It all started with my wife’s uncle Georgie and a little stool he made back in 1970, which she loves and cherishes dearly. I decided to build my own version using red deal pine boards and a piece of mahogany for the top. It’s approximately 250mm wide x 330mm high x 380mm long. I used only hand tools, traditional mortise and tenon joinery and a stretcher with a through mortise and tusk tenon joint to add a bit of character.

This was a lovely little build, but it got me thinking: what else could I possibly make using the same mortise and tenon joinery? A kitchen bench sprung to mind, again using just hand tools, but this involved a little more work than I initially thought and really tested my skills and knowledge. As you can see from the photos, it looks great.

I pushed myself even further again by creating a beautiful rocking chair. I used a bandsaw for the radius section, as I didn’t have a hand tool big enough to cope with the 50mm thick pieces of oak.

One good design is all it takes to spark the ideas and creativity required to make many other wonderful pieces of heirloom furniture.

The Point of the Mortise & Tenon Challenge (https://www.facebook.com/philip.gaynor.77/posts/pfbid02hV7UR6RGwrUjPJHmrGMp1Yrrwhy5tSjMCo2mrxqxfgcPUJMyForLbPJC2JqhV7ZZl) is not just to build a specific stool. It’s to gain knowledge of a fundamental joint that you can then use in many projects for years to come.

If you would like to follow along with my build of a mortise and tenon stool you can watch here:

Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0Gt7mW97Yc Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbYxUKP5EEo Part 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtBNgly1FFo

To see future instalments, follow: https://www.youtube.com/@anirishwoodworkersdiary2137

Mortise

Georgies stool from 1970, the design has withstood the test of time.

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My version of the design. Red deal pine with a mahogany top.

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The same joinery was then used to create this kitchen bench

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And then the joinery inspired another design. My Wexford Rocker.

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And now I’m back to the start again, building stools at my bench.