Finn Juhl Stool

The stool

This stool, created by the Danish designer Finn Juhl, needed some work. The undercloth in particular was stained and was ripped around one leg.

The underside of the stool

The puzzle was to understand how the four legs all passed through the undercloth yet without any fixings from the top.

The undercloth freed around the edges

With the stool upside down the undercloth was freed – but obviously had to be left in place.

The fixings for the cover were removed and the frame could be seen.

The green foam layer
The divided green foam

Upright, and with the cover and a layer of yellow foam removed, green foam – same as on the sofa was uncovered. The yellow fabric covered a cut in the foam. 

Under the foam was some old cotton webbing .

The old cotton webbing

With the webbing removed the stool frame could be examined. This stool had seen a lot of action!

Broken frame with glued in leg
Broken leg socket

The frame had pieces broken off and joints had opened up. However, it was now clear that the legs – pegs and sockets – used the same precise engineering as the stool and were held in place simply by friction.

At least that was how they were originally held – now two were glued in place! One other only had half a socket! 

The pieces ready to be reassembled

With a lot of care and controlled violence, the legs were removed from the frame and loose joints were knocked apart.

It was now time to start restoring this pile of bits!

Detail of one leg socket
Undercloth added to restore seat frame

The support framework was rebuilt  and the fit to the top frame checked. 

The support framework added to the seat frame

The top was then repaired. Turning it over, the undercloth was added – temporarily held taut while the holes for the legs were cut out and the edges stapled (those will be hidden when the legs are in place).

Pirelli webbing added

The frame was pushed into the repaired top – it fitted!  

With the stool upright, Pirelli webbing was added – the same support that the sofa now has.

Hessian support added

Hessian was added as further support over the webbing.

Green foam added
Yellow foam added

The original foam layers were attached next.

Top cover added, then undercloth

The cover fabric was added and secured under the frame – with the undercloth left out of the way. 

The undercloth was then fixed permanently in place.

The finished stool

With the stool complete, it was returned to the owner along with the sofa. You can see the details of the sofa restoration here.

This project was fascinating, providing an opportunity to look at and understand some of the work of an internationally acclaimed furniture designer.

JBerryUpholstery has many examples of furniture Recovering and Restoration and also Soft Furnishings to add to or complement the finished items. You can see pictures of these in the GalleriesRecovering Gallery, Restoration Gallery, Soft Furnishings Gallery and Transformations.

If you have some upholstery that is in need of a bit of TLC or you are interested in Soft Furnishings then please contact us.