Collapsible Chair Project

The aim of this project was to make a collapsible chair/stool out of wood and wood joinery techniques. I started off by making a few thumbnail sketches seen below:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I wanted to create a stool that had a storage. Seen below is my initial mockup out of cardboard. I also wanted to make a stool that would have circular and rectangular shapes. I also wanted to create a stool where the circles would come out and collapse to be stored. However, with time my idea progressed and changed a little. My final idea had a stool that had two seats, one for the parent and a lower one for the child. There was also a storage space at the bottom of the parent seat.

This is the joinery exercise we did in class:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I started off by creating the legs of the stool. Since the legs are detachable, I had to divide each leg into half and join it by dowels.

Then I made the circles and cut them using a band saw. Later I chiseled them to create 4 small squares to insert the legs for the storage space.

Then I created the joinery for the child’s seat. I used dowels and made a rotating wooden hinge.

The circles were crewed to the legs and can be removed when the stool has to be collapsed. The circle that is for storage comes out.

Final Stool with wood

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To add to this circular and rectangular geometric shapes, I wanted to create more lines with some fabric and color. I decided to use black fabric to create lines as I thought it wouldn’t overpower the wooden stool itself. I added some red lines for a pop of bright color which would attract people towards the stool.

 

 

Finals Stool with fabrication and colors.

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Used by human

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Attached Below is an orthographic drawing of the Collapsible Stool.

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From this project, I not only learned a lot of joinery techniques of wood but also about its strength and durability and how it interacts with itself and other material, like fabric and paint. My stool focused on providing a stool that can be carried anywhere by one person and can be used by a parent and a child. It is very lightweight and can be carried easily. All parts are easily collapsible especially the child’s seat when it is not being used. Adding a storage aspect to the stools makes its surface area more usable and easier for people to put down their wallets, brushes or even coffee cups. The circle of the storage area can be adjusted according to the space needed by the person who is seated. Thus, this stool provides a double function and double seating option.