How to Make Furniture out of Willow Trees
- 1). Get permission to remove any wood from property that you do not own. Cut several different lengths and diameters of willow with a pruning saw, carpenter's saw and/or pruning shears. A medium size chair, for example, will require 50 feet of 1 1/2-inch-diameter branches, and 100 feet of 3/4-inch-diameter branches.
- 2). Measure and cut the required lengths of branches. A medium-size chair will require two 14-inch and four 28-inch pieces of 1 1/2-inch branches (for the legs and frame), and 14 lengths, 21 inches long, of the 3/4-inch inch branches (for supports). For this chair, the front legs will be 14 inches in length. The back legs and crossbars will be 28 inch long, and the supports will be 14 inches long.
- 3). Lay out one of the front legs and one of the back legs. Attach one support to the top of the front leg with a nail. Attach the other end of this support to the back leg with a nail. Place another support to the bottom of the front leg and attach with a nail. Secure with a nail the other end to the back leg. This will create a boxlike frame. Repeat the process with the other front and back leg.
- 4). Stand up both frames and place them 28 inches apart. This will allow enough space for a medium-sized person to sit in comfortably. Attach both halves together with help of another person. Secure a support between the two back pieces on the bottom with a nail on each end. Attach another support to the top of the back piece with a nail in each end. Attach a middle piece to the back legs with a nail on each end.
- 5). Lay the chair on its back and attach a support on the bottom of the front legs. Secure with a nail in each end of the support. Attach a support to the top of the front legs by nailing a nail into each end of the support.
- 6). Lay the chair on its side and attach a support going from the bottom right hand corner up to the upper left hand corner. Repeat with the opposite corner. This side support will look like an "X." Flip the chair over and repeat the process with the other side.
- 7). Lay the chair on its front legs. Place one of the supports in the upper right hand corner of the back legs and run down to the opposite corner. Attach to the legs with nails. Repeat the process with the other corners. Set the chair up and check to make sure the chair is not wobbly. Add and adjust the supports where needed along with any additional nails.
- 8). Shave off opposite sides of some of the 28-inch pieces to form flat slabs. Attach the flat branches to the seat in a horizontal position. Secure with nails to the frame of the seat. Attach additional flat branches to the inside part of the back of the chair to serve as a backrest. Secure with nails to the back of the chair.
- 9). Create a decorative armrest by attaching one end of a long branch to one of the front legs with a nail. Bend the branch into the shape desired and attach the other end to the back leg. Build upon this by adding additional branches. Repeat on the other side. Create a decorative backrest by attaching one end of a branch to the functioning armrest with a nail. Bend the branch into the desired shape and attach the other end of the branch to the other functioning armrest. Continue with this process until the backrest forms the desired shape.