Martin Cooper

We hacked the IKEA Owl in order to turn the ordinary SOLBO lamp into something special. It looks awesome as a gift or a home decor piece. Now when we turn the lamps on, they look beautiful with a unique translucent stone texture. IKEA items used: SOLBO table lamp Other materials and tools: Masking tape Box cutter Paint brush Electric spray gun (Diameter of nozzle: 2.5 mm) Sandpaper (No.320) Primer Color (Addstone Brand) Addstone color AN615 Addstone White China Big Spot Granite Stone How to turn the IKEA Owl Lamp into stone: 1 . As the surface of the lamp is glossy, the surface must first be sanded with sandpaper (grit 320) for the paint to adhere. (But don’t sand too hard.) 2. Stick masking tape on to the areas that will not be sprayed. This is to clearly show the owl’s beak and eyes.  3. Use a cutter to gently cut along the contour of the face.   4. Use a brush to paint the primer around the owl’s body. Once done, let it dry for about 1-2 hours. (Lightly tou

Transforming a PAX wardrobe into a concealable, fully equipped electronics workbench. I am passionate about electronics, fixing and repairing things. However I live in an apartment and don’t have a dedicated room for this. At first I was using my desk, but as projects never go as planned an remain on the bench for several days it began interfering with my regular office activities. I then started looking for an alternative and an idea of how to hide my mess from visitors and myself when not working on any projects. As I did not find anything suitable and PAX wardrobes are really easy to come by on the second-hand market I started this project. IKEA items used:  1x PAX Wardrobe – 100 x 58 x 236cm 2 x PAX Doors of your choice 5 x KOMPLEMENT Shelf – 100 x 58cm 1x KOMPLEMENT Shelf – 100 x 35cm 1x KOMPLEMENT Drawer – 100 x 35 (2 in the original design, but one broke) I recommend getting hold of the older versions (30 years back or so) as they are of much better quality than the

My sister asked me to build a large LEGO table for her boys and I thought that it’s much more practical to do an IKEA hack rather than make it from scratch. IKEA items used:   • TROFAST units Photo: IKEA.com Other materials and tools:   • ¾”x4x8′ Plywood  (doesn’t have to be a nice grade, it will go underneath anyway) • ½”x4x8′ Plywood sheet (for shelves – optional) • Smooth wall panel with a prefinished white coating • (3) 1×2″x8′ select pine • Wood glue • 1 ¼” brad nails • Superglue • Caulk • Wood filler (optional) DIY LEGO Table instructions:  1.  Assemble two IKEA TROFAST storage units as per instructions. 2. Cut ¾” plywood and a wall panel to length. In my case it was 3×6′. 3. Using gorilla glue, attach the wall panel to plywood. 4. Make a trim. Cut 1x2s to length. Attach them to the plywood board and plastic sheet using wood glue and a brad nailer. Use wood filler to hide the cracks (if you have any haha) and to cover holes from brad nails. San

The iconic POÄNG is one of the most popular armchairs in IKEA and with good reason. It’s comfortable, with timeless good looks good. And you can bring one home for less than $80 . The POÄNG’s bent wood armrests is its most striking feature and the area we’re focussing on today. Let’s see how we can make further improvements to it. POÄNG armrest too hard? #1 Use a foam padding Julian bought ribbed foam padding to add extra cushioning for his elbows when watching TV, playing games etc. He recommends using strong double sided tape to stick the padding to the POÄNG armrest. And to wrap it around the inside edge. He got the padding from Amazon . Looks and works great. #2 Or a padded aluminium splint A padded aluminium splint works too and can be removed without damage to the armrest. Colours, however, may be limited. Unroll, flatten and cut two 10″ lengths from either end of the splint. Round the edges and and fold them over the POÄNG armrest. See the full tutorial . Ne

I loved the look of this FEJKA String of beads but I was concerned that it was not that realistic. So I made this upgrade and it didn’t cost me anything. IKEA items used:  FEJKA String of beads Photo: IKEA.com Other materials and tools: Hair dryer IKEA FEKJA String of beads upgrade Branches can be detached from the base very easily and without any risk of damage. Choose some branches from the one side of the base and take them off. The main secret is that the branch attachments sit perfectly on the tips of medium and long branches. You can lengthen several pieces in a row. The attachment points are visible only close and only if you know what to look at — I’ve pointed to them with arrows. After the desired length is reached, you need to heat the branches with a hairdryer so that they take a more relaxed shape. This must be done carefully, in thin places there is a risk of rupture. As a result, you will have an almost realistic String of beads, es