Flat-pack furniture is designed to be so easy even the most bungling of DIY-ers can out it together. Stores like Ikea rely heavily on the flat-pack assembly option and they seem to be as popular as ever, so it can’t be that hard–right?

There are a few hints and tips that can make assembling flat-pack furniture easier for those who don’t know one end of a screwdriver from the other. Step One: Ladies, even though its flat pack, you will get dirty. You know all those mens large shirts you have at the back of the closet for no reason, now would be the time to break them out. Most important, and probably the first thing you should check, is that you have all the pieces you’re supposed to have. Not your tools yet (they come later) but the actual items that you’ve purchased from the store. Count the screws, check you have the right number of flat pieces and even make sure there are holes drilled where the instructions say there are supposed to be holes drilled. Now check you have the tools you need. Often, instructions will have pictures of the tools required as well as the names, so any DIY amateur can figure out what is required.

It may seem obvious but make sure you read the instructions carefully. Perhaps even read it once through in their entirety before you even start the assembly to make sure you understand what’s going to be required of you. If any jargon or technical terms are used, look them up online, or ask someone who knows what they’re doing. Often these instructions were originally in other languages; this can make for some humorous mistakes in translation that aren’t so funny when you’re trying to understand already complicated instructions.

Give yourself plenty of space to work. There’s nothing worse than struggling with large pieces of plywood in a cramped space, and if you can’t see clearly how the furniture is taking shape you’re probably more likely to make mistakes. For the same reason, try and work somewhere with plenty of light. Some of the holes in flat-pack furniture are pretty small and not easy to pick up by lamplight.

Once you’ve started, take your time. Refer back to your instructions frequently and have all your tools within reach for easy access. Keep screws in containers, a simple kitchen bowl will suffice, to make sure none roll away under the couch or otherwise disappear. Don’t panic. If you make a mistake remember that anything that has been screwed can easily be unscrewed in the same way!

If you follow these instructions, along with the ones provided in the box, it won’t be long before you’re able to enjoy your new wardrobe, bookshelf or coffee table. And enjoy it all the more knowing you managed to put it together yourself!

Here are the keys to building anything using those pesky instructions.

1) Never, ever, EVER start building without checking you have everything first. Since a lot of furniture requires you screw in to wood etc, you can’t send back your product and complain the package was incomplete once you’ve put screws in something. Check you have all the right bits before you begin to eliminate this problem. It may sound simple, but it’s easily forgotten, and you don’t want to get to the end and then realize that you need that extra bolt…

2) DON’T just jump in. Have a read of the instructions before you pick up the damn thing and have a go at building it. If you can’t work it out before you begin, how are you going to manage once you are stressed?

3) Go to the end and see what the FINISHED product actually looks like (not the finished one on the front of the box, but the one on the instructions because that may look slightly different). Now you have something to aim for, instead of blindly following the instructions with no idea of how it will eventually end up.

4) DO leave it and come back an hour later after a cup of tea; stress is your number one enemy in building stuff using instructions. If you can avoid stress you should be able to keep calm and actually build it without too much hassle.

Need more storage units but strapped for cash? Why not build your own shoe rack?

A shoe rack is a piece of small furniture that will help keep your place more organized. In addition, if you try to build it yourself, it will be even more valuable. So, start exercising your carpentry skills and save money by building it yourself.

What you will need in order to get started:

· A workbench that is portable

· Pencil and paper for drawing your plan

· One circular saw, one hammer and a set of nails that you will use to fix the case boards

· A drill, a square for your measurements

· Cabinet grade plywood (preferred colour and size). You can choose from a great variety of these “do- it- yourself” helpful tools. Some trendy colours include cherry, butternut, fir, maple or clear white pine.

· Supports for the shelves and glue

· Shelving jig which will help assemble your shoe rack correctly

· Finishing nails which are useful for concealing the head of the nails in the wood.

·

First, draw a design on paper, which will contain the measurements and the shapes of each part of your shoe rack. You can let your imagination flow, and design a nice piece of furniture. Be careful with the measurements, and make sure that you can carry out your plan correctly.

Next, you double-check that your diagram and all your measurements are correct; then, it is time to move on to your workbench. You will start cutting out the pieces of wood using your circular saw (do not forget to use a dust mask!). In order to be able to adjust the shelves, and to attach the shelf pins you will need to drill holes in the sidepieces. For aiding this manoeuvre, you will clench the positioning jig and the shelf side together. Next, you will start putting together your shoe rack. Use glue on the edges of your casing board, before nailing them together. Connect all the case boards in a similar manner, and as your last step, you will attach the shelf pins and the shelves in the way your diagram shows. Now you are ready to clear up the mess your scattered shoes make right at your door entrance!

A tiled shower adds value, beauty and durability to your home. Follow these steps to tile the shower carefully without involving any future possibilities of leaking and other problems. Retiling a shower is an easy way to improve your house, without having to take out a home equity release to do it.

