Non-gratuitously priced AND sturdy over-the-toilet storage

Materials: HYLLIS. Optional: bed risers/wood blocks, paint, extra fasteners/lashing materials

Description: The $15 HYLLIS shelf always looked too flimsy to be very useful, but it's surprisingly sturdy.

1. Assemble HYLLIS using only the top 2-3 shelves, depending on the height of your toilet and whether or not you use risers to elevate the HYLLIS
2. Place HYLLIS over the toilet, securing to risers via glue or lashing materials

3. Using one of the remaining shelves, screw the shelf in to the two rear unit legs so that the shelf goes behind the toilet (this is only possible with certain plumbing configurations - our plumbing goes into the floor, so it is possible, but yours may go in to the wall behind the toilet, possibly making it impossible to add this stability bar without using tin snips to cut the shelf, which may decrease its stabilizing abilities). The shelf will be vertical, and aligned flush with the rear unit legs.
4. Optional- stabilize the shelf to the wall. Our HYLLIS was stable enough and not tippy at all, so we deemed this step unnecessary.

~ AJE, Ann Arbor, MI

More hacks on IKEAHackers.net

Eames' esque Storage unit hack

Materials: APA Storage Boxes, HYLLIS, Peg Board, Observator

Description: So I must confess I got half of this idea from IKEA hackers this was my take on an already great idea posted. The other half of the idea came from the great Charles and Ray Eames. I love the Eames Storage unit! However I do not love it to the tune of 2 grand. My wife and I wanted a simple credenza for our small dining area. Here is how we did it.

1. We purchased 4 APA storage boxes, 2 HYLLIS shelf units, 1 Observator cross brace, a few colors of spray paint (white, red, orange, and green. We used this awesome new matte spray paint from Aaron Brothers. It worked great) 1 sheet of peg board for the sliding doors, and 1 sheet of poplar for a top

2. Here is where you can get creative. Before we put the APA storage boxes together we spray painted the sides of the storage boxes and planned which side were going to show since it is 2 wide by 2 high 4 of the sides will not be shown so you only need to paint 4 if you choose. We turned some of the side panels inside out so the white was showing which saved paint other we painted colors.

3. We assembled the APA storage boxes leaving the end off on all but one. The one we put together we left the back off and put the Observator brace on the back to help give the Eames feel.

4. We measured the peg board for proper fit to use as a sliding door for 3 of the APA storage boxes. ( We used the insert for the storage box for reference our dimension for the door was half of the length of the insert x the height of the insert)

5. We used a dremel to sand where the door was going to slide we had to make this route wider to allow for smooth sliding. Another trick that helped was sanding down the peg board after we painted the board white because the paint is sticky.

6. We painted the peg board white, let it dry, and slid it in to the front of the APA box put the painted backs on and put the end on.

7. We cut all metal legs from the Hyllis to 33" high. We used wood screws to attach the legs to the APA storage boxes. Aligning one box to the top of the cut hyllis legs and putting the other just under it. Leaving a small gap under the last APA. You do this twice and basically make 2 ea 2 high units.

8. We than measure and cut the poplar to 10-11/16" x 55" and screwed the poplar top to the top of the units to make them one 55" long credenza.

9. Last but not least we used the remaining APA tops and HYLLIS shelves, and spray paint and made a nice piece of art for behind our sofa to tie in the 2 rooms.

10. It is awesome having a super talented wife as a side kick

~ Zion Hilliker, San Diego

Ikea Hyllis Shoe Storage

Materials: 2 Hyllis shelving units, power drill

Description: We needed a good solution for storing our shoes so that it wouldn't take too much floor space. Hyllis was just the right height and width but it didn't have enough shelves. My solution was to buy two of them and combine them to have enough shelves for our shoes. This way the there would be less unused space and we could fit our shoes in properly.


Instructions are easy: just drill new holes between the existing holes on 4 legs and assemble. We had one shelf and 4 legs leftover from this project.

The result is a well-functioning shelving unit for shoes that also looks good. This could also be used for storing other items , books etc.

See more of the Hyllis shoe rack.

