This is a before picture of what it looked like at the top of our stairs. Kind of random, and really brown. So, the plan was to add a bench with storage and a large mirror on top.
Step 2: Have Home Improvement Store cut your wood, and if desired, paint the bottom of bench. You need your base and some supports. I went to Home Depot and bought a piece of 48 inch 3/4 inch thick mdf. I had Home Depot cut it to my width of 15 inches, but Brian ended up cutting the length because I wasn't sure at the time. So he cut it 35 inches long. Brian then used the left over wood and cut a smaller piece for a bottom support. See, I didn't realize this, but unless your wood is SUPER thick, it needs support under it or else it will sink when you sit on it. Kind of makes sense now that I write it down. Duh. So, you need to put the support wood under the base wood with wood glue. Our support piece of wood was about 25% smaller than the base of the bench. However, some people use several small strips of wood and glue them to the bottom. Whatever you decided, it is a good decision to add it. Then I painted the bottom of the bench white.
Step 3: Add your padding and foam. Unfortunately, for those people wanting to build a bench, foam is expensive. I saw tutorials that used pillow fill, but those looked lumpy and not professional. So, normally, I would have gone to Jo Ann's and used my coupons. However, my foam story is lucky and embarrassing. We had donated an old ottoman to Goodwill that I built 10 years ago. Everytime I went into Goodwill, I saw said ottoman. They had priced it at $40.00, which was a compliment to me, but it was not getting sold. Well, the last time I went in, I thought, I want the foam out of there! I talked to the manager and she gave the ottoman back to me. I brought said ottoman home, fished out all the expensive foam, and then we got rid of it for a second time. Whew.
Before placing the foam down, I glued an old camping sleeping mat to the mdf. Get creative here people :). I cut the mat and the foam with regular scissors, razor blade was not getting it done. You need to use spray adhesive to attach these pieces. Ideally, you attach a piece of batting over all of this. Well, I had some very thin foam from my old ottoman that I wrapped on top of and on the sides of the larger foam and sleeping mat. This steps helps smooth everything out.
Step 4: Start Stapling. First, I stapled an inexpensive piece of white fabric onto the bench as a lining. I really recommend this step as it further helps smooth everything out. I also recommend having someone help you with this step, someone to pull and tug that fabric with. We folded under the edges of the fabric before stapling to make it a cleaner look. Brian kept asking, how hard should I pull, I am puckering this thing. If you are REALLY strong, pull at 40% strength, for normal people, pull at 70%.