IKEA Hack to Free Up Floor Space
by Ian Anderson
2 Materials
$10
3 Hours
Medium
Constant complaints from dearest daughter for a desk in her bedroom meant the old IKEA shelves were going to have to go... Or do they I thought? Dearest daughter still needed the shelf space to store all her 'valuables', so I needed a radical solution; how to free up the floor space without losing the shelves. Eureka! I've got it!
Take one perfectly good IKEA Expedit (now called Kallax) 1.5mx1.5m (5'x5') which is taking up too much floor space...
Carefully cut the Expedit in half and then 'wingardium leviosa' as Harry Potter would say...
Actually, that would have been a considerably easier way of doing it but I had to make do with a few pairs of hands to hold the shelves hard up to the ceiling whilst I screwed a timber trim underneath, and another one around the top.
Actually, that would have been a considerably easier way of doing it but I had to make do with a few pairs of hands to hold the shelves hard up to the ceiling whilst I screwed a timber trim underneath, and another one around the top.
And now there is plenty of room for a desk... (and yet another reason to visit IKEA). Dear daughter actually built the desk (I was sooo chuffed!) and she managed quite well with a little help here and there.
All finished and trimmed. The shelves look quite 'built in' with the trims surrounding the shelves. The trims also support the shelves, stopping them from moving, plus they cover up the cut edges.
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
Comments
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3 of 4 comments
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What did you do with the other half, as once you cut it you lose a shelf?
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Love it, great idea !
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How were you able to secure the shelves on top of the ceiling??