So I like 2nd hand things, and I love Retro Metro in Paddington. They have real, durable, 2nd hand clothing for cheap. As I purchase some dorky overalls for working in my shop with, the lovely man who runs the store offers me a stool that he has not found the time to repair. I immediately take it home and try to apply the skills I've learned.
Here it is!
The upholstery both feels and looks shit. But the major problem is it wobbles severely. Its bones are all intact and have a really lovely patina so I was very excited and willing to fix this stool.
First step was disassembly and that's when I learned that all the glue for this chair was long gone.
Just a handful of thwacks with a mallet and it all came apart
Found this other upholstery job under the other one. Yuck.
So I set to work, tidying up the joints and and clearing them of glue residue as best I could. Then I got to regluing.
The glue-up had to happen over two stages because I simply don't have enough long clamps
I made sure to apply a lot of pressure and follow all the rules for a successful glue-up
After it was try and a quick sit test and wow! Not an ounce of wobble, very sturdy stool. Last step was to reupholster, which took a whole 20 minutes using the off cut fabric from my rocking chair project.
And here it is!
It looks beautiful but I think more importantly it feels great to sit on and use because it is so sturdy and trustworthy. This was a straight forward project that I am so proud of. Being trusted with old furniture and not letting them down fills me with so much joy.
I am not sure where its home is yet, I think it would be a perfect stool for beside a shoe rack but I am yet to find someone in need. I am considering making the piece the first project that I sell, but it is intimidating to have my work valued by others in that way. Regardless of where it ends up I'm pretty chuffed to have used my skills to repair this stool, that would have otherwise ended up in the bin.
Checkout my rocking chair project that I made in tandem here.
Update 2025: I sold the piece on FB for $40, sadly none of my friends had a need for the stool, so I will likely never see my handy-work again, although the knowledge of it being loved fills me with pride.