Travel meditation stool

[ewt]

AHA! it comes in taller sizes! This is good. Want one. This would be good for picnics, busking, and many other situations where I want to sit because standing for a long time is bad for me, and so is sitting cross-legged. Sitting on my feet without such a stool usually results in my ankles getting painfully squished and losing rather more circulation than I'd like.

Who knows enough woodworking to make one of those dimensions from recycled materials in exchange for a half-day of foraging instruction or a music lesson about an hour long?

Comments

[karen2205]

How heavy is that going to be? I'm looking at the picture and the wood all looks aboug 1.5" thick and I wonder if it then becomes too heavy for you to carry any distance. I don't know what density recycled stuff you're intending to use.

I'm also not sure how to make it so it's fold-up-able. Some sort of locking hinge I'd guess, but my woodworking isn't up to doing something like that.

[yady.livejournal.com]

I think I'd use hinges (that's the things you use to attach things so that they can move, like doors, right?) to attach the legs to the seat, and then a second set of hinges to attach pieces of wood to the legs that will fold out to support the seat and prevent the legs from collapsing. Not sure if I've explained that properly...

I suppose 1.5" solid wood would be too heavy, but I don't think you need that much to make it work. Half that thickness might do. Not tried it, though.

[karen2205]

*nods* - I see what you mean re a second set of hinges. I was envisaging making something like that with one set of hinges and the legs splaying apart and breaking as I sat on it.

I'm not good at estimating sizes, so I might well be wrong in my estimation of wood thickness.

[sci.livejournal.com]

Hmm, it looks absurdly basic. I could build something like it pretty easily. If I run it past my grandad first though, we can probably improve the design a fair bit. At very least, it has no latteral strength in it. It could easily break from rocking sideways.

[ewtikins.livejournal.com]

Lightweight, foldable and simple are my main criteria... I have no objections to design modifications as long as I can still carry the thing.

There are an awful lot of meditation stools made to that basic design, as a quick google search will show you. I'm not saying that the design cannot be improved upon, just that it is probably adequate as it is if it is so widespread.

[ewtikins.livejournal.com]

What about something like this (http://www.skardesign.no/)?

It is important to be able to get my ankles under it without squishing, so this sort of thing (http://www.surplusandoutdoors.com/ishop/877/shopscr2409.html) won't really work very well - okay, I could easily make a new, wider fabric seat for it to make it sit lower, but the aluminium bars would be too far apart on the bottom and would cause trouble. Also, it's 900g and the norsk one is 750g.

I also like this (http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10103&storeId=7&langId=-20&productId=62745) but the bamboo cane sticking up at the edge would be mighty uncomfortable, and it's a bit big and unwieldy to carry around.

There is also this (http://www.qi-d.com/range/tallfolding.htm) but again, at 1.5kg it's starting to get into the 'too heavy to bother' range.

[shermarama]

The quick way to do it would be to buy a basic folding chair, in metal or whatever would be lightest, and chop the legs down so that the top slopes. Any wooden version is going to be heavy, the 'portable' claim on that one means only that you can tuck it away in a cupboard easily rather than that you can carry it easily around with you.

Have you actually tried one of these sloping stools, before anyone makes one - are you sure you find them comfortable for busking use?

[ewtikins.livejournal.com]

I have tried one of these stools in a shop, although it was a few years ago now.

In terms of my lower back and hip problems it is about the best way for me to sit, and standing for long periods is still a no-no and will be for a while I think. I may need a mat or something for my knees, but these are very easily available. Carrying an exercise ball around with me would work but is completely impractical.

[fwuffydragon.livejournal.com]

Use a space hopper ... transport AND a seat all at once!!!

[fingerbones.livejournal.com]

have you considered a "shooting stick"
http://www.distinctlybritish.com/cgi-bin/distinctly.storefront/en/Catalog/2208?gclid=CNXN56_-3osCFQ8vlAodWG2yWQ
I have one you could try out if you like. Collapsible for greater portability.
Also look at
http://www.swiftys-fishing-tackle.co.uk/catalog/default.php?cPath=19_21_393
fishermans lightweight folding chairs and stools.
You can find these going cheap at some markets too.

[ewtikins.livejournal.com]

I've thought about those options, yes.

When I'm at a picnic or other situation where most people are sitting on the ground, I don't really want to be towering above them on a chair. Also, the posture of chairs and stools is not as useful for me as the posture that a meditation seat would encourage. I have hip problems and it's difficult to explain the mechanics of it, but sitting on my knees is best for my hips - just I can't do it for very long because I'll squish my ankles and cause other problems... hence my desire for a meditation seat.