Final

My Final Piece

I sprayed the entire model, once assembled, with an industrial, multipurpose varnish

Making the prototype

Original sketch (branches too thick)

Second sketch (final)

Scale sketch

                                                                        Laser cut part

                                 

Welding

                                         I made a jig to keep the pieces square whilst welding

                                         Completed Welds

                                        

                                         Creating a radius for the branches

Preparing the wooden rods

                                         

I hand sanded the frame, to give it the visual effect of bark.

                                         With an electrical wire brush I brushed over the rods to
                                         buff them & remove the dark layer.

Making the Prototype

As the frame would now be made of steel also, the weight became an issue.
So I had to search for thinner rods of steel, to decrease the weight.
I found 12mm steel rods, of various shapes which I will heat & bend, to soften the appearance & add visual interest.
Using thinner rods also helps in terms of the frame, as the Steel "branches" could be made thinner, giving the stool an over all lighter appearance.

                                                                Flat rod, twisted.

                                               Final steel rods (wooden rods were changed)

Making the Prototype

I went to my local park to find wood, as I wanted to maintain the natural appearance of the wood. Originally I was going to incorporate some off-cuts of dowel, but since the new design, I thought it would look better if I only used raw wood.

The branches from the park had broken off during recent storms & also, as council workers had cut down trees.
These branches would otherwise have been left to rot, or made in mulch.

I peeled away the bark from some branches, to make them all uniform & I ended up only using the branches from gum trees. 

Making the Prototype

Change in plans...

I decided to change the entire frame of the design, so that the frame itself would be views as a tree, rather than a frame, with an image of a tree cut out of it...

Initial sketch:

However this design needed a lot of work and different materials, because the branches would not be strong enough to support the bars once pressure is applied by the sitter.

Instead of using formply for the frame I would have to use plate steel (5mm).
And the method of assembly would change too, as I would now have to weld the steel together. rather than inserting it into the holes, drilled into the formply.


Frame sketches:

 

Making the Prototype...

Salvaging materials...

Nextdoor's house was being demolished, so I thought I'd take advantage of their wrought iron gate, which otherwise would've been put into a dumpster...

Took it apart with the angle grinder...

2 pieces, ready for heating & to be twisted.

Heated metal

whilst the metal is hot, I brushed it with a brass wire brush.

This allowed the colour to adhere to the hot surface, giving it a golden finish.

twisted wrought iron, single piece.

Brass brushed.

cutting to length : 45mm

Final 15 pieces.

Making the Prototype...

Chosen design for frame...

working out size...

...producing copies, for mockups, double sides... etc.

working out the spacing between each bar:

estimated 48mm (from centre)