Number 1 No sew curtain hack
I made these stripped curtains with $10 curtains from IKEA and burlap panels that I had left
over from another project. I spaced out the burlap fabric 14 inches apart
using the cardboard from the curtain packaging, which turns out is exactly 14 inches. I pinned the burlap in place. And since I'm not much of a sewer, I used
fusable tape and an iron to attach the burlap to the curtains. I used a cheaper fusible tape that requires
a damp cloth to set and it worked fine. I also tried another type of fusible tape
that doesn't require the damp cloth, and I liked that one a lot better. I left an overhang of about an inch on each
side, fused that in place and then folded the fabric along the edge, ironed it to smooth
it out and then use more fusible tape on the back to attach it. And then I just trimmed off the excess. I left it like this, but you could also add
some ribbon to cover up the rough edge. I'm really happy with this experiment and
I love the texture of the burlap against the white curtains. Number 2 IKEA Ivar Hack
I gave the plain pine table a new look by staining the legs in a semi transparent stain
in a color called pinto white. I gave the chairs a little bit more personality
by painting them the same blue as in my kitchen, which is called sailboat. To make the chairs more comfortable, I added
one inch foam and batting to the seat of the chairs, which I then upholstered with some
fun striped fabric that matches the blue of the chairs. Number 3 IKEA LACK Ottoman Hack
My inspiration for this IKEA hack was this $350 poof. Here s my version that I made with a LACK
table I got for free. To make it, I first needed to cut the legs
to make them shorter. I put masking tape where I was going to make
the cut to help protect the finish. Then I used the speed square to transfer the
measurements on each side of the leg. The legs are hollow so they're actually very
easy to cut with a miter box and hacksaw. I found that cutting one side at a time makes
it easier to get straight cuts, however if all the legs aren't exactly the same length,
using sandpaper staple to a piece of wood makes it easy to smooth out any of the cuts
and make the minor adjustments to make the legs even on all sides. I chose to use this vinyl material that's
used for cricut machines because I really love the color and shiny finish. I could have also spray painted, but I'm not
that great at it, so I prefer to use this. The trick to avoid air bubbles when putting
on the vinyl is to apply constant pressure back and forth and pulling off the backing
very slowly. For the top of the ottoman, I cut two inch
foam with a serrated bread knife and used spray adhesive to attach it to the top. I also use spray adhesive to attach a one
inch layer of foam to completely cover all the sides to give the ottoman a fuller look. I did have to cut up some pieces because I
was using some remnants, but that won't show when it's all covered up with the batting
and the fur fabric. After installing the legs, I staple the fabric
starting from the middle of each side, making sure to pull the fabric very tightly. And then I staple the rest of the fabric to
about 1 to 2 inches from the edge of the legs to work around the legs. I cut the fabric at the corner right up to
the leg and then I trimmed off some of the excess fabric on the side, which then made
it possible to tuck the fabric and pull it around the legs and then staple it in place. It was a bit messy, but it did the trick. I'll have a list of all the materials that
I use in the description below. The total came out to about $50 a lot less
than the $350 for the inspiration Poof, And I absolutely love the way it turned out. Number 4, Ikea Lamp hack. For this hack, I used the alang lamp shade
and the hemma pendant light kit. First I removed the cap from the lamp kit. Then I cut 2, 12 inch lengths of metal wire
that I got at the Dollar Store and bent them in half around the light socket of the lamp
kit. I wrapped them around the socket under the
lip facing each other so that it's easy to twist them together. Then I passed the cord of the lamp kit through
the lampshade ring and twisted the wire around the spokes. Next, I made a diffuser using a flexible chopping
mat. I traced the inside and outside of the shade,
and cut through the middle of the two outlines so that the diffuser can rest on the bottom
ring of the shade. To make sure that my pendant lamp was installed
centered above my desk, I used this tool called a plumb Bob. Using some tape, you mark where you want the
center of your pendant lamp to be, and then you hold the string of the plumb Bob at the
ceiling, move it around until the tip of the plumb Bob is right over the x, and that's
the spot on the ceiling where you want to hang your lamp. The hanging hardware comes with the lamp kit. To install the hook, I drilled a small hole
using a plastic cup to catch the dust. Simple, but this saves on clean up time. Next, I put in an anchor and screwed the hook
in place. Then I used metal clips to secure the wire
along the corner of the wall so it's out of the way. You could also use cable covers that you can
paint the same color of your wall. The lamp kit that I used doesn't come with
a switch, so I ended up buying a dimmer switch that works with LED light bulbs. You plug the lamp into the switch and then
