NKM photos: DIY

Well, it's been quite some time since my last blog post. So, to start off the new year, I am determined (not using the R-word here) to make more frequent posts. Not that I didn't have anything to share--it's just so much easier to use other Social Networking methods, like Pinterest, Facebook, Google+, and my new favorite, Flipboard.
During one of my recent trips to Pinterest I saw a great idea for a DIY sofa table using aged boards repurposed from other furniture. I forgot to pint it or even like it, so I don't have the exact pin anymore (grrr), but if you do a search on DIY sofa tables, you'll come up with a ton of great ideas. But, since I didn't have any old furniture to repurpose, I came up with something else using--wait for it--repurposed Ikea shelving!

After measuring the walls and deciding how wide I wanted the shelves, I waited patiently (well, maybe not so patiently) for our next trip to Ikea.

...Insert Jeopardy Music here...

I love these shelves, since you can cut them to size and the brackets will hide the cuts. Once I had the shelves up on the wall, I added a shelf vertically on each side, with one end-bracket on the bottom and a small angle bracket at the top.

And that's all there is to it--tadaa, instant sofa table. OK, maybe not instant. It did take a few hours to do because, you know

a. moving the corner-sofa (with pull-out bed) off the wall to make room to work was a bit cumbersome

b. measuring everything three times because I was not going to go driving a couple of hours back to Ikea to get more shelves, and

c. Umm, I can't work quite as fast as I used to (no wisecracks about age, please)

I decided not to try to figure out how to do the corner, partly because I didn't want to make a big project out of it. So I left about a foot from the corners free and added a nice large vase and added some decorative flora.

Now, the hard part is figuring our what to put on it...

I'm always drooling over those fabulous Organizer Systems you see on sites like Pottery Barn. Of course, I'm sure that when you add all the daily homework papers and school notices and junk mail you need to go through, even those spaces will lose some of their perfect look, right? Ok, maybe not, but I just can't see shelling out several hundred dollars for this stuff. Just think what kind of camera goodies you can get for that kind of dough!
So, being the ~~cheap~~ thrifty person that I am, I came up with a nifty little hack that works great for our little kitchen corner. Hey, my own little ikea hack! I love that site; if you don't know it and love ikea, go check it out. Ok, so here it is. No wait, I want to point out that the pictures were taken with my iPhone (not my Nikon) while working, so they're not the greatest, but you should get the idea. Ok, so here goes:

I started out with two FJÄLLSTA picture frames ($14.99 each) and one KVISSLE Wall Magazine Rack ($14.99). I used the black frames to match my whiteboard calendar I already had (I think I bought that at Walmart for around $10).
Then I took two of the racks and used needle-nosed pliers to pry off the little tab at the top.
Since I'm not using the racks as intended (meaning interlocking all of them to make one big rack), I need the hole for a small screw to attach to the picture frame. Make sure the screw is short enough not to go through the frame!

The holes are pretty close to the top, so it shouldn't be too hard to attach them. I used a really long cross-tip drill-bit (a long screwdriver will do as well).

That's really all there is to it. You could leave the frames as-is and attach them to your wall.
I used a current school picture for each of the kiddos and put the frame back together. That way everyone knows which frame is their's. (Note, thanks to hubby for being my hand model)

I found that the hardest thing about the whole project was getting it attached to the wall.

And here it is--all finished. Bring on the paper piles :D

Oh, the magnetic board on the left is the SPONTAN, also from ikea for $12.99. Well, that's my little ikea hack project. I hope you found it useful. If you did, feel free to leave some comment <3.

Please