DIY Ottoman

No more spending hundreds of dollars on ottomans or chairs that you might not have for that long, because us women like to rearrange our decor and furniture like we change clothes. Thanks to Ikea hacks, I've discovered that I can turn an $8 Ikea LACK table into a durable, comfortable ottoman just by upholstering it. I never thought it would be so easy and that I could actually do it, but EASY it was!

Supplies needed and $ spent:

1. IKEA LACK table $7.99
2. Foam Sponge $5 from Home Depot 
3. Adhesive Spray $5.99 at Michael's
4. Batting $5 from my local fabric store
5. Gray velvet fabric from my local fabric store $8 a yd. (you'll need about 1 yd.)

The foam sponge from Home depot was a PERFECT match!

First step is to spray the adhesive spray all over the foam pad and on the table top. (This is to prevent the materials from moving over time)

Second is to add the batting and you'll need a staple gun for this. If you're unsure how to use one, I recommend learning. I have an electric one that plugs into an outlet, so you just press onto the table and click and the staples go in. I didn't really need to go over them with a hammer but if you feel that you didn't push hard enough, then I suggest doing so. Make sure you don't cover the holes in the corner where the legs screw on. 

I added the fabric the same way as I did the batting, making sure to tug and pull on the sides so that my fabric looks put together. I also made sure that the fabric didn't cover the holes where I placed the legs. This fabric was a thick velvet so if you're going to go with a thick fabric like mine, be sure you clip the fabric right at the corners. I decided to go with a "butterfly pleat" and you can see what that looks like here.

Once you add the legs, they're going to sit on the fabric like so, I had to unscrew and play around a little bit with the fabric so it sat on right. You don't want the legs to come out crooked.

I flipped the table over after screwing in all the legs and although I was happy with the outcome, I felt it looked a little plain with the color I chose, so I decided to go out and buy decorative upholstery tacks.

You can find these at any craft store, I got mine at Home Depot. It's a box of 20 for $1.30. One box will fill up one side, so I bought 4. I aligned them up first to see if the placement was what I wanted, like below.

This is where you need a wee bit of patience since I kept hammering my fingers, then mama came to the rescue and helped me out. Just hold the nail in place and hammer them down. I used a string to make sure they were aligned correctly. 

VOILA! My finishing project! Cute, affordable and chic!

Total spent was about $38 with 3 hours to spares. Compared to $200-$300 ottomans I've looked at, this was well worth $38.

Happy organizing!!