Stickley Tabouret #603

This is a reproduction of a Stickley Tabouret #603 that a friend and I did. While researching different tables I saw that Eagle Lake Woodworking and Tree Frog Furniture both had pretty good examples of what I was looking for.

I like that Arts and Craft Style of furniture and the encompassing Mission style. One of the leading advocates of the American Craftsman style is Gustav Stickley. It is his Stickley tabouret that we reproduced here.

Gustav Stickley was the eldest surviving son of 11 children. He founded the Craftsman Magazine, which was one of the leading advocates for the Arts and Craft Movement in North America. He believed that calling his style of furniture Mission was misleading.

Whether you are talking about Mission style or Arts and Craft furniture I believe that in the Stickley spirit you are talking about clean lines, simplistic design, and quarter sawn white oak. These were designed to be made in an assembly line type fashion.

While reproducing the Stickley tabouret I insisted in keeping the “old fashioned” techniques such as the full mortise and tenon joint that you can see on the legs. This joint where wood intersects traditionally at 90 degree angles is thousands of years old. It indeed made a solid joint.

The other aspect that is hidden from normal view is the dovetail that holds the table stretcher on. This allows the normal movement of the wood throughout the season.

This table was done with quarter sawn white oak. The Legs are actually made out of 8/4 white oak and are solid wood. The benefit to using quarter sawn white oak is seeing the ray flecks.

The ray flecks, which helped transport food horizontally through a tree, traditionally are enhanced by the use of fuming. Fuming is done by putting the piece in a tent with ammonia. Although I did not fume this piece I like how the ray flecks are brought out.

When this Stickley tabouret was done I was left with a solid table that could double as a stool. The clean lines and beautiful wood ensure that it is a focal point for any room that it is placed in.