家 (jiā) Step Stool

The 家 (jiā) Step Stool is a school-assigned partner project. My partner, Julia Le, and I were tasked to build a two-step stool made with a 2' x 4' x 3/4" plywood sheet. The steps must be a minimum elevation of 12-inches above the ground, and the overall design must have a clear purpose. Our stool blends together the style of traditional Chinese design with the simplicity of modern furniture in its form. It is named "家 (jiā)", as it is the Chinese word for "home", describing where our stool is meant to be used.

1. 2' x 4' x 3/4" plywood sheet
2. Sandpaper (200 grit - 800 grit)
3. Wood filler
4. Wood glue
5. CNC cutter (1/4" bit)
6. Wooden dowels (3/8" diameter), for joinery
7. Rosewood wood stain
8. Polyurethane semi gloss finish

While researching, we noticed that there weren't many two-step stools that reflected traditional Asian design. Most stools available in Asia are either industrial-looking or made of cheap plastic.

There is an opportunity to create a high-quality two-step stool inspired by Asian design. Using materials like wood and incorporating traditional craftsmanship, such as Chinese lattice patterns could make the stool both functional and aesthetically unique. A well-designed, sturdy two-step stool would fill a gap in the market, appealing to people who value both culture and durability in their furniture.

Next, we figured out our design brief, including our design standards, the user, and the needs. We wanted to create a stool that was also suitable for older generations, so we did testing to find the ideal measurements. We designed the platforms to have a wide base so that people can put both of their feet onto the base. We also made the steps 6.5 inches tall and 4 inches apart, just shy of standard stair measurements but comfortable for easy steps.

In our sketching development, we narrowed our designs based on which one best captured Asian influences. After selecting the final sketch iteration, we made the sides more rectangular and the inner designs more intricate to fully showcase the Asian influence on our design. We also implemented ergonomic handles to allow easy transportation of the stool.

When designing the patterns, extensive research was done on Chinese architecture and design. We incorporated Chinese design principles such as Feng Shui, vertical and horizontal symmetry, and initially, a lotus motif into the design (the lotus is symbolic in Chinese).

We tested out different ways to join our parts together. We decided to dog bone joint the side of the stool and use a dowel joint for the support beams and platforms. For simplicity, we designed our stool to have as few joints as possible. We then laser cut a half-scale and full-scale model stool out of cardboard, and made sure that all the joints and the design of the side pane's were cohesive with the overall design of the stool.

Originally, our design included sharp edges. However, in our fusion model, we filleted each corner of the designs on the side panels due to the circle-shaped cutter of the CNC machine.

Unfortunately, we had complications with the CNC. Some of the corners were partially cut, not cut, and mistakenly cut too much. Because of this, we drilled holes to complete the unfinished cuts and filed down each little corner of the design.

Additionally, we used wood filler to fill in the gaps in the plywood from the cutting of the CNC. We sanded each part of our stool, starting from 200 grit to 800 grit for a smooth finish.

Our assembly was relatively simple, since we just had to slot the platforms together with the sides, and it was a tight fit as well. As an extra precaution, we glued the platforms to the sides and used our weight as way to clamp our stool.

Since traditional Chinese furniture commonly uses wood like purple sandalwood, rosewood, and elm wood, we went with a rosewood stain to reflect this. We also debated on whether to stain just the platforms or just the side, but ended up staining the whole stool because it resembled Chinese furniture more.

After the stain dried, we brushed on two layers of semi-gloss polyurethane to protect the stain and to emulate the gloss finish that is in Chinese furniture. The 家 (jiā) Step Stool turned out to be sturdy, passing the step test. Our professor noted that the platforms were easy to step on as well thanks to its ability to room both feet. Despite the conflicts we faced building this stool, we are happy with how it still represents traditional Chinese design and satisfies our goal of being easy to use.