DIY fan makes $40 dupe of $600 tufted velvet bench using an unlikely object

By Rachael Gavin| 7 months ago

When US woman Annika fell in love with a stunning tufted velvet stool for $637 at a furniture store, she did what any DIY fan would naturally do.

Instead of spending hundreds of dollars on the bench, she went straight to the Dollar Tree and fabric store to buy supplies to make a bargain version herself.

Annika, who goes by the handle @blondesigns on TikTok, shared a tutorial for the DIY in a video on her channel. A video documenting the process has racked up more than 300,000 views while a sped up version of her DIY has now had 1.4 million views.

All up the DIY bench cost Annika just $40 (all prices in this article have been converted to AUD) in materials.

These supplies included several pool noodles, which Annika used to get the voluminous tufted look.

Annika also purchased sheets of wood and had them cut into 15 x 15 inch squares. She also got a 2 x 4 inch crossbeam to attach underneath the stool for support.

"I put the side pieces together but before putting the crossbeam in I wrapped the underneath in fabric — this was to avoid any unnecessary scrunching around the corners. Then I just wrapped the crossbeam and screwed it in underneath," she explained.

The next step was to attach the pool noodles, which Annika said took "a lot of trial and error".

From the TikTok video it looks like Annika attached the pool noodles one-by-one using a staple gun and wrapping velvet material around each noodle. Once all the pool noodles were attached the project was complete.

"I love how it looks but I wanted to make sure it was gonna be functional, so I stress-tested it a little bit. It ended up being really sturdy — no flexing or tipping and it's actually really comfortable," she said.

Pool noodles are turning out to be a surprisingly effective resource for DIY fans, who have been using them to get all sorts of creative looks on their projects.

Interior decorator Bridgette has also used pool noodles multiple times in her designs, including bedheads.

A TikTok video she posted of one of her pool noodle bedheads went viral with 2.7 million views. At the time Bridgette called it her "most iconic creation".

So next time you see something a piece of furniture you like for hundreds of dollars, why not try making it yourself it instead? You might just end up saving hundreds of dollars.

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