I have the best furniture hack to share with you today on how to DIY a wood stool with brass leg tips.
This is going to be a semi-handmade DIY project. Those are one of my favorite type of projects because not everything needs to be created from scratch.
Better yet, no power tools were used in this project.
Shocking, I know!
I started with a pair of unfinished 18-inch wood stools.
This is my first time purchasing unfinished furniture and this is what arrived – a total blank slate.
The wood stools received two coats of black stain with poly. I just happened to have a can of black stain with poly mixed in, so that’s what I used.
I’d actually prefer these stools to get that ‘worn in from use’ look sooner rather than later, so hopefully the poly won’t get in the way of my children doing what they do best to help with that.
Then came the brass leg tips.
Brass leg tips for furniture can be expensive and finding the right size for a project can be tricky.
Furniture leg tips have many names, so keep that in mind when you are doing a Google search. Sometimes they are called leg caps or ferrules.
Ferrules, for their originally intended purpose, are metal rings that are used on tools to strengthen a joint or on a handle to prevent splitting or wearing.
My hack for creating brass leg tips is to buy brass ferrules from a tool company.
These 1.25″ diameter brass ferrules only cost $2.20 each, which is way better than the $12 – $25 per leg tip that I was finding online. (Lee Valley Tools has no idea who I am, by the way. I’m just really happy with my order.)
The brass ferrules I ordered are only 1-inch tall, which is perfect for my 18-inch stools. I didn’t need anything too tall or overwhelming for this project because I was going for that understated look.
Regular furniture leg tips will often be screwed into the furniture leg to keep them in place.
I didn’t need to do that in this particular situation because I made sure the brass ferrules fit snugly on the furniture legs. By snug, I mean I had to tap them into place with a hammer.
If there was a little bit of wiggle room due to natural variation or extra sanding on the furniture leg, I wrapped the leg with a strip of hockey tape. Any tape will do, but hockey tape has a fabric-like texture, so it gives extra grip.
To further secure the brass ferrules to the wood stool legs, I spread wood glue on the inside of the ferrule before placing it on the leg and tapping it into place. Any heavy duty glue would work.
I’m not sure that you will need felt pads on the bottom of the furniture leg, but all of my furniture gets felt pads.
I prefer the felt pads that nail into the chair legs, so that you don’t get those sticky felt pads sliding off.
Now here is how the semi DIY wood stool with brass leg tips looks all finished.
One stool has the felt pads attached and one doesn’t, so you can see how it looks both ways.
Did I save money on this project by using unfinished furniture?
I guess it depends on what you compare it to. If you’re comparing it to Target, then no. I could buy a finished stool from Target for $60. If you are comparing it to Pottery Barn, then I probably saved a boatload of money.
The unfinished 18-inch stool was $57. (I’ve seen the price fluctuate between $53 and $60.)
The brass ferrules were $2.20 each, so $8.80 per stool.
I had the stain, hockey tape, and felt chair pads on hand.
The priceless thing about these DIY wood stools with brass leg tips is that I was able to create exactly what I pictured in my mind.
Do you know how happy that makes me?
Being able to create something that looks like it was made for my house is the best feeling ever and it is well worth a little extra time and money.
Products Used in this DIY Wood Stool with Brass Leg Tips Project:
18-inch unfinished scoop seat stool by International Concepts via Amazon or Home Depot
Black Stain with Poly: Varathane
1.25″ Brass Ferrules: Lee Valley Tools (To get the diameter you need to order, measure your leg circumference and divide by pi, which is approximately 3.14.)
*affiliate links used in this blog post*
Impressions on Unfinished Furniture
I bought the 18-inch unfinished scoop seat stools by International Concepts that are sold at Home Depot and on Amazon.
Make sure you shop around to get the best price because I noticed prices can fluctuate a little between sites.
Overall, these unfinished stools are way sturdier than something you’d buy from Wayfair where you have to screw the furniture legs into the seat. They are solid wood and definitely not going to fall apart.
The stools I received were sanded extremely well. My only complaint is that they aren’t constructed super elegantly underneath. The legs are secured with brackets to the seat base. The brackets you can’t do anything about. You can do something about the exposed screw holes though. Remember, this is unfinished furniture, so you can fill in the exposed screw holes with wood putty if you don’t want to see them.
Please keep in mind that I cannot speak to how this company makes all of its furniture (dressers, tables, etc.). I’ve only seen the stools.
Would I buy unfinished furniture again? It depends on the situation, but I would be open to it.
Thanks for reading about this DIY Wood Still with Brass Leg Tips. Here are some other posts you might enjoy!
Footprint Step Stool to save your little one’s footprints
Vintage Ethan Allen Chairs for our Living Room
Fresh Take on a Rattan Swivel Chair
*affiliate links in this blog post*