DIY Gorgeous $35 Meditation Bench/Stool For Slow Living

Hello Bloglandia.........

Its not been so long this time, and I am happy to make another post to share. This is a simple project that I have fallen in love with. It came upon me when I was sitting on my rug and just staring out, zoning out at the grass and trees. There is something about the shed which causes me to relax all the time, I don't know what it is......until yesterday, I figured it out, more on that later.

One day I was in the shed trying to do my stretching/yoga, and it just wasn't happening. So I sat up and looked out at the view of the Beautiful Green......when I realized that I was in pain in that cross legged position, which I never used to be, but now for some reason sitting cross legged hurts. I knew that I needed to elevate my rear and that I need a low seat. And thus this vision came to me on the spot because I had seen the round wood in home depot while getting supplies for another bench I want to make, and I knew I'd need this round one day, and so that day came complete with the vision in tact, and a project was born.

Does that happen to you? You see something in the store and you say, "OH! I need that!", but you don't know for what, and so you pass it up, and INEVITABLY within short time, you have to do something that requires that exact thing you left in the store and have to go back for? It happens to me ALL the time. I will see something and say ''I need that!!'', and I don't buy it because I don't know what for, and then comes the time when I need it and have to go back for it. Even the housemate sees this. So what do I do now? I don't leave it in the store anymore, because I hate having to go out for little things. Now I have the mysterious objects that scream at me from the shelves on hand, and it is a pleasure to have that project come along and have what I need already here! That's been fun lately. I love saying to john, "see?! told you! ha"...isn't that odd.......lol.


As the title says, its a do it yourself Meditation Bench or Tea Stool, so easy so pretty. It can be used for simply sitting cross legged facing your favorite view, or it can be a plant stand or fish bowl stand, use your imagination. A second one can be made with the slightly taller legs and placed beside it as a Tea Table, which is something I'm hoping to make soon. It will be perfect with the shorter bench!
Because I simply LOVE sitting in the shed with the view of the fountain bird bath and Quan Yin and imagine having a lovely tea there! (if my camera batteries recharge before I finish this post, I can upload a picture of that.)
 
This project cost $35.00 roughly.

Now I have googled Meditation Benches and all of them were over $100.00, and not even pretty. Sigh. So I think this Meditation Bench/Stool was a genius vision and is well worth it. It takes only 2 days to complete, mostly because of drying times, (and because I move slowly these days)...... but it is effortless and beautiful.

All the supplies were from Home Depot except the stencil.

Supplies: 

18" round around $7.00
Four 6" legs, around $3.35 each
Red Oak stain around $5.00
polyurethane gloss around $10.00
2 paint brushes, one nylon for varnish and one natural for the stain. I had these also.
Mandala stencil around $6.00 (amazon) or you can look in Michaels, JoAnnes or Hobby Lobby.
I had the wood glue and liquid gold leaf. But but you can let your imagine go wild with what you want to see on your bench. Would be nice if you can do your own artwork. But stencils are beautiful. You can make the making of this bench a meditation in itself, and go all out with creativity. My own mind is going all over the place with more visions of these, but truly I only need one, and a slightly taller one for a tea table. :D:D:D

First I stained the wood as it is, no sanding at all in this project......let it dry on one side, did the other side and the edges and then I stained the legs. The round and legs both got only one coat of stain as it was pretty dark. You can choose what color stain you prefer.
I then gave the legs and round 2 coats of polyurethane. I wanted it glossy but this varnish did not give the effect I wanted. Turns out what I really wanted to see was a glass like finish which can only come from resin which I am contemplating.

Then I stenciled both sides with a mandala using liquid gold leaf, and a stencil from amazon. They have many to choose from, all beautiful. Mine is 12" in diameter which leaves a nice border on the 18" round. You have to be careful with stenciling because a sloppy stencil is just not satisfying and the liquid gold leaf is very watery and cannot be fixed, so caution is needed with that medium. I also gold leafed the round edge. After the gold leaf dried, I varnished it with 3 more coats. I am still wanting to see the glass like finish, and I think I will apply resin later.
Once the poly varnish was dry, I had my housemate drill 4 shallow holes for the screw-on-legs in the positions I wanted, and I wanted the legs close to the edge of the round to be stable once I sat on it....added wood glue, screw on legs, let dry. Done and beautiful.

 

 It is so satisfying to come out of my sauna which always feels amazing and I adore for deep cleansing and purifying, and then to sit on the bench and see the view and just relax.

 So, back to why I feel so relaxed in here? Its not just the sauna, nor the stretching nor the view of the green expanse.......cause it even happens when I'm exhausted or in too much pain as well....something calming happens. And yesterday as I was falling into the zone on the rug after another failed attempt at a stretch/yoga session, I was so curious as to why it was happening again.......I looked around and realized this shed is all metal so it is a virtual Faraday Cage! and that is why I feel so calm in here and almost always want to fall asleep in that most rare and delicious way that happens naturally from an almost opiate relaxed state, *as opposed* to the falling out or passing out from exhaustion or overly mental states. In the shed, I simply *fall into* a tranquil state, I feel my body melting, and my mind just goes quiet, *shuts off* if you will,......I'm suddenly in The Zone.
I fall into a spontaneous meditation zone when I go in there, and that is because of the Faraday Cage effect. I dont' even have to work for a meditative state, I just fall into it. Lovely!

