Rocking Chair Rush Seat

I’ve spent a couple of days weaving the rush seat on the new rocking chair and I’m pretty happy with the results. The colours in the rushes are beautiful, a mix of greens and yellows which complement the ash well.
I’m always surprised how physical weaving a chair seat is, I want the seat to feel full and tight so it supports the user so keeping the tension as you work round while anchoring the chair with your legs is something of a wrestling match. After weaving three-quarters of the seat on the first day I stuff the seat from underneath using more rushes to fill it out and then let it dry overnight before. By the next day the coils have dried and shrunk a bit and  I can push them up tight before finishing off the weaving and stuffing again. It’s amazing how much stuffing a seat this size needs but the result is a seat that is firm but with the soft, natural rush texture.
I’m delivering this chair to the customer so I’ll drill the holes to peg the rockers when I’m happy with how it rocks but not fix them on so it’s easier to pack in my car.