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The trick to this stool is the legs, not the upholstery. They're cut on a 5° double bevel — the miter saw tilted and angled at the same time — so each leg leans out on two axes at once. That's what gives the stool its splayed, mid-century stance instead of looking like a plain box with sticks under it.
Get the legs right and everything else is straightforward: a plywood or 2x12 seat blank wrapped in foam and fabric, trimmed with a ring of decorative nails instead of a sewn seam — hence "no-sew." The stretchers are the other place people go wrong, because their height is measured up from the floor, not up the angled leg, so you can't just mark a distance along the leg and call it done. Dry-fit the base, prop the stretcher on scrap to get the height right, then commit.
| Item | Qty |
|---|---|
| Pine or plywood, 2x12, 18-1/2" longThe seat blank. | 1 each |
| Pine, 2x2, 10 ftThe four splayed legs. | 1 each |
| Pine, 1x2, 8 ftStretchers and nailhead-trim blocking. | 1 each |
| Foam pad, 2" thickAt least 18-1/2" x 11-1/2". | 1 each |
| Batting | 1 yard |
| Upholstery fabric or faux leather | 1 yard |
| Decorative upholstery nails | 60 each |
| Heavy-duty staples | 1 box |
| Pocket hole screws, 1-1/4" | 20 each |
| Wood glue | 2 oz |
Overall cost: $$. Lumber prices vary by region, species, and season, so we give a band rather than a figure we would only be pretending to know.
| Part | Qty | T × W × L |
|---|---|---|
| SeatPineWrapped in foam and fabric; this dimension is the finished blank before upholstery bulk. | 1 | 1 1/2" × 11 1/2" × 18 1/2" |
| LegsPineEnds cut parallel at a 5° double bevel — tilt and miter set together, same setting for every cut. | 4 | 1 1/2" × 1 1/2" × 27 1/2" |
| Side stretchersPineEnds NOT parallel, each cut at 5° off square. | 2 | 3/4" × 1 1/2" × 8 7/8" |
| Front/back stretchersPineEnds NOT parallel, each cut at 5° off square. | 2 | 3/4" × 1 1/2" × 14 3/8" |
| Nailhead-trim blockingPineOne end cut at 5° off square; small spacer blocks under the seat trim. | 8 | 3/4" × 1 1/2" × 1/2" |
Buy 4 boards at 8 ft.
1 board
2 boards
1 board
Assumes 8 ft stock, a 1/8" saw kerf, and buying each part at its own width. Change the board size or kerf on the full board plan →
Set the miter saw for a 5° double bevel — the blade both tilted 5° and angled 5° at the same time. Square off the end of the 2x2, then without rotating the board, slide down 27-1/2" and cut. That's one leg. Slide down another 27-1/2" and cut again for the next.
Don't change the saw setting between legs — that's what keeps all four identical, and identical legs are the whole game here. Once you have four, stand them up in position like they'll sit on the stool and mark the inside corner of each one. It's genuinely hard to tell which way a splayed leg angles once it's off the saw, and you do not want to find out you glued one in backward after assembly.
This build is designed around a pocket hole jig; if you don't have one, countersunk screws work fine. Drill pocket holes in the ends of the four stretchers.
The tricky part: stretcher height is measured up from the FLOOR, not along the angled leg. Stand the legs against a flat, square reference edge, prop the stretcher on a scrap of 3/8" plywood or similar, and adjust the shim until the stretcher sits at the correct height off the floor. Then attach. This is not a step to rush — get it wrong and the stool sits crooked.
With front and back stretcher pairs built, join the two sides into one base — this is where the project stops being flat and becomes three-dimensional, so go slow and dry-fit before you commit glue. Check the base sits flat with no rock; shim or trim a leg now if it doesn't.
Mark the stretcher locations on the underside of the seat blank so you know exactly where to drive screws once it's flipped over, then attach the seat to the base from underneath.
Layer the foam pad on top of the seat blank, then a layer of batting over that. Pull the fabric or faux leather taut over both layers and staple it to the underside of the seat, working from the center of each side outward and rotating so tension stays even — the same technique as stapling a canvas, no needle involved.
Trim the excess fabric close to the staples, then press decorative nails around the perimeter to cover the staple line and finish the edge. Space them evenly — mark the spacing in pencil first if you want them dead consistent.
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