Ikea Expedit
We still can't believe that more than 100,000 of you have checked out our Ikea Expedit Project! What originally was supposed to be a temporary fix for our organizational needs has now served our home for a whopping 2 years! It works as our family's command center ~ organizing keys, mail, files + crafts. We were (and still are) humbled to think that a simple addition of a chalkboard would spark so many re-pins on Pinterest .
Read on to see how a measurement mishap turned into one of our best projects to date!
After taking measurements of the empty space behind our front door, we opted to purchase 3 individual Expedit Shelving Units. (*Unfortunately, this shelving unit was discontinued, Ikea Expedit Replacement ShelfCLICK HERE FOR A SIMILAR ONE
)
To our dismay, we realized our measurements were off by 5" and didn't love that it practically stuck out past our door frame. After about an hour of debating whether or not to return the whole thing, we had the idea to turn the end unit 90 degrees.
This allowed the entire unit to fit perfectly due to the fact that the cubes are more rectangular than square. Then to conceal the blank side we added a chalkboard.
We taped off our edges using 3M ScotchBlue Painter's Tape and taped down old cds to round the corners ~ gave it a couple coats of chalkboard spray paint and voila! Our very own custom Ikea Expedit.
After completing this project, we received a lot of requests for a buying guide. Again, thanks for taking the time to check out our blog and best wishes for creating your own organizational area!
added a chalkboard and styled with the following:
{5}DIY Chalkboard
{10}Large Clip Was A Gift
When I first saw your shelves I thought they looked so complicated. Thanks for being so specific and showing me how you did it. Plus I appreciate knowing where you bought everything.
ReplyDeleteVery clever. Carolyn
Thanks so much Carolyn! :)
DeleteHi.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great solution and I have the exact same wall measurement - so I'm going to do this too! However, I know the expedit doesn't have a back to them and if the width is a little bit deeper than the depth, are the 2 shelves on the left not all the way backed up to the wall? Did you leave a space or put a backing on them? -Annette
Hi, Annette - thanks so much for stopping by!! You are correct that the 2 units on the left are not backed up completely to the wall. We pulled them forward slightly to stand flush against the 3rd unit - this make sense? We don't have little kiddos running around yet, but if you do - you'll want to attach all 3 together with brackets :). I hope this helps and please let us know if you ave any more questions! Good luck and be sure to email us a photo of the end result! Ironandtwine@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteI have kids and this is for one of their rooms. I'm not sure what to do with the space behind - he'll surely push his things too far and they'll fall behind. I probably will put a white backing on the cubes that are open. Thanks again for your help and your great idea!
ReplyDeleteJust my two cents: sheets of bead board would work great behind these. If you attach the expedits together and then use small brad nails (or even small amounts of construction adhesive) you should be able to back this with no trouble at all!
Deletethe units are easily accessed. To clean behind them all you would have to do is remove the items on the bottom shelf an you can access the area. I have my grandson help clean behind our unit all of the time. It's in a playroom
DeleteWhat are the dimensions of the unit now?? Thinking of doing this too!!
ReplyDeleteHi, Sunny!
Delete50" wide x 17 1/4" deep x 71 7/8" tall
Hope this helps!!
Does IKEA still carry these??? Do you have the item number. I would need 4 of them
DeleteI don't understand where the end wall came from. Please help me.
ReplyDeleteHello there! So sorry ~ I'm not quite sure what you're asking. Could you be a little more specific and I'll get back to you!
DeleteI've always loved this project. I'm so happy to "meet" who the original creator was. :-) Great job!
ReplyDelete~Sarah
Sarah ~ it's so nice to meet YOU!!! My husband & I are wrapping up our kitchen renovation & I LOVE your coffee ~ java station you have in your kitchen!! I'll be over tomorrow for a large vanilla latte :)
DeleteLove the look! Thanks for sharing! I found your post because I'm also considering using chalkboard spray paint on some Ikea furniture. Can you give any updates on how the chalkboard paint is holding up? Did you use a primer?
ReplyDeleteWhen you rotated the last unit, did all three units still line up? Or was the rotated unit sticking out further than the other two? I hope I am making sense.
ReplyDeleteAlso, did you bolt them together or are they just free standing next to each other?
You're making complete sense! Each unit is more rectangular than square, so when we rotated the last unit it did stick out, so we pulled the other two units out from the wall slightly so all three would line up. Ours are currently free standing, but of course you could easily attach the three together. Hope this helps!
DeleteJust wanted to let you know that Ikea no longer carries this 5 shelf unit. They have 4 or 2 shelf now. I am disappointed since I was going to turn it on its side and make a window seat out if it.
ReplyDeleteThat stinks. I wanted to do a room divider in the basement.
DeleteI love this idea, it's something I would like to have in my bedroom to help organize the clutter. I was wondering what the dimensions of one shelf were, vs the entire unit? I'm hoping to have them built by a friend since Ikea no longer sells them.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much!!
the shelf unit is available at Ikea - it's called Billy
ReplyDeletethis is a great idea. I made it and for the opening in the back against the wall. I took foam board from the dollar store - measured & cut the squares, covered it in fabric or wallpaper (used spray starch as the adhesive) scrap paper works too. Then I took small nails and hammered it onto the bookcase. it was easy!!! most fabric stores sell remnants for about $1.50 too. So very easy to do and extremely cost effective.
ReplyDeleteIkea does not have these bookcases. The billy has 6 shelves and this has 5. Any idea where I can find them with these?
ReplyDeleteThe Expedit was discontinued at IKEA but was replaced with the KALLAX that is very similar. I have these throughout my house both vertical and horizontal, with and without legs, open cubbies and doors/drawers. By far one the most flexible IKEA products. I am a scrapbooker and I love these!!! Your idea is fab!
ReplyDeleteLOVE this!!! Thank you so much for sharing!!! Recycledwoman, your answer is above in previous comments. Please read them.
ReplyDeleteLove it!! Although I would purchase one kallax (used to be expedit) with 6 shelves, [ http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80275887/ ] and one single unit [ http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00275848/ ] and then you can turn the single shelf to the side...It is cheaper than buying 3 individual shelves!
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