Showing posts with label DIY. Show all posts
Showing posts with label DIY. Show all posts

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Small Space Tools

62pcs_Tool_Kit-350


Tools maketh the man, or woman. All right, so the tools will not make you, but they will make your life easier.

A decent basic tool kit is an essential household item. We very often need to hang a picture, remove a nail or measure something. Having the right tools makes everyday tasks much simpler. It is just as important to have these tools close at hand and organized makes these tasks less stressful

So just some tips for tool ownership…

First, have all the basics. Any good starter tool kit should come equipped with the following: Hammer, Pliers, Vice Grips, Wire Cutters/Side Cutters, Level, Pencil, assortment of Screws and Nails, Small Screw Driver Set and Utility knife.

If you were to add a power tool, a cordless drill with an assortment of bits would be a godsend. If you ever have to hang blinds/curtains or assemble an Ikea purchase, a cordless drill can save you time and effort.

Many tool sets come in a plastic cases made to hold only the tools included. Although these are great starter options, consider upgrading to a small toolbox so you can add the extras you occasionally need to purchase.

Whatever you have and what ever you keep it in, remember to keep it handy. In small space living this is usually easy, but having to run to a storage room for a screwdriver is time-consuming.

As a parting note, we are often capable of more than we think, but owning a toolbox does not make you a Bob Vila or Norm Abram. Know your limits and respect them.

Friday, February 1, 2008

IKEA Hacker

IKEAHACKER2


Spawned by my recent Multi-Function Furniture post I feel the time is right to wade into the IKEA discussion.

IKEA, the friendly Swedish furniture giant — love them or hate them — offers a dazzling array of modern home furnishings at reasonable prices. I love going to IKEA. It is packed with almost everything you could ever want to furnish your home. They have all these cute little rooms staged with their products. It looks amazing. But then there’s the Q word — Quality. Well there it is.

To be fair, I have IKEA furniture in my home now — a bookshelf. It has functioned well for quite some time. I have also had several bad experiences with IKEA products. I could go on, but let’s just leave it at let the buyer beware — try it before you buy it. There are some real gems at IKEA and some real headaches as well.

Which brings me to IKEA Hacker. IKEA Hacker is a great blog that can help make your IKEA experience much more enriching. They post an assortment of idea for use and modification of IKEA stuff. They also show ideas for improving IKEA products.

A great example is the image above. It is a bamboo plywood sofa table made with legs from an IKEA IMFORS table.