Historical Facts and Decorating Ideas for Footstools

The footstool started out as something practical, but over the years it has evolved into something simply "decor". For centuries, the theme of footstools seemed pretty consistent: small, made of wood, used as a foot-propper or a stair-stepper. But, the footstool is emerging as a separate class of furniture in its own right. It can now be used as something to sit on, place something on, hide something in, or as a decor piece for an entire room.

This practical piece of furniture was one of the earliest pieces developed by Egyptian culture. Historical furniture remains show the ancient Egyptian chair as being quite high off the ground, in stark contrast to other Egyptian furniture, which had smaller dimensions. The highness of the chair required a footstool to be reached. Once seated, the footstool was used to support the sitter's feet.

Available in a menagerie of fabrics, colors and sizes, one recent phenomena has been the cube-shaped foostool. Found in everything from simple cotton, to velvet, leather and faux fur, prices range from $19.99 to well over $1,000. Patterns are limitless and hues are off the color wheel!

Aztec-weaves and animal-print patterns appear to lead the pack in ethnic-style footstools. And a few companies choosing to use exotic fabrics have gone a step further by designing lines of footstools using mudcloth, an authentic African fabric.

Design and practical versatility has led to the creation of stools that can be used for dual purposes: informal seating and accents that make a decorating statement.

Here are some decorating ideas using footstools:

Bedroom: Place two small footstools at the bottom of the bed in punchy colors. Tie the look together by placing a velveteen throw at the bottom of the bed or across a nearby chair.

Living room: Replace the coffee table (the one taking up all that space in the middle of the living room floor) with two flat-top footstools. Experiment with a unique theme - tying them into your current decor with coordinating accent pillows for nearby sofa and chairs. They can then be moved and used as extra seating.