After reading Walker and Tolpin book By Hand and Eye, I thought I would give it a try. I got a story stick and put it against the the table I was replacing to get a height. I then divided that into five sections. I then again divided the fifth section into five, and then again devided the fifth of the fifth section again into five. I then only used these marks for all design and build measurements.
Here are some obsevation.
1. I found the designing was much easier since the individual elements needed to be a pleasing fraction of the marks on my story stick. This was also true when it came to deciding how deep to make the curved braces on the base.
2. I didn't miss my my measuring tools. Doing layout with dividers was quicker and more intuitive.
3. I would do this method again on my next project.