Monday, October 26, 2009

Step Stool



I have a 7 year old and a 3 year old - both of whom are too short to reach the sink in the bathroom without climbing.
I also have a couple of ugly old barstools.
So I decided to build a solution :)

First, I cut the legs off a stool, just under the first set of crossbars, making the stool a little less than a foot tall.


Then I put it in the kids bathroom and let them try it out for...well, WAY longer than I originally planned.  When I finally got back on track, I gave the stool a light sanding to prepare it for painting.



I wanted it to say something cute, and considered "step" "reach" and a few others, but eventually decided on "up"
I chose Book Antiqua for the font (classic, but a little more decorative than regular old Times New Roman) and printed it out with the font set to 350.
When I apply a stencil to wood I use a glue stick - it holds it in place nicely but comes off super easy.


After "up" was glued down, I gave the stool one coat of primer and two coats of white semi-gloss spray paint.


Then I did some selective sanding to give it a "shabby" look, removed the stencil and rubbed some stain over the top to darken the wood tone of the word.


Last thing was a coat of clear acrylic spray to protect it from too much more "distressing" at the hands of my children :)



P.S.
Ignore all the stuff in the background of the first picture...those are eventual projects :)

I'll be linking up to DIY Day at A Soft Place to Land!
and Met Monday at Between Naps on the Porch!

32 comments:

Anonymous said...

Now THAT is just too cute! Love it.

pk @ Room Remix

Summer Rae said...

Great idea!

Its So Very Cheri said...

Great idea--it would have been cute to put HELP on there as well.

I look forward to getting to know you better.

I've been praying for you.

Cheri

{northern cottage} said...

soooo you just keep on impressing me!! I've posted about your darling blog & awarded the Kreativ Blog Award here -

http://northerncottage.blogspot.com/2009/10/our-house-has-it.html

Unknown said...

Too cute!! :)

Rachelle said...

SOOO CUTE! I love it, I'm stealing the idea.

:)

Rachelle

Jennifer Juniper said...

It's so cute with "UP" on it!

Maureen said...

Cute and functional - what's not to love!

Amanda @ Serenity Now said...

Cute cute cute...I'd have a hard time getting mine off of it. :) Hope you have a chance to make those Trick or Treat bags. It was really fun for me. :) Thanks for the visit!

Linda@Coastal Charm said...

Now this is an awesome idea...putting the word "UP" on it...makes it soooo cute! Thanks for sharing.

Blessings,
Linda

Brittany at Mommy Words said...

I love it now I will be curbing for an old step stool. We so need one in every bathroom and under the lightswitch in the hallway! Brilliant!

Karen The Graphics Fairy said...

Darling!! What a great way to reuse that old stool. Nice tip about the glue stick too, I'll have to remember that one.

Maryann @ Domestically-Speaking said...

How cute! Great idea to make a reg. stool into a foot stool... brilliant.

gail@My Repurposed Life said...

great idea to "shorten" that stool! thanks for commenting on my memo board!
hope you're having a great week.
gail

Kathy @ Creative Home Expressions said...

Cute, yet functional! Love it!

Marianne said...

Looks great! Love the idea of the reversed stenciling, so much easier than trying to paint it (I can never stay within the lines).
I am sure it will make for some happy water splashing pleasure.

Miss Mustard Seed said...

Such a cute idea! And I love the word "up" steciled on it is so cute. Well done!

DeeAnna said...

What a great way to re-purpose! The "up" is adorable and a great way to let the kids know that reading is "easy and fun!"

Phyllis @Around the House said...

so cute, love the up stencil and I love the stool with the legs cut off, very clever and stylish...I am a new follower of yours, I will return for new ideas, come for a visit

Sherri said...

Adorable and an AWESOME use of an old stool!

Heather Henderson said...

that's adorable! what a good re-purpose.

Kimmy said...

Now that is adorable!! What a great re-do!!

Janet said...

What a creative idea. Its so much better than those plastic colored stools.

Thanks for stopping by my blog. I visit your blog often so it was exciting when you stopped by.

Jess said...

Too cute!!!

Jess @ Floralshowers Craft Blog said...

What a great idea! I love the way it turned out!

Leanne said...

I love it. I bet your kids love it too. Thanks for sharing and thanks for stopping by for a visit.

GypSea Rose said...

this is just sooo cute!

Norma Lee @ Norma Lee Good said...

Sucha cute idea!! lOVE IT!

KellyH said...

Great Idea. I have this same ugly bar stool and a two yr old that can't reach the sink! HMMMMM......

Jill@Barnes Yard said...

Love it! Oh, I am seeing so much cute stuff, I'm going to keep looking around!

Anna Whiston-Donaldson said...

super cute! if i had done this it would have been so wobbly no one could stand on it!

Anonymous said...

Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now keep it up!

Related Posts with Thumbnails