A little project with jute twine and an old foot stool

Corner closeup of finished stool. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2021.

A few years back I bought a beat up second hand vintage foot stool with the idea that I would reupholster it and give it a new lease on life. Once it was taken apart, however, I came up with another idea…

It was 2018, and I was toying with an idea of wrapping jute twine around the horizontal rails of this second hand foot stool to create a plant stand. For the life of me, I can’t remember from where the idea came, but somehow the universe inspired me to try out something a little “boho” (which is not my usual style, which leans more toward the Traditional end of the style spectrum). The “vision” was to create a plant stand with a weave effect using durable jute twine. The finished stool made for a perfect plant stand for my living room! As time went by though, the twine became stained from careless watering (shame on me)…
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Finished stool from 2018. Photo by Diane M. Lilly.

Fast forward to now (2021)…It was high time that stool got some love, right?! I bought some fresh jute twine (about 4 skeins) from Amazon and got to work giving this stool a facelift.

Previous experience showed me just how monotonous and repetitive this type of project can be. The ultimate effect looks great, but—like most things creative—it’s not fun in the moment! My work area became my living room floor, conveniently situated in front of the television so I could be entertained while I wrapped…and wrapped…and wrapped…and wrapped.

And my fur babies were equally entertained! They got excited, thinking I was making them a new toy, silly kitties! Try doing anything with string around cats…Shit gets interesting!
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My two fur babies playing with my twine. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2021.

My fur baby trying to eat the twine! Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2021.

​Anyway, after wasting time amusing myself watching my cats be amused, I steeled myself for the inevitably tedious task of wrapping, pulling, pushing threads tightly together, and looping around again, over and over and over. I started with the longest side first, pulling the twine taut to prevent sag when sat on or when something with weight is placed on it.

Starting to wrap twine along the long axis. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2021.

The long axis of the stool finished being wrapped in twine. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2021.

​For the short side, I simply wrapped the twine over top of the long side, creating just a simple double layer. This reincarnation was to be a stool for us to sit on when we are putting on or taking off our shoes at the back door, so it didn’t need to be fancy, just functional. There was no need to do the weave effect like last time (which, incidentally, was incredibly laborious), saving me time and sanity.

Starting to wrap the short axis of my stool. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2021.

​After several hours of wrapping I finally had my finished stool! The jute twine seat is definitely sturdy enough to hold our weight when we sit on it (and we’re not little people anymore!). This second hand stool just keeps getting resurrected! I wonder what the next rendition will be?!

Finished stool for 2021. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2021.

Another pic of the finished stool. Photo by Diane M. Lilly, 2021.

I know I complained about how “tedious” and “monotonous” and “repetitive” this project was, but to be honest, it was rather therapeutic. You are not just mindlessly looping…It takes care and close attention to make sure the threads are packed together tightly and pulled taut enough that the finished piece has the strength needed to function properly. There is something strangely satisfying in seeing it all finished!

So let me know what you think of my little project in the comments below, and feel free to drop a line about any similar projects of your own!


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Related blogs you may want to read:
On a mission to recycle this neglected vintage stool
The stain stripping stage of rescuing my vintage stool
Staining my vintage stool with brewed tea
My tattered vintage stool transformed into a beautiful plant stand
How to replace a clock mechanism
How to rewire thrift buy lamps
Creating a kitchen coffee bar