Log Bar Stools
Buy the best log bar stools selected and recommended by interior designers. By Emily Hilton.
Bar stools are a wonderful addition to any kitchen or dining area with a mid-height countertop. You can find a variety of rustic and country-style bar stools to fit into your cabin or lodge home. Natural wood log bar stools offer a stylish and eye-catching variation in the wood tones and patterns, giving you a useful seat as well as conversation piece.
Log Bar Stools
Buying Guide
Emily Hilton
Interior Design Expert
Emily is a young, talented designer, whose professional interests gravitate towards kitchen and dining spaces. She prides herself on her attention to detail, obsession with functionality, and appreciation for craftsmanship.
Rustic log bar stools look straight out of old colonial taverns and grogshops. Minimalistic unsophisticated, these stools have an authentic charm about them that’s comforting and attractive. The best part is that these will fit right into your home or commercial space, irrespective of the décor theme and will even supplement your modern furniture pieces.
But buying log furniture is always rife with the risk of being fobbed off with cheap, weak, sapwood logs sourced from fast-growing timber trees. A few months of bumps and bruises and it will start to squeak and creak.
Here are a few important things to keep in mind when you go shopping for rustic log bar stools.
Before we get into the nitty-gritties of log furniture, let’s set the basics straight. What height is your bar counter?
Bar stools come in three standard sizes. There’s counter height stools which are 22-28” tall, there’s bar height stools which are 29-32” tall and there’s extra tall stools which can be up to 36” tall. If it’s a customized bar counter, then select the closest match.
A lot of homeowners measure the seat width to determine the number of stools that can be fit into the space. However, some bar stools have tapering designs and are wider near the footrest. Measure the stools at their widest point and add at least 6-inches to it. That’s the space you need to leave between each stool.
When you walk into a timber warehouse, the aroma that you can smell is released by natural toxins produced by the tree which resist pests and rot. The older the tree, the stronger the concentration of these toxins.
Also, heartwood or the portion of the wood that’s closest to the center of the tree produces the most toxins and hence is most durable.
Fast growing timber, on the other hand, have higher concentration of sapwood, which makes them more prone to rot. That translates into more frequent wood treatments.
The type of log you select will most likely be the ones that are locally available. That’s unless you are willing to spend freight charges and source exotic timber grown in another state or country.
Slow growing trees like Western Red Cedar, Douglas Fir, Eastern White Cedar and Cypress produce the best quality heartwood logs with intensely packed growth rings. These are premium timber that offer excellent decay and pest resistance naturally. When treated, these are like a no-brainer solution for logs.
Having said that, not everybody is looking to spend a bomb for a set of four bar stools. Timber from fast-growing trees like Yellow Pine are cheaper and are a good alternative. With proper wood treatment, these can match the durability and pest resistance of premium timber.
Logs used for furniture were traditionally air dried for a year or two. But newer furniture pieces are made from kiln dried logs, a faster process that doesn’t compromise the structural integrity. This prevents the logs from shrinking and expanding with changing weather conditions.
Authentic rustic bar stools were backless and used disproportionate or crooked logs. It added to the whimsical, rustic charm. Modern reproductions offer a more finessed finish and often intersperse contemporary influences into the classic design. So, you can find a rustic bar stool with a backrest, an arm rest and even a swiveling base these days.
When buying rustic log bar stools, speak to the manufacturer about the timber, when the trees were felled and the drying process. Trees that are felled in winter have the lowest sap content. Other than this, check the joinery and the overall build quality.
If there’s cushioning (highly recommended lest you want a sore butt) check the type of fill and the fabric used for the upholstery. Faux leather is one of the best bets due to its reasonable pricing and resistance to liquids and stains.