Build rustic furniture with these five basic tools

When it comes to building rustic furniture there are many tools, but five basic tools stand out for their usefulness and versatility. These tools are for the beginner and the advanced builder alike, and with them you can build furniture for your home and garden.

These tools were all that I used for my first five or six projects, and I still use every one of them on just about every project that I build.

When obtaining branches, twigs, and saplings for projects you will first and foremost need a good pair of pruning shears. This invaluable tool is used for quickly removing desired wood, and the right type will easily remove branches one to two inchs in diameter.

Pruning shears come in a variety of sizes and shapes, and figuring out which ones will work the best is sometimes challenging. Perferably, you will want one or two long handled shears for larger branches and a pair of small hand held pruners for twigs and trimmings.

In my personal experience, Fiskars makes the best pair of large pruning shears around. This is a picture of my favorite pair. They cut easily and smoothly through any branch 1-1/2 to 2" in diameter.

Basic Tool #2 will be for removing those branches and trees that are just to big for your shears. The tool that I speak of is a simple bow saw. This saw will quickly take out branches and saplings 3-5 inches in diameter and the blades are inexpensive and easily replaced. I have been using the same bow saw for about 3 years and have not had to replace a blade yet.

Basic Tool #3 is the knife. This will be used for trimming small twigs off of branches, shaping ends, and carving. I have found that a 5-6" fixed blade knife works best. The least expensive and most durable knife that I have used is the Swedish Mora knife. It sharpens easily, holds an edge well, and cost about 12 dollars purchased online.

Tool #4 is an electric drill. The electric drill will be used for boring holes and constructing frames with screws. A cordless electric drill is best because it allows for manuverability while working, but the corded drill has the advantage of not needing a recharge and has much greater power.

I personally have owned a variety of cheap and expensive corded and cordless drills and from my experience, I would give the following advice. Any cheap corded drill will do.

However, if you buy a cordless drill only by a high quality brand. I prefer 18 volt Dewalt or Hitachi brand. Make sure to get 2 batteries so one will always be ready to use and make sure your drill has a keyless chuck.

Finally, Tool #5 is the humble hammer. With the hammer, you will secure limbs and branches together using nails of various sizes.

Make sure that you choose a hammer which is not to heavy, and has a smooth driving face so that your projects do not get mared in the nailing process.

With these 5 basic tools you can get started building rustic furniture today. So what are you waiting for? Find a project on this site and go for it.

You may find this rustic bench project a great starting point. My first rustic furniture project was a bench which still sits our back yard.

Happy Building

Return to Home Page from Basic Tools