As I have been working on finishing up projects in my master bathroom as part of my New Year's resolutions I found a few extra items that I wanted to do before I would feel like the bathroom is complete. One of those additions was to make a shower stool for my shower.
I love my 3' x 5' shower and with all that space I thought that having a little spot to sit down would be really nice. After looking around online and at some stores I couldn't find anything that I liked that was also reasonably priced so in the end I decided to make my own.
The design is a pretty standard stool design, just made to fit shower dimensions. Completed it stands at 18" tall, 15" wide and 11-1/2" deep. To assemble everything I used pocket holes made with my Kreg Jig which is an awesome tool I learned about on Ana White's amazing and inspiring website. All the pocket holes were under the seat and inside the aprons so I didn't have any holes to patch which was really nice.
It only took about an hour to build the shower stool not including drying time for the spray paint. I already had screws so with the lumber and spray paint I spent less than $20 on the project. I am happy with the results and I think it looks cute in my shower as well as being functional and sturdy.
Supply List:
2 - 2x2 @ 3 feet long
2 - 1x3 @ 6 feet long
1-1/4" pocket hole screws
Cut List:
4 - 1x3 @ 10" for seat slats
2 - 1x3 @ 11-1/2" for seat sides
2 - 1x3 @ 11 for front and back aprons
2 - 1x3 @ 7-1/2" for side aprons
4 - 2x2 @ 17-1/4" for legs
Seat Assembly:
To start I drilled 2 pocket holes on each end of the four seat slats. Leaving 1/2" between each slat I clamped and screwed the slats to the sides.
Leg and Apron Assembly:
For each of the aprons I drilled 2 pocket holes on the ends (for attaching to the legs) and then a few more pocket holes along the top edge (for attaching to the seat). Using a scrap piece of 3/8" plywood as a guide, I marked lines on each of the legs 3/8" in from the edge as guidelines for aligning my aprons.
I lined up the front apron to one of the legs, clamped it and then screwed them together. I then attached another leg to the other side of the apron in the same manner. I attached the back apron to the remaining two legs using the same process as the front.
I clamped and screwed the side aprons onto the front legs and finished making the base by then clamping and screwing the back legs to the side aprons.
Finishing Up:
I laid the seat face down and then centered the base on top of it. I used the already drilled pocket holes to screw the seat and base together.
With all the pocket holes under the seat or inside the apron I just did a light sanding on the piece before finishing it. I used a dark grey spray paint primer on the stool first before applying two light coats of black spray paint.
If you are interested, check out the rest of my bathroom posts here: Bathroom Blog Posts