Do you have a caviar taste and a grilled cheese budget? Do you want to a designer home made of cheap furniture? Well, your time has come! There is a new movement out there just for people like you. Forget shabby chic. This style is more modern and more versatile. Welcome to the world of Ikea hacking.
Ikea is known for furniture that is simple and mostly inexpensive. Usually made of pine or plastic, even the new home or apartment dwellers can furnish their place, or at least a room, on a limited budget. The modern style and colors, the simplicity, appeals to many people, especially the young. But what was once different and cool is now becoming commonplace. More and more people are displaying Ikea furniture and accessories, including, gasp, moms and dads and grandmas and grandpas. Even that weird guy down the street has an EKTORP sofa. So now that Ikea is a global cult brand, what is a cool but budget-conscious person to do? Hack the Ikea item into something new and more expensive- or cool-looking.
You may have seen a my earlier blog about a friend who found a falling-apart Ikea dresser on the curb and turned it into a functional and pretty cool desk. Well, frugal jet-setter that she is, she is part of the new Ikea hacking movement. Pendant lamps replace track lighting, a modern wardrobe turns into an English cottage piece, and an upside-down Ikea bed of questionable safety gets turned into an aquarium-theme playhouse for a lucky little boy. Personally, I like the sun jar that was turned into a lamp.
Want to know more about Ikea hacking and get some inspiring ideas? Check out the following website to find people who are already doing it themselves.
http://ikeahacker.blogspot.com/
Or, just do an Internet search on Ikea Hacks or Ikea Hacking to find folks writing about their hacks and posting photos in their blogs.
What will your hack look like?
Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.
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