Upside down roller blinds

Materials: Isdans or Tupplur, Aluminum rod, Rod holder, screws, saw, screwdriver

Description: I wanted a blind, which covered the bottom part of the window, so people couldn't look in, but I could still look out. I saw this really neat roller blind which could be opened from the bottom, but also from the top. Unfortunately these blinds were prohibitively expensive. Then I figured the same effect could be achieved with much cheaper Ikea blinds.

You can do this with Isdans or Tupplur blinds (you could also use Enje blinds, but since the rod is attached to this blind, you have to cut it off and sew a pocket for the new rod). If you still want light through the blind choose Isdans, otherwise choose Tupplur.


You buy an aluminum rod and rod holders at the hardware store. You can also use wooden or iron rods. The rod has a diameter of 1 cm (7/16 inch). I did this with aluminum rods up to 1.47m (4ft10). For rod holder I used a rod holder intended for closets (for clothes holder rods).

Step 1- Install the blind as per Ikea instructions, except you do it at the bottom of the window not the top, and the chain goes up not down.

If you also install a regular rolling blind (top down), then you probably want to put the chain on the opposite side from the regular blind chain (otherwise they'll get intertwined).

Step 2- Install the rod holders at the desired height. The distance from the window depends on your window and what you want. With some windows I needed to account for the handle, and wanted to be able to open the window with closed blind, so there the rod holder needed to go further away from the window.

With other windows I didn't care, so there the rod holder was as close to the window as possible.

You can install one set, but if you want to be able to close the blind at different heights, then you'll have to install multiple sets.

Step 3- Saw the rod to the desired length (it should fit between the rod holders).

Step 4- Slide the rod into the blind pocket.

That's it!

If you think the Isdans or Tupplur blinds are rather boring you can fix that with this hack.

~ Jan Metten Van der Meer, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

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Statement stainless steel wall art

Materials: Ikea Fastbo wallpanel (use the stainless steel side of the panel), wall sticker/decal (I used silver coloured), hook to the backside to hang

Description: Want to make statement wall art? Want to do it fast and easy? Here's a great way to have a stainless steel wall art with etched look.

1.Remove the cover plastic
2.Attach the wall sticker to the panel. Silver coloured sticker makes an etched/engraved look.
3.Insert the hook to the back side
4.READY!

See more of the etched wall art.

~ Johanna

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Lack Ottomans

Materials: Lack side table, high density foam (21 5/8" x 21 5/8" x 4"), upholstery fabric (72" x 72"), craft glue, staple gun, jigsaw

Description: I wanted a couple of custom made ottomans that could also double as a coffee table or even extra seating in a pinch.

Using a jigsaw, I cut 4 inches off of each leg so that the finished height of the ottoman would be the same height as my couch.

I attached the foam square to the table top using craft glue (just so it wouldn't be sliding all over the place when I went to actually upholster it).

Once dry, I wrapped the fabric around the table top and secured it with a staple gun. This is definitely a two man operation. Hint: Start by holding the fabric taut and stapling the middle of each side first, then move onto the corners.

I trimmed any excess fabric, then reattached the legs with the provided screws and voila! Almost instant ottoman/coffee table/seat.

~ Linda, California

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Scanner cart from Molger

Materials: Molger cart, tools, "L" brackets

Description: I needed a cart for my flatbed scanner that would give adequate ventilation and a lower work surface than a standard table. The Molger cart was "almost there", with slatted shelves and locking wheels. However, the railing/handle around the top presented a problem.

I cut off the extensions that would have held the handle in place and assembled therest of the cart as per the instructions.

Then I hacked the railing to hold the scanner in place on the top shelf. I had to remove some wood from the edge to accommodate the cords. Eventually, after much trial and error, I found that old-fashioned wood chisels worked the best for getting a clean cut-out.

Finally, I fastened the railing to the top using brass L brackets.

See more of the scanner cart.

~ Fairevergreen

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Hackers help: how to reduce Besta Jagra depth to 40 centimeters?

Materials: Besta Jagra TV stand

Description: I am planning a Besta Jagra hack, inspired by this Ikea Hackers post.

Currently, under the TV, I have a Besta Jagra TV stand, which is 60 centimeters in depth. My idea is to cut it, so that its depth becomes 40 centimeters: in this way the Besta Jagra would fit more nicely when associated with some other Besta series cabinets I already have (and whose standard depth is 40 centimeters).

It seems to me that reducing the depth of the Besta Jagra structure should not be very difficult... but what about the drawers?

Unfortunately standard Besta series drawers do not fit inside the Besta Jagra structure (and anyway Besta Jagra drawers slides works much better).

Did someone already tried such an hack?
Do you have suggestions on how to reduce the depth of the drawers, and how to deal with the drawers slides (which must be reduced too)?

Thank you very much in advance!

~ Sara, Italy

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PS Maskros Floor Lamp

Materials: PS MASKROS (901.474.65) + RODD (701.924.06)

Description: This is a simple hack that combines a PS MASKROS pendant lamp and RODD floor lamp base into a gorgeous floor lamp.

The hack is plain dead simple and literally takes 10 minutes to complete:

1) Fully assemble the RODD base.
2) Take the MASKROS pendant base and unscrew four screws to remove the white plastic ring around the lamp-holder.
3) Cut the four L-shaped legs that supported that ring as depicted on the image, with a hacksaw. You can just make a small notch and then bend the leg couple of times to break it apart.

4) Screw these four legs back onto the ring.
5) Put the assembly onto the RODD lamp-holder all the way down so that those four legs are about 5mm deep in the gap between the outer metal shell and the inner plastic part.
6) Now screw the plastic ring that comes with the RODD base, but place it bottom up. Tighten it so that it locks those four legs.
7) Now you can assemble the PS MASKROS per its instructions. The further decoration is up to you: leave it "naked" as depicted on the photos, install the standard decorative "dandelion florets" that come with the pendant, or invent something unique, combining this hack with the other MASKROS ideas that you can find on this site.

~ Igor Afanasyev, Moscow, Russia

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Top Cabinet Pull-out

Materials: Akurum pantry & drawer kits

Description: We took the Akurum WRD refrigerator cabinet & Akurum HD pantry & modified them to use Rationell pull-out drawers for storage items. these cabinets typically don't have drawers in the top, just shelf storage. we figured, we won't be getting up there very often, but when we do, we want it to be somewhat convenient.

The pantry was pretty easy since it already used the Rationell drawers for the main storage. We just ordered an extra drawer & fit it into the top.

The refrigerator cabinet does not typically have drawers & is 36" wide. They don't make a 36" wide pantry so we had to use a 36" wide drawer from a base cabinet to fit this. The only thing different about that drawer was no "bar" going across the top & we were fine with that.

See more of the top cabinet pull out.

~ DeNacho, Illinois

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FÖRHÖJA Kitchen cart with Wine Crate Fronts

Materials: FÖRHÖJA Kitchen cart

Description: Bought a Birch FÖRHÖJA Kitchen cart from Ikea.

We took the top of the cart and stained it with a dark stain from Home Depot.

We then went to our local wine shop and purchased the fronts of a few wine crates which we cut down to the size of the drawers and stained them with the same stain as the top.


Lastly we purchase a small can of paint in a blue color. To make sure that the paint would not chip, we added a little tile grout to make it more like chalk paint.

Let everything dry for a day and then sealed the top with a food friendly wax sealant.

~ Jaime, Pasadena, CA

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