~ Minni S., Finland

Copy Cat Shelving

Materials: Hyllis, craft crates

Description: I saw The Eames Inspired Shelving unit on Ikea Hackers some time ago, and was inspired myself to make something simular to put in my Studio closet to hold art supplies, gifts, etc. I didn't use the APA box in mine, nor put a piece of MDF Birch veneered plywood on the back, but I think I got the same effect. I used 2 craft crates, from Michael's (also available at JoAnn's) instead of the APA boxes. I simply figured where they should go, drilled whatever holes I need and screwed the Hyllis legs onto the boxes.

See more of the crate shelving.

~ Rob, Burien, WA

Kitchen wall covering

Materials: HYLLIS

Description:
The idea is simple : use all elements of one super-cheap HYLLIS metal shelves to construct a kitchen wall covering.

~ PATY MNI, BELGIUM (Li�ge)

Hyllis Garage "Man Cave"

Materials: Hyllis Storage, Melamine Shelves, Screws

Description: I needed to convert an ugly mess in my garage into a "man cave" with a useable bench -- I was sick and tired of all the projects being conducted on my kitchen bench! And my budget is very small.

We used:

6 x Hyllis storage units from Ikea Homebush, NSW ($16.99 each) - which we cut down to 3 shelves
2 x Melamine shelves from Bunnings Hardware ($13.99 each)
16 x screws we already had

Method:
1. Build the six Hyllis units as per the instructions, but don't put on the 4th (top) shelf.
2. Cut off the left-over bracket between the 3rd shelf and what would have been the top shelf.
3. Place the unused 4th shelf on top of the bottom shelf for added stability. No drilling or screwing necessary,
4. Position the units 2 deep x 3 wide.
5. Drill pilot holes in each of the top shelves (we did 2 per shelf x 6 shelves).
6. Position melamine shelves on top on Hyllis units. leaving overhang on both sides (we used 120cm x 60xm shelves)
7. From underneath, drill 12mm screws into melamine shelves to fix into place.

The whole job took us about 2 hours and the end result is fantastic and economical.

~ Frances, Sydney, Australis

Eames-inspired storage unit

Materials: 2x APA, 1x HYLLIS, screws, scrap 1/4" MDF w/birch veneer

Description: The Ikea APA toy boxes are inexpensive and reasonably attractive (with their white laminate side-panels), but I have never found them to be particularly useful for storage as intended. Inspired by a project in the book "ReadyMade: How to Make [Almost] Everything: A Do-It-Yourself Primer" and the classic Eames storage unit, I built this simple shelving unit out of two APA boxes ($14.99 each) and the vertical brackets from a HYLLIS shelving unit (also $14.99). The sliding door panels are fashioned out of some scrap 1/4" birch veneer sheets, salvaged from the back of an old BILLY bookcase. The doors slide back-and-forth in the pre-cut slots on the APA. The back panel is also scrap 1/4" birch veneer from a BILLY bookcase. Any 1/4" MDF would work for the doors and the back panel, and could easily be painted to taste if you don't have veneer.


1) Prior to assembly, prime and paint bottom panels of two APA boxes. These will be at the rear interior of the storage unit, so will be very visible. I used Kilz primer and two coats latex interior wall paint. I was able to get inexpensive paint samples from the hardware store since there's not much surface area to cover (and I still have plenty left). You could paint or stain the APA wood pieces as well, but I chose to leave them as-is.

2) Assemble the two APA boxes per the instructions, but flip one of the panels so the white side is toward the inside of the box (this will be the interior shelf surface). Set the box lids aside; I didn't use them in this project.

3) Set aside the metal HYLLIS shelves; I didn't use them for this project (but am saving them because scrap sheet metal could come in handy). Lay out two of the HYLLIS brackets on sawhorses and fit one APA box at the top, open end facing away from the brackets. Fit the other APA box about two feet from the first (the spacing here is flexible). Be sure to align the tops of the two brackets so the unit won't wobble. Drill holes through the metal and wood, and attach the boxes to the brackets one screw in each corner (4 screws per box). I attached from the sides of the box, but you could also attach from the front and back. You should be able to re-use some of the pre-drilled holes in the HYLLIS, but you will also need to drill new ones. Since they're visible, I used 3/4" #6 square-drive sheet metal screws and washers. Be sure to offset your screws from the APA box bolts, and pre-drill your holes so you don't split the wood.

4) Measure and cut a piece of 1/4" MDF to fit between the two boxes. I used a birch veneer, but you could also use plain MDF and paint it or cover it with contact paper. I used a small circular saw, cutting with the veneer facing downward to reduce splintering. Roughly sand the edges with 100 grit sandpaper.

