Aside from the hammock and the rustic furniture there was a fine armchair, made from a barrel that had been sawed off, as in Fig. 229, to form the arms and back. The barrel was raised from the ground by setting it on a couple of boards arranged in the form of a V. Then a caster was fastened to the point of the V and another at each end, making a three-legged chair of it. The chair was upholstered with ticking stuffed with straw. First a piece of ticking large enough for the back was laid on the ground and covered over with an even layer of straw. Over the straw a second piece of ticking was laid, making what Bill called a "straw sandwich." This was nailed to the chair back along the edge and at the bottom, drawing the cloth as taut as possible. To make a better finish for the chair, the ticking was covered with dark red denim. Then strips of braid were laid on the chair back, crossing each other like a lattice. At the crossing points of the braid brass-headed tacks were nailed right through the sandwich into the wood, producing the padded upholstered effect. Next a long, thin sandwich was made to run along the edge of the back, and another one to run around the chair just below the seat, also a couple of small sandwiches to cover the legs and the brackets leading to them. These were all covered with denim before being tacked to the chair and then they were bound with tape at intervals to produce the padded effect. The rest of the woodwork was covered with denim, and a neat ruffle made by Aunt Dorothy hung about the bottom of the chair. A thick, round sandwich was now made to cover the seat board. This was also given a padded effect by binding it with tape. The seat board was not nailed to the chair, but rested on four cleats nailed to the barrel on the inside. When the seat was lifted out it uncovered a shallow chest in which various things could be stored.

Fig. 229. The Armchair Frame Fig. 230. Casters on the Chair.

Fig. 231. Tacking on the Straw Sandwiches.

Fig. 232. The Barrel Armchair.