fasteners, and then, for maximum reliability, also with metal corners - “crackers”. These parts need to be selected according to the width of the wooden blocks.
	If the first fastening option is chosen, using self-tapping screws, then the assembly and fixation of all parts of the stool look as shown in the presented photo.
	At the end of the assembly, the stool frame should be strong and stable. When leaning on it, it should not swing.
	If it is planned to be painted or tinted, then this process is carried out before the seat is made.
	To equip the seat for the model shown in this example, 17 leather belts, 35 mm wide, were required. As already mentioned, seat belts used in cars can be used instead. The straps are screwed with two self-tapping screws measuring 10 mm at a distance of 9 mm from each other, onto the wide side of the beam extending inside the stool frame. The length of the belts must be measured in advance using a tape measure, “traversing” the entire path of the belt with its flexible tape. First you need to secure the belts, which will be located along the length of the rectangle. Having secured the belts on the inside, they go around the beam, pull it through the seat frame to the opposite king beam, go around it and also fasten it on the inside using the same screws.
	After the longitudinal belts are secured, the belts that will intertwine the already tensioned elements should be secured in the same way. They are screwed onto one of the long sides of the frame. Then, each of the belts is passed transversely through the longitudinal belts, in the form of weaving. After this, they are also wrapped on the inside of the opposite drawer, stretched and screwed. Having completed this operation, you can proceed to “testing” the product.
	Another option for designing a flexible stool seat is to stretch a strong rope or cord over the frame. In this case, paper rope was used. In addition to this, you need to prepare furniture nails with wide heads and a hammer, as well as clamping pliers and an awl.
	You can purchase rope of different shades for weaving and display one of the selected patterns on the surface of the seat, getting a stylish piece of furniture that will complement the interior design.
	The end of a rope of the same color is nailed to the back side of the drawer using two furniture nails.
	Next, the rope is carefully wrapped around two long opposite sides of the frame. If the frame is square, then the process of laying the rope can begin from any side of the structure.
	By braiding the opposite sides with a rope, its loops are pressed against each other as tightly as possible and pulled. Having covered approximately 100÷120 mm of the length of the seat with braiding, the rope is temporarily fixed with pliers so that it does not loosen. Work continues in this way until the entire surface of the seat is covered with a wound rope.
	Having finished covering the seat along two sides with one color, you can move on to weaving it across with twine of a different color. To do this, in this case, take a white rope and fasten it also on the back side of the drawer, running parallel to the already wound rope.
	Using a white cord, any pattern can be “highlighted” from a red background. This process is relatively simple and will be accessible even to a beginner.
	In this case, the white cords are pulled between the red rope so that the result is a herringbone pattern, that is, stripes are turned diagonally from the center of the seat.
	Having intertwined 6-8 rows and pulled them tight, the white rope is grabbed on the back side of the drawer with a furniture nail. If this is not done, the seat will quickly stretch and sag when using the stool. This procedure must be carried out every 6–8 rows, driving nails either on one side or on the opposite side.
	The result should be a durable seat, four threads thick, with an interesting design. If you want to choose a different pattern, woven from three or even four colors of rope, then on the Internet you can always find exactly what will suit a specific interior.

It should be noted that in the second option, where the seat is covered with rope, the frame is not very strong and is unlikely to support people with heavy weight, but such a stool is perfect for a children's room or as a footrest. If you want to make a full-fledged product for the seat, you need to choose a more massive beam for the frame and strengthen it especially reliably.

Find out by studying several available options in a special article on our portal.

In conclusion, it is worth saying that making a stool yourself, without having experience working with wood and special tools, is not as simple as it seems at first glance. However, if you have the desire and enough patience, then it’s quite possible to try yourself as a carpenter. The main thing is that you need to get ready for serious work and not do it “carelessly.”

Video: master class on making a simple wooden stool