You will first have to find and then mark the center point on the wall and draw a line. Then, draw a line of 13”, the length of a tile, including the grout line.

You then have to apply the mesh tape on the cement board joints.

Then, proceed with spreading a drop cloth over the shower pan. The edges of the shower pan must be masked off with the painter’s tape.

You will then have to prepare the adhesive needed to glue the tiles together. For this, you will need to follow the manufacturer’s instructions and accordingly use a drill with paddle bit to mix the adhesive well. The adhesive should have the uniformity of a bake frost.

The next step is to make use of a trowel to spread the adhesive evenly over the area where the first tile will be placed. You must also make small grooves in the adhesive to enable the tiles to stick better. You must not use excessive thinset at one time or else the tiles will not stick for long.

Then, proceed with measuring and marking the center of the first tile. You must now arrange this tile with the reference lines on the cement board. The tile must be placed properly in the adhesive.

Continue setting the remaining tiles in similar manner. Smooth grout joints can be gotten by using the tile spacers.

You must then cut the tiles using a wet saw to prevent dust from getting accumulated and to avoid the saw from greasing.

Apply the grout when the adhesive is dry and the grout sealer when the grout dries.

The first step is to make sure the tiles will give you the look you want. You do this by dry fitting them on the area where they are to be installed. Measuring of the tiles in proportion to the floor extent is the best approach to achieving a tight, flawless work.

After this is achieved the next step involves the laying out of the underlayment. The bright side of the underlayment should face the ground before being pulled tightly onto the tested ground. Any excess can be cut off with a utility knife. Other pieces of underlayment should be fitted in the same manner right next to the first without overlapping them. Little openings can be made to each to make it link with the others for a tight fit. Tape around them to prevent them from moving and remain tight.

The next step is the most essential involving the laying out of the tiles. The process should start in the corner with full pieces against the longer wall. Beginning in this manner makes it easy to showcase the bigger tiles on the floor. The edges can be molded into the wall to achieve a fine finish. Snap the other tiles together until to reach the wall at the other end.

After finishing the first row to the end of the wall, one can begin the next row. Begin the second row with a half tile and continue to the end. The tiles should be edged in an angular alignment in order to lock with the pattern of the first row. The final row follows the same guidelines of alignment. Use molding if there is any gap between the tiles and the wall when finished. After obtaining the look you want, it is then time to use the specific grout for gluing the tiles together.

Then you spot it: there, in the corner, the old wooden table that’s calling your name in an abstract sort of way. It would seem your luck has changed!

The only thing is–when you get over to it you see that it is also crap; wishful thinking goes a long way. The surface is rough and worn and you wonder why you even bothered getting up in the morning–

Only wait a second. It might seem impossible but with some careful preparation you can turn that old table in to a masterpiece, almost (depending on your patience, of course). How?

Like this:

1) Remove any dirt and sand it down properly. Use heavy (rough) grade paper to begin with, and then finish with fine stuff. Nice one.

2) Not happy with the colour? No problem. Go and buy some spirit-based stain from the local DIY shop. Teak, oak, mahogany, it’s up to you. Then splash it on. You don’t need to be too careful with it.

3) Buy some clear wax (this usually looks white, but dries solid and clear).

4) Stain the piece then wait for it to dry. Then apply the wax. Be liberal with it. Once it’s dry (this may take at least several hours, and is best done out of direct sunlight) you can start to polish it.

5) After you’ve polished it, apply more wax and repeat the process. You can do this as many times as you like. The more you do it, the shinier the piece will become and the greater it’ll look!

Did you find yourself loving your creation? Turns out there is a massive market in furniture restoration, why not start a little business on the side and make money from home?

The coffee table is old and in a mess. The cat has scratched at the legs one time too many, the toddler has scribbled all over the surface, and there are more rings on it than in a jewellry store. It needs replacing, you want a good coffee table, at an inexpensive price.

The best way to do this is to go to IKEA and buy a flat-pack coffee table. Flat-pack IKEA coffee tables range from £15 to £150, compared to the prices in furniture stores which may start from £150. Flat-pack furniture is great because you can take it home straight away from the store, and fit it into the car. It is cheaper, because flat-pack furniture has less transport costs, and the lower cost is passed to the consumer, making it cheap as well as quick to obtain.

Flat-pack furniture is a viable substitute to buying ready made furniture from a store, because it is more expensive to transport five ready made tables than fifty flat-pack tables, and ready made furniture needs to be ordered, sometimes it could take months to get that table set or bookshelf. On top of that, if you move house, you may not know how to disassemble furniture to take it with you, so you will have the instructions with you to unassemble the furniture, and re-assemble again.