5) Fit the back panel between the boxes on the brackets. Drill holes at each of the corners of the back panel all the way through the brackets. Attach back panel using machine screws, washers and nuts. You could use short sheet metal screws here instead, but I didn't want sharp points sticking out the back of the unit so I went with machine screws and nuts.

6) Place the remaining two HYLLIS brackets on top of the unit, drill holes, and attach using screws as in step 3. Be sure to align the tops of these brackets with the tops of the existing two so all four legs are the same length and the unit won't wobble. Each box will now be attached to each leg with two screws, one in each corner of the box.

7) Attach the plastic feet included with the HYLLIS to the bottom of the four brackets (I had to tap them on with a rubber mallet). The unit should now stand freely. I found it to be surprisingly sturdy and stable (the back panel helps quite a bit).

8) Cut two sliding doors out of 1/4" MDF. The door height should be 12 3/8" high to fit in the pre-cut APA slots. The width is up to you; mine were 12". Sand each of the edges, and round the corners slightly, using 100 grit sandpaper. Sand a little bit extra on the top and bottom edges - these will go into the slots and you want them to slide nicely. Pop the doors into place by bending them slightly. You could also put them in when doing the initial APA assembly, but I didn't have the foresight at that point and didn't feel like disassembling the whole thing.

In the end, I'm reasonably pleased with how it looks and have found it to be slightly more practical than the APA boxes or HYLLIS shelving units are on their own. Some other enhancements I thought about (mostly inspired by the Eames storage unit) but didn't try:

* Build two units and attach them side-by-side.

* Add metal cross braces on the side and/or replacing the back panel with metal cross braces.

* Replace the back panel with a third APA unit rotated 90 degrees from the others (and a third paint color in the back).

* Add additional design elements to the doors (stripes, shapes) using a contrasting peel-and-stick veneer or contact paper.

* Use pegboard instead of 1/4" MDF for the doors and/or back panel.

~ Andrew Rogers, Washington

Eiffel lamp

Materials: Hyllis and perforated steel tape

Description: I used the 4 legs of HYLLIS in combination with screws, nuts and perforated steel tape like meccano for creating a floor lamp.

~ Peter Van Zoetendaal, Netherlands

Sawing the HYLLIS

Materials: HYLLIS metal shelves, saw, sandpaper

Description: When I moved into my apartment last year, the stove and the fridge ended up having this annoying gap between them. I thought it would be a pity to just to let it be and leave all this valuable storage/counter space unexploited, so I got busy going through the IKEA catalogue for something that would fit the gap just right.

I was lucky. Hello there, super-cheap HYLLIS metal shelves!

At 60cm deep and 27cm wide, it was like if I had ordered them to fit. And if I remember correctly, I paid 12 euros for them, but the price in the new 2011 catalogue has been reduced and they now cost only 8,95 in Greece. Total bargain.

Problem was, HYLLIS is tall. I wanted something that would act as a extension of the stove top, so I would be able to use the surface while cooking, letting pots and pans cool off and stuff like that. HYLLIS is 140cm tall while my stove only reaches 85cm.

So I grabbed my saw.

The shortest half is the one that used to be the bottom and the now tall half used to be the top. I sawed just over the third shelf, and the height of the top half turned out to be just perfect as you can see from the first picture of this post.

I only had to go over the legs with some sandpaper so I could pop on the plastic thingies that protect your floor from the metal, and it was ready!

See more here.

~ Pinelopi, Athens, Greece

Custom wall of shelving...cheap!

Materials: Hyllis shelves, plywood, four band-aids

Description: Hyllis shelves are about $15 bucks a pop at Ikea but are rather flimsy and pretty short.

For my bedroom, I knew that I needed to house about 1200 books on a 20 foot long wall and I also wanted to house two flat screen TVs (long story why I needed two) that were at the correct height to view from the bed.

The Hyllis shelves will go together rather easily if you want to stack them. For my hack, I used the shelves and 'overlapped' the shelving units a bit in height. It is easy to overlap the legs (vertical supports) of Hyllis and and one to four shelves in height to it. You just have to put a screw through both vertical sections and into the shelf...the screw will connect everything together. I purchased slightly longer screws than the shelves come with to make the shelf connections at the front and the back sides, and used 1" long drywall screws to hold the shelves together side by side. I also sunk one screw per shelf unit into the rear wall of my bedroom to add some stability.

