Garden Chair
Our basic theory in the garden, cheap, easy, fun and healthy for you and the environment. Look for pallets that are hardwood, they'll be heavy, and have long runs between nails. The top one is preferred over the bottom one.

$50 dollars for a little garden or patio  chair that was harvested from an ancient forest and collapsing the entire ecosystem and the people in it. And it ii not even that good of a chair.  The wood is thin and the seat size would have been for children 50 years ago, and our behinds are bigger now.  If you go down to the local lumber yard and buy some hardwood material it may cost you more than $50 just for the materials that was harvested from an ancient forest and collapsing the entire ecosystem and the people in it. AND, since you do not have a clue what you are doing about half of the material may have to be used as kindling.
Solution? Hardwood pallets. Beer distributors, and many businesses that deal with heavy items have pallets available for free.  You'll need about two for each chair. Try to find ones that have a long span between nails,. Stapled pallets you can take apart, nails ones you may have to saw apart.
The  nails on pallets are closer to nailed screws.  They are very  difficult to remove without breaking the wood.The nails on pallets are almost always screw nails, they do not come out without a great deal of work.Sawing off the slats is generally the most effective way of removing the wood.

Ok you've made yourself a pile of wood. You'll need.
a pound of 1 5/8 deck screws, a few 1 1/4 deck screws, and a few 2 inch deck screws. A counter sink and bit for the deck screws, saw, screw bit for drill and square.

This is what a countersink does. You have to counter sink every screw You really need to counter sink the screw holes or they will split the wood..If you put the screws too deep, or do not counter sink the holes, the wood will split.

Remove staples without removing eye.

Pallets do not come apart very well. Either cut the boards off before hand or cut them off later. If you can pull them out you are better than me.
The front leg should be about 18 inches, the back 34-36 inches.The front leg needs to be about 18 inches long, a 2X3 or 2X4 is fine. http://www.laspilitas.com/garden/howto/pictures/chair/side-measurement.jpg
The back leg needs to be about 34-36 inches long.  Attach the h together first, the side brace can be attached later, or if your family is light, ignored. The depth of the seat should be at least 18 inches as the pad will shorten the seat and a seat less than 14 inches long is not comfortable. Check the "h" with a square, measure the runners and make sure they are parallel.
http://www.laspilitas.com/garden/howto/pictures/chair/upside-down-chair.jpg http://www.laspilitas.com/garden/howto/pictures/chair/upside-down-chair1.jpg
 The back runner goes inside the 2X3 risers. I put the lower front runner a little lower and thinner so there is a place to put your foot. Run it higher or lower, seat in and decide the final height.
Screw the two runners on the two h's you created then screw the slats for the seat on.The back of the chair showing the seat runner on the inside of back support.
The slats and seat width need to be 18-22 inches wide. The pallets themselves will be one of the limiting factors.

Set the  two "h's" on a table with the long back piece down. and screw the back runner on.
Notice that the back runner goes on the inside, so if the back of the chair is on the table or ground if you've not built the table yet, the runner goes on the side up towards you.
Be careful not the be rough or try to do it all at once. Counter-sink one hole and screw in one screw on each side first, then put in the other one or two screws each. Do not put the screws closer than an inch apart or you may split the wood.

After you get the two runners on, carefully put the 'chair' on the ground and line up the slats to make the seat. Counter-sink and screw one screw on each slat. Then go through and put the reast in. Notice the end slats have a slightly different pattern.
Notice the spacers on the side so the brace can connect cleanly.The side view of the chair.
More views of the chair.
The finished chair without the cushion.The arm rest and braces are optional. The seat is required.The finished chair with cushion.

To see more how to build stuff go to our How to build garden stuff