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Rustic Wood Footstool Gets a Makeover with Twine

May 1, 2022

Wood footstool woven with twine

Use jute twine from the craft store to update a secondhand wood footstool, making it the perfect accent piece for adding lots of texture to your rustic farmhouse style home.




CREATE   |   Updated January 18, 2024







Footstool with jute twine top









There are so many good finds at the thrift store that just need a little DIY love to be transformed into a stylish piece of décor for your modern farmhouse home.


Small wood footstools are one of those things you should always keep an eye out for when shopping at Goodwill or an antique store because there are so many ways to update them. A coat of paint and new upholstery will normally give you a custom accent piece that will fit right in with your style.


If you are looking for another DIY footstool idea with more texture, then you’ll love this rustic footstool makeover using jute twine! The fiber has been woven back and forth across the horizontal board to give it a completely unique look.


It is an easy beginner do-it-yourself project, budget-friendly if you find an inexpensive footstool, and doesn’t take much time to complete.




READ NEXT: Restoration Hardware Inspired Console Table Made from Rustic Wood Scraps






Footstool upholstered in jute twine








EASY DIY WOVEN FOOTSTOOL MAKEOVER USING TWINE






What Kind of Footstool Do You Need to Buy?


The great thing about updating secondhand furniture pieces is that you’ll know when you find the right one. It is why thrifting gives you one-of-a-kind décor. The right footstool to use for this project is the one that catches your eye.


The handmade footstool used for this tutorial was not a pretty sight before the makeover. It was primitively made using a flat board, four tapered legs, and four smaller stabilizing pieces. The pieces were nailed together through the top board.



Rustic wood footstool



What you should remember is that you’ll need a footstool made of wood. And the project will be easiest if you are able to remove the legs and reattach them later as you will see in the instructions below.


You can also look for an old-fashioned footstool that has spindles on the side for reed to be woven onto. These can often be found for almost nothing if the reed is damaged or completely gone.


If secondhand shopping isn’t your thing, there are unfinished wood footstools available at your local craft store, online, or from Amazon. Or you can use a scrap board and purchase four unfinished feet from the hardware store.



Supplies Needed to Make a Rustic Twine Footstool






How to Make a Rustic Wood Footrest


STEP 1: If you are using a thrift store footrest, you’ll likely need to do a little clean up before starting.


For this project, the legs were sanded back to the original bare wood for a rustic look. You could also stain or paint the legs if that is your preferred style. Or perhaps you are lucky and all your footstool needs is a little soap and water scrub before starting!



Unfinished wood footstool with sandpaper



STEP 2: Tear the footstool apart so that the jute twine can be wrapped completely around the top board. The way many new unfinished footstools from the craft store are put together, they can likely be upholstered without disassembly.



Hammer lying on board



STEP 3: Staple the end of the twine onto the underside of the board.

Then begin wrapping the twine in one direction, going around and around until you get to the other side. Then cut your twine and staple the other end. You don’t need to staple anything more than just the two ends in this direction.



Using electric stapler on board


Board wrapped with jute twine



STEP 4: Now you will begin weaving the twine in the opposite direction. It is easiest to do the weaving if you pull a loop of twine through rather than individual piece by piece. This also cuts the weaving you’ll need to complete in half since you are basically pulling through two pieces at a time.

Leave the ends hang loose until all of your weaving is done so that the strands of twine can be adjusted and moved as needed.

The number of strands you weave and the pattern you form is up to you and the size of your footstool.

For this example, each section was made up of four strands of twine in each direction. You can do more or less strands or weave in an unequal pattern (for example, pull only two strands through with four going in the other direction.).



Jute twine woven in basket weave pattern



STEP 5: Once the weaving is done, the pieces of twine can be adjusted and spread out evenly. Then staple the ends onto the underside of the board.


STEP 6: Reattach your legs. For this footstool, the original nails were reused by pushing aside the woven strands to find the original hole, hammering the nail back in, and then covering the nail head with the twine weaving.


STEP 7: For the final polishing detail, glue a piece of twine around the base of the weaving where it meets the boards and legs underneath.


Side of wood footstool with woven top



This easy DIY project allows you to update a trashy little footstool into a pretty place to rest your feet. The combination of the bare wood with the texture of the jute twine makes it a nice accent piece for your living room or a reading nook in the bedroom.




READ NEXT: Over 30 More Transformations of Secondhand Thrift Store Items




Top of woven footstool with coffee







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