Flat-pack furniture isn’t hard to assemble, you don’t need an engineering degree to make a shelf, or fill secondary education job openings in a workshop to make a table. IKEA flat pack furniture has diagramatic steps, at each step you can look at the diagram and what needs to be fitted next. You can compare your item to the picture in the instructions so you know if you’re doing it right or wrong. If you have trouble assembling an item, you could ask for IKEA’s transport and assembly service, so you can still gett that flat-pack table without the hassle.

Some jobs appear to be so straightforward that you just do not need any advice. But looks can be deceiving…

A great example of this is sealing round the edge of a bath or shower. Now, this may look like a simple task, but it can all go horribly wrong in a very short space of time. If it is done properly then it will be both tidy and waterproof. However… if you get it wrong then it will look like a right pig’s ear!

What makes this job so precarious is the fact that it involves sealant. Not only must you use it to carry out the task, but you need to apply it neatly. A silicone sealant gun is a very dangerous thing indeed and they are a weapon of choice amongst cowboy builders. When wielded by the inexperienced, silicone guns can leave a sticky and unsightly trail of destruction. I have seen some terrible examples of what transpires when a Bodger gets his mitts on one of these… Think lumpy, inch wide expanses of horrid goo round the edges of your bath; and this is what the careful DIYer is up against!

There are one or two golden rules to bear in mind when you are using a silicone gun to seal round a bath or shower-

· Always use a good quality sealant.

If you scrimp on price then you will end up doing the whole job far sooner than you should! Choose a well-known brand and make sure that it has fungicide in its ingredients.

· Fill your bath.

If you are sealing around a bath, then fill it up before you start. This will weigh down the tub the same as if someone were in it. If you do not do this before sealing, then it will put additional strain on the sealant when it is dry and someone has a bath.

· Avoid a sticky situation.

Silicone will stick like the proverbial. Make sure you have plenty of rags to wipe your fingers on and avoid touching it with dry hands! To smooth the sealant, always wet your finger first.

· Take your time.

Not everyone is used to using one of these guns and you may need to work slowly. Don’t worry about this at all; it is better to take your time than to rush it all and make a mess. Only apply a thin bead of sealant to begin with. You can always go over it if necessary, but you will have a terrible time trying to remove excessive amounts.

Follow these steps and soon you will have a bath that you can proudly hang your flag beach towel towel on! Good Luck!

When working on stairwells you need to adjust the platform to make it safe. It should be prepared in a way so that you can cover all areas that need to be papered. The layout of the staircase determines the measurements of the wallpapers. While papering a staircase you should remember the lengths of the papers you would use will be longer and weighty than wall papering a normal room. So you will need someone to help you who will make it easier to handle the longer drops. The longer drops are where you will begin. Remember to cover the floor if you don’t want to get glue all over, use a drop cloth, old bedsheet, or a extra large beach towel.

In order to measure the required length of the papers you will need to plumb line, vertically. This is the most crucial part of staircase wallpapering as you will have to ensure the angle at the bottom of each stair is taken into consideration.

Cut and paste the papers smoothly. It may be easier for you to use concertina folded paper. These are heavier than the usual ones.

It would be highly risky if you stand a ladder to one side on a staircase. The base of the ladder should always be positioned at the tread to prevent it from slipping. The ladder should be positioned properly so that you can hang the top half portion of the wallpaper. Cut and trim the corresponding length of the wallpaper. Continue this with the longest drop of the wallpaper until it is fully done. While you paste the top half of the paper your assistant will support the lower portion of the wallpaper. Continue pasting the wallpaper onto the stair.

Your assistant is to get the pasted wallpaper up to you when you are on the platform. Arrange the top portion of the wallpaper that is folded against the wall and evenly place it. Get down from the work platform to unfurl the bottom half of the wall paper and paste it where you want it to be.

Recently, in the news, apart from stuff about chin implants there’s been a lot of talk about this fainting thing that young people do to get their kicks. I can’t legally tell you how it’s done, but I can say that it involves cutting off the air supply to your brain and then dropping to the ground. What fun! Only it sometimes kills people. Personally speaking I can see what they are trying to do, but you know what? Proper fake fainting is much more fun and a hell of a lot safer. I did it all the time as a child, and recently, in the supermarket queue after a bad day at work I suddenly thought Wouldn’t it be fun to do it again–See how people react!?

And there it was: a challenge. I had dared myself. I could not back down for I had never been a backer-downer and didn’t intend to start now!

I prepared myself: this comprised of looking left and right and making sure I wouldn’t hit anyone when I collapsed. I even checked for small dogs. That was how rigorous I was being.

Then I shut my eyes and committed. I dropped like a sack of spuds to the ground.

Ten minutes later I awoke. According to the woman next to me I had banged my head and actually knocked myself out. Brilliant. So effective and I hadn’t even been trying!

That was when I looked up and saw the ambulance men. They were coming for me!

Only they weren’t, no! There was a man at the front of the queue and he had had the audacity to have a heart attack just at the same time as I fainted!

Damn it, I thought, what luck!