the switch into the outlet. You can also control your pendant lamp with
a wall mounted switch and plugin receiver, like the one that I used in my dining room
for the wall sconces. Number 5, Dividing wall hack with Billy Bookcases. The first part of the project was to join
the two bookcases by first attaching them together with screws at the front. For the back, I covered it with quarter inch
plywood. I needed a piece that was 63 inches by 41
inches, so I had the four by eight sheet cut at the hardware store, and had the piece cut
in half so that it would fit in my car. It's easier to screw the plywood in place
with the bookcases lying on the floor and you will want the counter sink all the screwheads
so that the back surface is smooth. I attached a one by three board between the
bookcases and the plywood at the bottom of the back of the bookcases. This board makes the base more stable and
it gives a place to screw in the bottom of the plywood. Next I primed the surface. You could fill in the holes of the screwheads
with wood filler before doing this, and that would give a more even surface. I decided to go with a beautiful textured
metallic wallpaper to cover the plywood. It's the perfect thing to cover up any imperfections
and the joint in the plywood. Because I didn't overlap the wallpaper enough
at the seams, when it dried it shrunk a little bit and I ended up with a white line. So for a quick fix, I ended up using some
eyeshadow that I had that matched the color of the wallpaper and I simply brushed it on
and then wiped it off with my fingers. One last thing that I wanted to do to the
base was to make a hole in one of the sides, and that's so I would be able to put in an
extension cord to plug in things like my printer. I used tape to cover the side of the bookcase
to mark the location of the shelf, the back panel and the center of where I want my hole
to be. And then I used an inch and a half hole saw
bit to make the hole. The tape helps protect the finish for a smoother
edge, and all that's needed is a light sanding to take out the rough spots. The next part of the project was to make the
top. I made it using one by fours that I had cut
at the hardware store. It's very important to measure and have your
cross pieces cut exactly, because you want the top to be able to slide over the base
smoothly, yet without leaving too much of a gap. I painted all the wood, and then using a combination
square, I marked the location of the shelves across all of the vertical boards. It just makes it easier to line everything
up. I used the corner clamp to hold the boards,
drilled pilot holes and screwed the pieces together, counter sinking the screws. Next, I attached the cross pieces the same
way and I covered up all the screw heads with wood filler, let that dry and sanded it down
before touching it up with paint. I also made a hole in the side of the top
to match the hole in the bookcase for the extension cord. Next, it was just a matter of sliding the
top over the base, and my furry helper, here, wasn't actually very helpful, but she's pretty
cute, so I think I'll keep her. I left an overhang of half an inch and screwed
the top to the base and covered the rest of the side and the top of the bookcase with
a one by six and another one by four. I also added a one by one at the bottom of
the wallpaper side of the dividing wall just to complete the frame. And that's it, the dividing wall is done. Number 6, Table leg Cat scratcher hack. For this hack, I used the linnmon table top
and the adils legs. To transform the legs of my desk, I use one
inch pipe insulation and sisal rope. I cut the insulation the length of the legs,
and wrapped it around the legs to make them look thicker. The insulation won't wrap all the way around,
but by keeping the gap on the inside of the leg, it won't be noticeable. The insulation has sticky edges, so I remove
the backing and pressed the edges onto the leg to keep the insulation from moving. I added strips of double sided foam tape at
the base and along the length of the insulation to keep the sisal rope from slipping. You'll want to pull tightly as you wrap the
rope around the installation. I finished the bottom of the leg with white
vinyl tape and now the legs have a whole new look and a whole new function as a scratching
pose for my cat. Number 7 Hidden Cat litter box hack
For this IKEA hack, I used the SMASTAD bench. The first thing I did was cover the top with
a combination of one by 1by twos and one by threes. I already had some of these on hand, so that's
why I chose to go this route. Plus, I like the idea of having the different
board sizes because it makes the top a little bit more interesting. Before putting them on the top, I added two
inch iron on wood veneer edging to the ends to give the illusion of thicker boards. I wanted to be able to remove the boards easily
if need, So I use temporary removable double sided tape to secure the boards to the top. Then I used an iron to attach the veneer to
the sides of the bench. A bit of pencil in between the gaps really
completed the illusion of thicker boards. Pretty happy with how this turned out. I painted the legs black with chalkboard paint
