Thursday, March 17, 2011

DIY Book Sling (an Ikea Hack!)

Ever since I first saw it, I've loved this book sling at Sew Liberated:

Isn't it fantastic?

So when I was re-doing Eleanor's room I was intent on making one. There's a great tutorial here but I did mine a bit differently. Here it is:



I hacked an Ikea Grundtal double towel rail!

I measured my fabric for my sling, adding a generous allowance on all sides for the casing and hems (1 inch in my case). I then hemmed the (short) sides of the rectangle (making sure the finished width matched the width of the rail) and then sewed the casings for the rails on the long sides. I then simply unscrewed the rails, slipped the sling on and...voila!



It's functional, adorable and very quick. I think this took me about 20 mins, tops.
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14 comments:

  1. UnknownMarch 24, 2011 at 12:29 PM

    Oh I wish I could sew... this is fabulous!!!
    Thanks for sharing :)

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  2. melissaMarch 24, 2011 at 2:48 PM

    this makes me wish I had a sewing machine!

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  3. VeronicaMarch 24, 2011 at 9:00 PM

    Holy cow - this is great! I was already planning on making this for my daughter, but this is even better than what I had planned! Thanks for the inspiration!

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  4. silly eagle booksMarch 25, 2011 at 9:43 AM

    I, too, was inspired by Sew Liberated's slings and made some using the dowels and curtain brackets. It took a few weeks to find the parts--the towel rack idea is great. Next time, I'm trying this. :) I love that fabric, by the way! And Cars and Trucks and Things that Go is one of our very favorites.

    You can see my daughter's booksling here: http://www.sillyeaglebooks.com/2010/09/decorating-childrens-rooms-juliets-big.html

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  5. RachelMarch 25, 2011 at 12:40 PM

    That's a gorgeous fabric you used Vanessa! (I'm also in love with your daughter's headboard...I'm loving yellow right now!)

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  6. leilaMarch 25, 2011 at 5:55 PM

    @silly eagle books - I love your daughter's room and esp the book sling. Rachel and I definitely have a weakness for yellow!

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  7. jamiebentleyMarch 26, 2011 at 7:35 AM

    I'm totally going to make this for my daughter! GENIUS!!!

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  8. WilmaMarch 29, 2011 at 8:45 AM

    great idea!!! this week I will go to ikea for buy the Grundtal towel rail, I can't wait to do it, thanks for your visit in my blog. Kisses

    http://www.atiasroom.blogspot.com/

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  9. PiaMarch 31, 2011 at 4:58 PM

    Thank You!
    Very good ide.
    I have a Grundtal in my home and make in the way you have done.

    (Sorry my english are bad. Live in Sweden, land of Ikea)

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  10. RachelMarch 31, 2011 at 8:14 PM

    That's wonderful!!! please send us pictures once it's made!

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  11. UnknownMarch 31, 2011 at 9:58 PM

    Love this! found you on Ikea Hackers!

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  12. AnonymousMarch 31, 2011 at 10:50 PM

    I have a sewing machine and have no clue how to use it. Now that I know you're so handy maybe you could give me a crash course??? Love the sling. Can you make it more shallow? (Victoria)

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  13. leilaApril 1, 2011 at 7:29 AM

    @Lori - glad you found us! Thanks for visiting

    @Victoria - anytime!

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  14. AnonymousApril 1, 2011 at 2:19 PM

    Such a good idea! Thanks for sharing!

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