Find a metal shed people, and zone out.

So, this project is done and satisfying.
I can't wait to do the matching Tea Table, maybe with the same mandala, maybe with another which sounds more interesting to me. I can't get it out of my head, so it needs to be done. More on that later.

Beauty Blessings
Serena

Bedroom Tea Service

Hello Everyone!
*big grins*

“What is the most wonderful thing for people like myself who follow the Way of Tea? My answer: the oneness of host and guest created through ‘meeting heart to heart’ and sharing a bowl of tea.” – Soshitsu Sen, Tea Life, Tea Mind

Sighhhhhh......its Tea Time............

“Strange how a teapot can represent at the same time the comforts of solitude and the pleasures of company.” – Author Unknown

Today I want to share an inspiration that I am loving very much, it is giving me happy moments during the day. I don't see or hear too much about this but as the title says, its a Tea Service in the Bedroom.

 “If you are cold, tea will warm you;
if you are too heated, it will cool you;
if you are depressed, it will cheer you;
if you are exhausted, it will calm you.”– William Gladstone

I spend alot of time in my room, and so the room has to be lovely and accommodating, and very hospitable for me personally, and lately I wanted even more from my bedroom....... it does have to be set up and structured to allow me to flow with ease in all my tasks and needs. For me a bedroom is not just a place to crash, but a place to replenish.....the bedroom has to have alot of ambience.


 

“As the centerpiece of a cherished ritual, it’s a talisman against the chill of winter, a respite from the ho-hum routine of the day.” – Sarah Engler

So I brought in from the living room a console and placed it over the bench, added linen and my tea things and I was happy.





I've been loving having tea. Alot of tea. I used to just have a cup at a time, maybe two made in a French Press but not much more. Below is a pot of tea using just the dandelions that grew in the summer. I'd pick the blossoms once they opened with the morning sun, added hot water and honey and had lovely tea.

Lately I've been watching some Chinese drama series' and I have been blown away by so much about that culture's living! I could go on for an hour raving about their decor, their costumes, their beauty, but this is about Tea.
One of their dominating customs is "the taking of tea". It seems to be a panacea for everything, from feeling cold/hot, or lovesick, to grieving, to healing, anything it seems, the teas are brought out to calm, as a balm for the soul and body and mind. They drink primarily camellia sinensis and varieties of herbs, roots, flowers and berries. And they are usually grown in certain ways to have qualities and properties from being medicinal, healing, or for simply enjoying an un common taste.
And so with all of this tea culture, there are the tea accessories, from teapots, to tea warmers, cups and serving trays, and these also seem to be tailored to the type of tea, who is drinking, what class they are from, to simply a basic set that is for everyday use with both royals and commoners.
There are tea sets for occasions, and sets for collections. In almost every scene of a home, or room, or dwelling, even hospitals, you will see pots of tea on warmers steaming away with cups on a serving tray available for anyone who drops by. It is a greeting, A welcome, a medicine, a comfort, a handshake, a hug, deal maker, and a joy.

 “Tea tempers the spirits and harmonizes the mind, dispels lassitude and relieves fatigue, awakens thought and prevents drowsiness, lightens or refreshes the body, and clears the perceptive faculties.” – Confucius

I think this is fantastic, and a lovely way of treating anyone. So why not myself? Why do I have to have only one cup, and only when I think of it? How nice is it to have the pot steaming for hours, with simple tealights for heat, (oh, "tea" lights ? hummm, I just saw that connection), and living water spiraling up in gentle streams of steam offering me two of natures elements, of fire and water making my room come to life....... and having hot tea of any flavor ready for me to pour throughout the day? Who knew I could treat myself as a guest and have good hospitality for myself.


I find that I adore having a pot, or two, of tea steaming away. When I walk into the kitchen I can pour a glass.

And if I'm in my bedroom and want a glass of tea I don't have to walk to the kitchen because I have a pot steaming in there too. Its just lovely.
 

 

All you need really is a small table, a tray, a teapot and warmer, and your drinking glass or cup.
I have taken it a bit further as sometimes I like to eat something in my room and so I have little silverwares and chocolates, flowers of course, and fairy lights.

Its such a simple thing and yet gives so much. It is better than the plain 2 or 3 liters of water I was drinking, as now I have herbal waters in the form of teas. My favorite in this moment is local grown galangal with lemongrass that I grow with a bit of honey. I love cutting the grass every morning and making a large pot, adding honey and decanting into the two tea pots I keep warm. One is in the kitchen I keep on a low setting to keep it hot and the other in my bedroom with the candles. By the time the candles go out, I have finished the pot. Its just perfect.

I'd like to encourage you also to set up something very lovely for yourself too. If you do, I'd love to see :D  I do not encourage this with coffee though, this is not about "waking up" or having the shakes, its all about the grace and beauty and calm of a multitude of panaceas from the Herbal Kingdom.

 “Drinking a daily cup of tea will surely starve the apothecary.” – Chinese Proverb

..... a few extra pictures....pictures! I love pictures!!.....

Beauty Blessings!