CubsFan Posted December 28, 2013 Report Share Posted December 28, 2013 FINALLY got done with the Morris and Prairie chairs I've been working on! I have always wanted to build a Morris Chair. To me, when you think about relaxing in the evening with a good book and a nice glass of bourbon, a Morris Chair is what I want to be sitting in. I looked through a LOT of plans, and finally settled on the one that's in Wood Magazine #112. I really wanted the curved arms and the adjustable back, and I quite liked the spacing and design of the slats. The only change I made was to not scrollsaw in the hourglass design -- I didn't like the look of it at all. For me the through-tenons were probably the hardest part. My joinery is still not great, so having it exposed was... nerve-wracking It turned out OK though. If you look closely (more closely than you can see in the pictures), then you'll see that they aren't perfect, but from a distance they are fine. It was also my first experience with bent lamination. Honestly, it ended up being much easier than I thought. The biggest thing I learned was to make the pieces a significant amount oversized. When you start clamping, the glue will make things slide around a bit, so having plenty of extra room was very helpful. Once I finished the Morris Chair, I kind of figured I needed a set of two chairs, but didn't want to build a Morris Chair. I've always liked the look of the Prairie/cube chairs, but it's surprisingly hard to find plans for them. I finally found one I liked in a Popular Woodworking book. It really used all the same joinery as the morris chair, so it went together quite quickly. I didn't really feel like doing the through tenons, so I just had stopped ones. The big shocker for me was the upholstery. To get them upholstered was literally probably double what the wood cost. But, in the end, they turned out very well. I'm quite happy with them (and they are very comfortable!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted December 28, 2013 Report Share Posted December 28, 2013 They look great...for a Cubs fan. Totally worth paying for a professional upholsterer. You would have regretted tackling that aspect yourself. At least I know I would. I've seen so many beautifully made Morris chairs ruined with shoddy, amateur upholstery work. Nice job! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted December 28, 2013 Report Share Posted December 28, 2013 +1 on the Cubs fan jab! Beautiful chairs! Bet you're looking forward to that Guild build this year? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Llama Posted December 28, 2013 Report Share Posted December 28, 2013 Very nice! Mel "Reindeer King" Morris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CubsFan Posted December 28, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 28, 2013 Totally worth paying for a professional upholsterer. You would have regretted tackling that aspect yourself. At least I know I would. I've seen so many beautifully made Morris chairs ruined with shoddy, amateur upholstery work. I 100% agree here. It was ~$800 for the leather and ~$500 for the labor, so I figure had I tried it I would have probably just ended up wasting $800 worth of leather and needing to get it done anyway Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CubsFan Posted December 28, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 28, 2013 +1 on the Cubs fan jab! Beautiful chairs! Bet you're looking forward to that Guild build this year? Yeah, I think it'll be interesting to see how that one comes together. Of course, I'm generally looking forward to every guild build. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkirby Posted December 28, 2013 Report Share Posted December 28, 2013 The more i see morris chairs the more i like them. Just wish i had the room for one. Very nicely done. I think its the photo but the curve on the arms of the morris chair are on the outside? it looks like they are both on the right hand side, looking at the chair, in the photo. I will be attempting a chesterfield at some point and i don't even want to think how much the leather is going to cost me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpt life Posted December 28, 2013 Report Share Posted December 28, 2013 It's the camera lens. Pic one both curves look right. Pic two both curves look left. Nice looking chairs. The cube is not my thing but it looks well done and the Morris is a favorite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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