To house the TV brackets, I had two pieces of plywood cut down to size at the hardware store. I made them the same size as one shelf 'opening' and inserted them where the shelf should have been, using the same holes drilled in the vertical supports that the shelves use. The plywood goes from the bottom of one shelf to the top of where the shelf below it should be. Easy as can be; this gave me a solid base to install the mounts for the screens.

The vertical supports have one end drilled with two holes in it (Ikea anticipates you to attach the shelves to the wall using these holes, I think). I added an extra row of shelves purely for decoration along the top of the unit using the extra holes. I Turned these upside down so you see the smooth surface of a shelf 'top' in lieu of the crimped shelf bottom.

I was left with one section of shelves that was a little bit too big to fit into the wall. Hyllis shelves are thin enough you can actually cut them easily with tin snips if you need to modify the width. When you cut them across you loose a little bit of stability because the shelves are folded on all four edges and the fold makes them rigid and gives the shelf its thickness. I had to insert small pieces of 1" tall scrap wood cut the same depth as the shelf to stiffen the shelf front to back. I installed the wood using the existing holes on the vertical supports. Note: the cut shelves are sharp...hence bandages should be on hand! The cut shelves are shown in the picture with the urinal on the floor; you can barely see that they are modified.

~ Dave Hopkins, Chicago

Double Up the Hyllis

Materials: 2 Hyllis shelving units, a good screwdriver

Description: The Hyllis is a nice piece of furniture to begin with, in my opinion, despite the awful name.Simple, honest metal and a few screws. Lovely. Also, the Hyllis is embarrasingly cheap.

The idea is simple - stock to units on top of each other. Save space, get a cooler looking piece of furniture.

You need a screwdriver that can make holes in metal.

1. Assemble one shelving unit completely, except for the plastic feet, and the shelve nearest to the ground. Lay it down on the floor.
This will be the top.

2. Put the long vertical pieces of metal in extension to the first unit you assembled, and decide how high you want it to be.

3. Drill holes so that you can assemble the two units, measure the distance to the pre-drilled holes so it will be even.

4. Screw in the shelf that overlaps the two units, through both the units.

5. Assemble the rest of the shelves in the lower part, and you're done.

My explanation is crap, look at the pictures and I'm sure you understand it right away. It's very simple.

Important: Make sure you know how high the ceiling is, and make sure there's room enough to raise the shelving unit to an upright position when you're done. I was only able to make it fit because the old house I live in has a bumpy uneven ceiling.

~ Lea, Copenhagen, Denmark

Jeweler's Jam

Materials: (1) Helmer drawer unit on casters, (1) Vika Amon table top, (1) Hyllis shelving unit, (2) discontinued Ikea shoe racks, (1) Lack shelf, (1) Kolja mirror. The only extra hardware needed were some standard screws, drywall anchors and four small L shaped brackets.

Description: I design jewelry and work from my bedroom, where I already have a huge Vika Gruvan desk, an overflow of bookcases and no extra room to spare. So this action-packed little corner was pretty much my only option.

I also had no cash at the moment (Hey, not all of us can be Tiffany) so buying brand new furniture was out of the question, all the Ikea items I used were bought on Craigslist. I think I spent less than $40 total including hardware.

Here's the steps so you too can do the jam:

First, I assembled the Helmer drawer unit. Then, using its height as a guide, I attached the L shaped brackets to the wall. (As you can see in the picture, I used some left over curtain brackets from another project to keep costs down.)

Next, I assembled the Hyllis shelving unit. Here is where I had to work some magic. The table top is wider than the shelves so in order to slide it in place without having to cut the table down to size I had to invert the Hyllis' legs. This seriously compromises its stability, so I had to anchor it to the wall. After that, I slid the table top in place and secured it to the brackets with screws.

Then I hung the mirror (No, I'm not -that- vain, I just need to look at my work!) and the Lack shelf. As an extra bonus I installed a wire/tool dispenser made of L shaped brackets and a steel rod (Costs $2.50 to make). Since I still needed more shelving I added the shoe racks underneath the table. I bought two of them and stacked them, going under and around the Hyllis unit, then secured them with screws.

And that's pretty much it.

Hey, it is not the sexiest of units, but it works for me. Plus it was $40 bucks. Beat that.

~ Sunny H., Chicago