Acts 2 The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost:"The Lord said to my Lord:
"Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet."A footstool for your feet is something to treasure after yet another gruelling day in the office or factory floor spent "chasing the bacon"! As we enter the new decade, footstools have emerged from their traditional role as practical stair steppers to something to aid relaxation. They have become a valued pieces of furniture:- from being small, simply assembled structures made of wood, used to reach high up, out of the way places to pieces of great importance and much coveted over by sofa owners and high seat dwellers alike. The footstool's importance in any self respecting living room should never be overlooked.

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Today the footstool has emerged into a class of furniture in its own right. Sofa manufacturers are best advised to include a selection of well made footstools within their furniture collections. Small upholsterers can clinch valuable extra sales by providing a choice of leather or fabric footstools to their prospective customers. Online sales of footstool furniture have never been higher according to a recent survey in Cabinet Maker.

Leather Cube Ottoman

As a decorative centrepiece, your footstool can bring a room to life! Not only is it something to rest your feet on, it can hide something in (ottoman) be sat on or used a low table for meals or socialising. Their versatility means that footstools are found in every room in the house. A small footstool in a kitchen enables the owner to stretch to those highest points in the cupboard. In an office a footstool ottoman provides excellent storage solutions and in a living room footstools may provide extra seating, definite feet relaxation and a place to leave your tray after supper!

Where is the best place to find your perfect footstool? All the modern media thrust images in the direction of potential consumers. High Street stores allow people to touch and feel their wares before buying. They may also be seduced with "Pay nothing for a year and then take another three years to pay" offers that stretch the meaning of credit to new, far flung universes. Online retailers display tantalising images showing footstools in stunning, aspirational surroundings. Second hand shops allow customers to find genuine footstool bargains enabling reupholstery opportunities in fabrics old or new.

Indeed the choice for footstools is so wide that a measure of research into the various styles on offer will be time well spent. The recent trend has been for customers to request larger and ever larger footstools. Many retailers report that "tablestools" have become the "footstool of choice" among certain groups of people whose lifestyles revolve around TV dinners and need a central point for relaxation. A large footstool or tablestool is an ideal place on which to rest trays, plates and tableware. The selection of leather or faux (imitation) leather enables tablestools to be wiped clean with ease. If fabric is preferred a protective stainguard treatment prior to upholstery is recommended.

Footstool shape is a traditional rectangle and can be organised to fit into the smallest or largest of spaces. Circular stools have become increasingly popular and have the dual functionality of being used as either foot rests or seating units. Pouffes or footstool cubes are similarly useful.

Even in the fast paced lifestyles we all experience if you can only allow yourself a few minutes of "relaxation time" ensure that you choose the right footstool by following some of the advice given in this article. As the Lord suggested one such use for your footstool we should be encouraged to value the potential of our footstool by understanding and valuing the great use we can make of it.

Trends and Features of the Footstools Market in 2010

Leather Cube Ottoman