and stained the top of darker rich walnut colors to give it a more aged look. I wanted to keep this project as simple as
possible. So I chose black lightweight corrugated plastic
to cover the back and the front of the bench. It's lightweight, easy to cut with a utility
knife and it's already black, so there's no need to paint it. For the opening for Lea to access the litter,
I thought it would be cute to use the shape of a cat head. I used my Cricut machine to make the template
for the cat head out of thin wood veneer. I used the inside part of the template to
trace out the outline on the corrugated plastic and it was really easy to cut out using a
utility knife. The veneer will add a really nice border around
the opening to give it a more finished look. I used simple tacks to attach the back of
the bench since that doesn't need to be removable. But since I will need to take the front on
and off to be able to access the litter box, I tried this idea of making keyholes to slip
over screwheads on the front of the legs. And after testing it out, it worked really
well, so that's the system that I went with. It's low tech, but it does the job. I chose to place the litter box as far as
possible from the opening so that Leah would have to walk a little bit before coming out. The idea being that whatever litter is stuck
on her paws will fall off during this little walk. But the question is, will lea actually like
this enclosed cat litter box and actually use it. It took a bit of coazing, But after I put
her in the litter box a few times, she finally figured it out and used it on her own. And so far she is tracking a lot less cat
litter than before. So I would say that this project has been
a huge success. Plus it's so darn cute to watch Leah come
in and out of this cat head. I just can't get enough of it. Let me know in the comments what you think
of this set up and if this type of enclosed cat litter box is something that would work
for your cat. Number 8, Picture Frame hack with dalskarr
frames I made this double sided picture frame by
first removing the flaps from the back of the two frames, adding some Velcro along the
edges and then stapling a wood stick with a small hole for hanging. The Velcro makes it really easy to attach
the frames together and take them apart for changing out the pictures. And then you simply hang the whole thing from
a small hook. Number 9 Easy cork board hack
Here are the materials that I used for this project: round HEAT Cork Trivets from IKEA,
double fold quarter inch bias tape, silver long prong brads, a flexible chopping mat,
some string, contact paper and some greenery that I found at the Dollar Store. The first step is to draw a line in the middle
of the trivet. To do that, use a ruler to draw a line anywhere
on the circle. And at the middle point of that line, draw
a perpendicular line. It will be in the middle of the circle. For the middle and top trivet, drill two holes
1/2 from the edge, right on the center line and for the bottom trivet, just drill one
hole at the top. Then glue the bias tape to the edge of the
trivet by unfolding it completely so that it wraps around the edge. To connect the trivets, cut half inch long
strips from the chopping mat, two long ones and one short, and then drill holes in the
strips. Use the brads to connect the trivets with
the long strips and secure the short strip to the top of the first trivet, after fishing
a string through the outside holes to make a loop for hanging. I added some greenery and pine cones from
the Dollar Store and hung the whole thing on my front door using a three M command hook
to avoid making any holes on the door. It adds just the right amount of holiday cheer
to my front door. And as it turns out, this project was also
an inspiration for making a cork board for my home office. Number 10 - IKEA kitchen Island hack
This IKEA kitchen Island had seen better days, and the top wasn t salvageable, so I removed
it. The original casters also had to be replaced,
but new ones I bought were a bit too short, so I added a piece of plywood under the legs
to make them work. When I was looking at my macgyver fix, It
gave me the idea to use the side of the cart for a spice rack. So I used some wood that I had on hand to
make it. That ended up making the cart look like a
bit of a Frankenstein, so I made a sanding block by stapling sandpaper to scrap pieces
of wood and I sanded the entire cart and stained it. That made all the different types of wood
blend in nicely together while still keeping the rustic look. To make the new top, I used 4 1 by six pine
boards. I kept this built very simple by using one
by two boards to attach the wider boards together. This has the added bonus of making the top
look thicker. To give the sides a cleaner look, I glued
and nailed a quarter inch thick board. I wanted the top to be blue so go with the
rest of the kitchen, so I stained the top with two coats of a semi-transparent exterior
stain in a color called wedgewood. Once that was done, all that was left to do
was attach the new top to the base of the cart. I'll have more details on this cart project
on my website, Engineer your space dot com. It Feels good to reuse something that otherwise
would have gone into a landfill. Plus, it gave the opportunity to make it more
functional and to customize it to fit the space perfectly.
