Hacking up a ludde
Who needs instruction manuals? The 2008 IKEA catalogue has just rolled off the presses, and it’s packed with build-it-yourself bits and pieces just waiting to be hacked. ReadyMade has featured plenty of brilliant IKEA re-mods in the past (the Billy Shelf Bed, Crewel Stool, and Kieren Jones’ clever booklets to name a few), but Jules over at ikeahacker has collected a veritable treasure trove of twists on the Swedish giant’s Allen-assembled creations.
The site showcases the work of those who’ve given new life to Ikea’s thousands of fiberboard finds. Among my recent favorites are the dining table with vika fintorp legs, the adorable ikea shower curtain dress, and the super thrifty bonde sideboard. Other ideas include video game furniture and a potholder pinhole camera, among hundreds of others.
Admittedly, my own IKEA hacks have been pretty, well, hack. I added storage space to my built-for-a-houseboat bathroom by stacking four of the birch plywood CD storage boxes between my sink and shower. I coated them with mildew-resistant paint and Gorilla glued four used cedar blocks to the bottom to protect the base from water spills. I also added useable space to my compact bedroom by removing my closet doors and replacing them with rods and curtains. But after digging through all the ingenious designs on ikeahacker, I’m ready to forget about playing charades with IKEA’s cartoon instruction man and try building things my own way—or at least following a few of IKEA hacker’s steps.
For those dying to delve into the psyche of these instruction-shy builders, keep your eyes peeled for our friend Penelope Green’s upcoming NYT Home & Garden story on IKEA hacking.
Also of note: For DIYers concerned about the sustainability issues often associated with big box stores, Grist’s interview with IKEA’s head of social and environmental responsibility sheds some compact fluorescent light on their progressive practices.
