A few years ago, we built a DIY wood stool for our bathroom. It was a pretty design, but I tried to get creative with the wood finish. We distressed the wood to make it look aged and it was super cool. The problem was that all of the extra texture and grooves didn’t make for a great shower stool. The water would sit and I worried about it molding.
Between the texture and the dark color, I couldn’t really tell if it was starting to mold and that freaked me out. So, we decided to make a new DIY stool out of poplar that would match our DIY simple bath tray.
Even though we are calling this tutorial a bath stool, this design would also make a great side table!
Alright, let’s dive in and start DIYing!
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How to Build a Simple Stool
Recommended Tools:
- Circular Saw
- Kreg Jig (not sure which to get? Check out which Kreg Jig to get)
- Drill
- Random Orbital Sander
- Clamps
- Measuring Tape (new to DIY? Be sure to check out this post with measuring tips)
- Safety Equipment
Shopping List:
- (2) 1x12x4s (we used poplar)
- (1) 1x2x3 (we used poplar)
- Wood glue (this is our favorite type)
- Sandpaper (120, 180 and 220 grit)
- 1 1/4″ softwood Kreg screws
- 1 ¼” wood screws (optional – see step 6)
Dimensions
This small stool is 16 ½” tall, 17” wide, and 11 ¼” deep.
STEP 1: GLUE YOUR BOARDS TOGETHER
For this project, all but one piece is a double-thick piece of wood.
Start by cutting your 1×2 into (3) pieces that are 11 ½” long. Set one of these pieces aside and then glue the other two pieces together so that they form a piece that is 1.5 x 1.5 x 11.5”.
Use a generous amount of glue to glue your two 1×12 pieces together. Leave these boards clamped together for at least an hour. If you can leave them clamped for a few hours or even overnight, that’s even better.
We bought our 1x12s months prior to building this project and they started to warp in our garage. We had to use a LOT of clamps to get them to sit together. Even with the clamps, our boards weren’t as seamless as they would’ve been had we glued our 1x12s together right away.
STEP 2: MAKE YOUR CUTS
Now that you have your double-thick pieces of wood, it’s time to cut them to size. The 1x2s are already set. For the 1×12 boards, cut them into (2) pieces that are 15” and (1) piece that is 17” long.
If your boards weren’t perfectly lined up after the glue-up, that’s okay. You can trim the edges of your boards prior to cutting your pieces down to size. If you do have to cut a little bit off the sides, your stool may be slightly smaller than the 11 ¼” deep that ours is.
The plans are also optimized for length, so if you have to cut off more than a ¼” total from your 1x12s to get the edges flush, you’ll need to make either the leg pieces or the top piece slightly shorter than in our plans.
STEP 3: DRILL POCKET HOLES
Using the ¾” settings, drill (2) pocket holes on either end of your 1x2s.
Yes, we used the ¾” setting even on the double-thick 1×2. You could use the 1 ½” settings on that board, but you will need to get 2.5” Kreg screws as well. Since that bottom board isn’t going to be holding up a ton of weight, the ¾” settings and 1 ¼” screws are plenty strong enough.
It doesn’t really matter, but for the double-thick 1×2, I chose to put on pocket holes on the side with the seam. I wanted the seamless edge to be more visible when looking at it from the front.
STEP 4: ATTACH SUPPORT BOARDS
Grab one of the 15” pieces and both of your 1x2s. Using glue and 1 ¼” Kreg screws, attach the support boards to the first leg.
The top support is the individual 1×2. The pocket holes will face up so that they are not visible once the top is on. If your 1×12 is still 11 ¼” wide, the 1×2 will be placed 4 ⅞” from either side and is flush with the top of the leg.
The thicker support is still 4 ⅞” from the sides. The bottom of it is 3 ¾” from the bottom of the leg.
STEP 5: ATTACH SECOND LEG
Using glue and 1 ¼” Kreg screws, secure the support boards to the second leg.
STEP 6: INSTALL TOP
We will use glue and 1 ¼” screws to secure the top to the base. Place the top on your work surface and then center the base on top of it. The top should overhang 1 ¼” on each side and will be flush along the front/back of the legs.
Add 4 screws through the top support board and into the top to secure it in place.
We used our Kreg Quick Flip Bit to add countersink holes for these screws, but it’s not necessary to countersink them, but we decided to use our 1 1/4″ Kreg screws instead of 1 1/4″ wood screws so that we could just use one type of screw.
Since the Kreg Screws don’t have a cone head to sink into/flush with the wood, we decided to countersink them so that they weren’t visible.
STEP 7: FINISH YOUR DIY STOOL
For this project, we wanted something that was water-resistant, so we chose Minwax Spar Urethane in clear satin. The oil in the finish made the natural color of the poplar really pop.
Since we are intending to use the wood stool in the shower, it’s going to get wet. After applying the Spar Urethane, we used a clear caulk to cover any seams between boards so that the moisture wouldn’t get caught between any wood pieces.
We also added some plastic furniture sliders to the bottom so that the bottom of the wood wasn’t sitting in the water in the shower.
There you have it! Now you know how to build a simple DIY stool! If you like the design, you could build it a bit taller and use it as a side table too!
If you are curious about another stool design option, be sure to check out this DIY wood stool design. It’s a bit bigger and has a slatted bottom for storage.
