furniture | Grey House Harbor

Oct 8 2015

ikea vittsjo hack

Posted by hayley

When did the term “hack” morph from meaning something bad (someone breaking into your computer) into meaning to make something easier and/or more awesome? Life hacks, recipe hacks, cleaning hacks… Just one search on Pinterest for Ikea hack will reveal hundreds of ideas on ways to make inexpensive furniture look custom chic.

In the new mancave that I’m designing for Handsome, I have a very specific problem to solve that requires a very specific piece of furniture (more on that in another post). Having not found anything that would suit my predicament, I thought I’d try my hand at a hack.

Say hello to Ikea’s Vittsjö side table. Normally, this piece is a black metal frame with a clear glass top and dark laminate bottom shelf.

That setup wasn’t going to solve my issue, so I hacked a new look.

I started by having the good people at Home Depot cut down a sheet of 1/2 plywood.

Here’s the cut specs:
1 piece (top) – 19 3/4″ x 20″
1 piece (bottom) – 19 3/4″ x 19 3/4″
1 piece (front) – 19 3/4″ x 19

On the bottom shelf (19 3/4″ x 19 3/4″), I used a jig saw to notch out 5/8″ into all four corners so that it would sit flush with the ledge support.

On the front piece (19 3/4″ x 19), Songbird and I drilled four recessed screw holes with the kreg jig along one of the long sides.

Apply a line of wood glue along one short edge of the top piece (19 3/4″ x 20″).

Turn the edge with glue to overlap the edge with the Kreg jig holes. Screw together and let dry.

Here you can see how the top piece overlaps the front piece a little better (screwed in from underneath). I wanted the table to have some character, so initially I taped out this retro design prior to staining.

Unfortunately, when I stained it (with Minwax Dark Walnut), the tape lines bled some.

So, I went back with a thin paint brush and white paint to crisp up the design.

After letting the stain and paint dry overnight, I coated all the wood with 3 coats of semi-gloss polyurethane for durability.

On the frame, there are 6 solid metal brackets that would normally support the glass top. I used a 3/8″ metal drill bit to make holes in them. When you drill, put an empty box below to catch all the tiny metal shavings – don’t want anyone stepping on those, ouch!

After the poly is dry, insert the bottom shelf first; it will stay in place without additional securing. Then align the top/front piece flush with the metal frame and screw in through the bracket holes underneath. You may want 2 people for this to keep it square while you attach it.

My very own Ikea hack! So proud. Just wait ’til I show you how genius it works in solving my design problem. More to come!

Tags: diy, furniture, ikea hack, mancave

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Aug 16 2015

the sniff test

Posted by hayley

We live on one military income. I contribute a few bucks here and there with freelance artwork/graphic design, but our budget is based solely on Handsome’s provision. We are comfortable, but not extravagant. I shop clothing sales, thrift stores, Walmart groceries and tackle a lot of DIY to stretch our dollars as best I can. Craigslist has been kind to me: providing several home & child accoutrements at a fraction of the cost. Most of the time I’m even able to re-sell outgrown items for nearly (if not exactly) what I paid for them.

95% of my Craigslist purchases have been awesome. Nice people, fair price, smooth transaction, no creepers. I did have one nightmare experience where I drove 6 hours round-trip alone with both kids to end up NOT buy something that was clearly broken and totally misrepresented. That was a major bummer, but I henceforth set a travel limit of an hour — no matter how much me likey.

And then along came this console table.

I only drove 15 minutes to buy this antique beauty and I got it for a song. Solid wood, gorgeous detailing, perfect shape and size.

Problem was… the lady I bought it from had it sitting on her covered patio. I only saw it on her patio, purchased it from her patio, and never once stepped foot inside her house. It needed some work, but I saw it’s potential and wasn’t afraid to put in a little elbow grease.

As I drove my new treasure home, the car began to smell. After sitting in my house overnight, the entire living room reeked of cigarettes. Turns out, the table smelled to high heaven. It was as if the poor thing had been sitting in the corner of a nasty dive bar for 50 years. Just look at the thickness of this horrible waxy buildup…

After dry scraping a majority of the table, it still stunk. So I tried chemical paint stripper. The vile sludge that came off that thing was downright vomitous. This was not going to be a quick fix.

It took me 3 afternoons and a few minor chemical burns to get it down to bare wood. Then I repainted, restained, and applied 3 coats of polyurethane.

Looking sharp, right? That’s what I thought too. Until I put it in our bedroom. Woke up with a headache and my room smelling like the aforementioned dive bar.

I couldn’t believe that after all that work the table still had the aromatic potency to clear a room. But I also couldn’t bring myself to sell it (and lie about it’s stench) or trash it (I’d put in so much sweat equity)!

So I put it on my covered patio. For 3 months. Hoping and praying that all it needed was some fresh air.

Turns out, I was right. The little blue console could finally come inside without offending anyone and now lives happily in our master bedroom. If you smoosh your nostrils reeeeeal close, there is a dainty hint of this beauty’s past life of neglect, but she not longer defiles the room.

Moral of the Story: from now on any and all Craigslist purchases (wood furniture included) will be subjected to and have to pass a stringent sniff test.

Tags: furniture, our home, trash to treasure

3 comments

Aug 7 2014

old soul in a new suit

Posted by hayley

Previously I’ve shared my habit of coming home with orphan furniture. I can’t help it… they cry out to me. I’m an addict that needed a fix.

Oh, Salvation Army store… always a treasure trove of misfit furniture. From across the aisle, his wingback goodness beckoned. Upon closer inspection I was delighted to find he was actually a rocker. A platform rocker has stationary legs and a curved mid-section, allowing for shallow rocking movement.

Easing into his comfy embrace, I smiled thinking of all the babes that had been rocked to sleep in his care. Or perhaps it was old men easing their aching bones and passing gas in his deep cushions. Uh, wait… let’s stick with the baby storyline.