Earlier this year I’ve built a DIY farmhouse dining table and farmhouse side benches. I also wanted to build two farmhouse chairs that would go along with this table. So I went through a lot of pictures on Pinterest trying to find a chair that I wanted. I found a few examples, but I wanted the back of the chair to be taller than the chairs I found on Pinterest. Here are the steps for making this DIY farmhouse chair.

1. Cut 2×6 for Rear Legs and Back Post
2. Build a Cross Rail for the Back of the Chair
3. Assemble the Cross Rail
4. Assemble Back and Front Legs Together
5. Attach Cross Rails to the Back Posts
6. Assemble the Seat Cushion

I designed and build this DIY farmhouse kitchen chair with a tall back to match our dining table set. This DIY chair is very sturdy and will support a lot of weight. Also, with a soft cushion, it’s very comfortable as opposed to just having a wood DIY chair top. 

For those who are interested in woodworking and want to try to build this DIY chair, the printable PDF plans are available below. You’re more than welcome to make any dimensional adjustments to these plans to match your needs. 

Before we continue, don’t forget to follow me on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, and Youtube to keep up with all my latest builds!

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Note: Lumber dimensions are listed as nominal size. See lumber sizes for actual dimensions vs nominal.

Disclosure: Some of the links on this page as well as links in “tools for this project” and “material list” sections are affiliate links.

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Dimensions

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Farmhouse Dining Chair Diagram

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Step 1 – Cut 2×6 for Rear Legs and Back Post

First, using a miter saw, cut two 2×6 to 48″ in length. These 48” long 2x6s are going to be used for the rear legs and the back post. If you prefer to have a shorter back post for your farmhouse chair, then you could always make it shorter. Draw the outline of the leg/post on the 2×6 as shown in the picture. Use a skill saw for most of the cutting and then use a jig saw for cutting the center back of these legs.  You will not be able to make a cut in the center back area with a skill saw, so a jig saw is the best tool for this.

Step 2 – Build a Cross Rail for the Back of the Chair

Next, we’ll make a cross rail that connects both of the back posts. With a miter saw, cut two rails at 45 degrees on both ends to 17 5/8” in length. Since I didn’t want to buy an additional 1×3 board just for these two rails, I used a 1×4 board instead. Then, with a table saw I ripped the 17 5/8” long pieces to the width of the 1×3 (actual width is 2 ½”). See the cut list for more dimensions of the cross rail. Next, find the center of rail and cut 2 ½” wide by 3/8” deep notch (3/8” is half of the board thickness). To cut the notch in the rail, I used a skill saw. Lower the blade so that is sticking out 3/8 of an inch. Then in the area marked for a notch, cut many times until you cut all the wood out and making a notch. You could use a wood carving chisel to get any remaining wood out of the notch. 

Step 3 – Assemble the Cross Rail

Now take 1×4 board and 1×3 board and cut both of them to 16” in length. Then using a Kreg Jig, drill one pocket hole on each side of the 1×4 and 1×3 board (see picture). When attaching these rails together make sure to use wood glue in each seam/connection. The notches you created in the previous step will slide inside one another, creating an X-shaped cross. Use clamps to hold this cross rail in place, and then using a Nail Gun (with 2” brad nails), attach the cross to the upper and lower rail.

Step 4 – Assemble Back and Front Legs Together

Take a 2×3 board and cut two pieces to 17 ½” in length. These boards will be the front legs. Then take a 1×3 board and cut two apron pieces to 17 ½” in length. These boards will connect the front leg to the back leg right under the seat. Similar to the cross rail in step 2, I didn’t want to buy additional boards for the stretchers, so I used a 1×4 board for ripping it in half, creating 1 ¼” wide boards. Using these 1 ¼” wide boards, I cut two 19” long pieces with one side at 10 degrees. These boards are called stretchers that will also connect the front and the back legs but this time at the bottom. Drill pocket holes for both apron and stretcher boards, as shown in the picture. Attache these pieces together using wood glue and 1 1/4″ pocket hole screws.

Step 5 – Attach Cross Rails to the Back Posts

Similar to step 4, cut apron and stretcher pieces for the front and the back of the chair. These pieces are all 16 inches long. Drill pocket holes as shown on the picture and attach both sides of the chair together with wood glue and 1 1/4″ pocket hole screws. Then attach the cross rail to the back posts. The pocket holes on the top of the cross could be covered with a 3/8” dowel to hide the screws. See Dining Table or Kids’ Step Stool project as an example of how to cover the pocket holes with a 3/8” dowel. At this point, I painted the whole farmhouse chair frame with primer and then white paint. 

Step 6 – Assemble the Seat Cushion

Take ¾” plywood and cut one piece to 19″x20″. Then cut the cushion 1″ larger than the plywood on all four sides (21×22). Wrap cushion with fabric and staple fabric on the bottom to plywood. Once complete, attach the seat to the chair using 1 1/4″ pocket hole screws.