Posted on 3-July-2011 at:
Wood Talk Online > The Wood Whisperer Guild > Guild Builds > Adirondack Chair > Stool & table designs to go with chair
The following is a copy of one of many forum posts I made in the Wood Whisperer Guild Build Forum. For summer 2011 Marc "The Wood Whisperer" Spagnuolo selected Greene and Greene inspired Adirondack chairs for the Summer 2011 Guild Build project. I wanted to bring over my forum posts to this blog so family and friends could follow my progress without having to join the Wood Talk (Wood Whisperer) Online forums to see the progress. I'll be copying and pasting all my Wood Whisperer Guild Forum posts over here as well.
Ok I have been spending less time today in the shop, between going to the new Transformers movie with family (it was good but maybe not quite as good as first two) and time on Sketchup working out some design details for a table and stool to go with the Adirondack chair. First I need to really thank Aaron for some help on Sketchup - he knows what hurdle he helped me get over but it really was easy once you knew the trick (kind of like many things in woodworking actually). Here I thought I was pretty good in Sketchup - but like with most things there is always something new to learn. His input and critique on the design itself has also been helpful and I appreciate all his design advice as well.
OK so now I am throwing these out here for ya'lls (yes I am a southerner from Texas so we spell the plural you - ya'll - sure beats youse guys - LOL) input.
First off the simple design issue is the stool - there is very little involed in its design. The only elements you can bring in from the chair design is the front legs, the front apron, the seat slats, and the side legs. Given there is hardly anywhere to incorporate the cloud lift in the stool I choose to use Aaron's 2nd alternative side leg design with a half cloud lift on the bottom edge of the side leg and I will be doing that in my version of the chair as well so that the chair and stool flow together.
Structurally the slats of the stool probably give enough support for the side legs that the second apron down at the low - I suppose that's the front - end of the stool is maybe not needed, but I felt it really helped make the chairs front face apron more of an element in the set. Plus when the stool is up near the chair it hides the front apron on the chair.
The table is giving me more grief in terms of design details and I am not sure I am satisfied with the design ideas I have thus far. One of the features I wanted is a small shelf below the table top so that it would be a convenient place to put a citronella candle without it eating up space on the small table top. They say things are bigger in Texas and damn it!! - its suretainly true of the mosquitoes. Here, let me just throw the different combinations of design ideas I have thus far out there on the table (pun intended).
The first is putting slats in for a table top and for a lower shelf. I did discover in this version that the shelf slats end up slightly above the top of the cloudlift side stretcher - though that could probably be fixed with some tweaking of the dimensions.
The second version is my attempt to bring in another G&G element that is not used in the chair or stool - through tenons that are rounded over. I am a tad concerned its bring in an element that's not needed for the set, but I do think its a much cleaner design then the slats and ebony plugs design.
Lastly a bit of a hybrid of the slats and ebony plugs for the table top mixed with the through tenon design for the lower shelf.
One of the main features of the table is to repeat the arm brackets in a way commonly used by the G&G brothers as brackets between a table apron and table legs. It helps tie that element well between the table and the chairs, but it does mean not using the cloud lift profile on bottom edge of the aprons. As far as I know, and granted I am by no means fully versed in everything G&G, the G&G brothers never mixed those two design elements in the same piece. So the best way I saw to bring in the cloud lift was to do something I have seen done before (either by G&G themselves or in G&G inspired furniture designs that came after them) is to make a table stretcher in a cloud lift profile.
Well that's the design ideas I have thus far on this. I think for the most part it all fits well together as a set - here see what you think of them together in a set:
So please comment and throw ideas out there and feel free to critique to your hearts content on the designs I have proposed. Nothing is set in stone - or maybe more appropriately cut in wood yet. I am not even going to begin building the stools and table until after I have two chairs built so, for me at least, there is still plenty of time to solicit comments and input from my fellow guild mates.
Has anyone else thought through a table or stool design yet? If so care to through the design out here to share with the rest of us? Hell if its paper and pencil design scan it in and through it out here. I am sure we can all come up with some good inspiration from it.
Well I am off and back to the shop to finish my two sets of chair front leg mortises and bottom leg details.
I finished the side legs (minus the sanding and edge round overs that I will do just before assembly). 
three to match the first leg. I went with Aaron's partial cloud lift bottom edge profile - mainly because that will allow that feature to be in the stools I will build and the stool has very few opportunities to use G&G details. 
