My friend is a big supporter of the saying, “Measure twice, cut once.” He learned this after making Biggie Smalls, a custom made armchair with differently sized armrests. Here’s what we used:
Wood Stain (in my case I used Minwax’s Dark Walnut)
1 x sponge brush (for even surface application)
Sanding sponge or block if you’re using sandpaper (for an even sanding surface, I used 3M’s 60 grit for paint stripping and 100 grit to even it up and 1500 grit for finishing)
Respirator (highly recommended)
2 pairs of latex gloves
Wood Balsam (optional)
Clean rags
A stand to hold the sofa legs in place ( I used a 2 x 4 scrap piece and drilled a couple of holes in it to allow the sofa legs to dry evenly)
P.S my friend actually prefers the 6P’s but that’s not family friendly (proper planning prevents…)
2. Getting Sandy With It
Sand down the lacquer coating with the coarse grit (60), running along the wood grain’s direction and then switching it to the 100 grit and finishing with the 1500 grit. It’s important to remove all the coating as the wood stain will not be able to penetrate through if there’s still some lacquer.
I used the latex gloves to keep the surface of the wood clean from sweat and oil that might stain the wood. If you have access to a belt sander, that will save you a lot of time and muscle power.
3. Paint And Pray
Shake the can evenly for a good few minutes before application. The latex gloves will help to keep your hands clean.
Coat evenly and follow the instructions as per the manufacturer to achieve the colour you want. Recoat to give it a darker colour.
Shouting “WITNESS ME!” before painting may improve things, or might result in you being labeled MEDIOCRE.
4. Watching Paint Dry
Wipe off excess coating after allowing it to soak through, I left mine at 35 mins before I gave it a clean wipe and left if to dry for 6 hours.
Recoat the next day, and repeat the same process.
Optional
Finish off with the wood balm to protect the sofa legs.
Show Off Your New Wood
Get some friends, throw a party, stick them on things. It’s a new life for your sofa, or furniture, as long as they take M8 (8mm diameter) bolts.
Want to see these legs in action with a specially customised IKEA sofa? Let us know in the comments below!
Arguably the most recognisable IKEA sofa in the world, this is a piece that’s found everywhere and loved by almost everyone.
So why haven’t we done a review on it yet? Well now’s the time…
Reviewing the IKEA Klippan Online
We’ve always had our own perceptions about the Klippan, and as a slipcover maker – we really love the Klippan and how flexible it is to create different looks for it.
However, we also wanted to know what other people thought:
Quite depressing, and most reviews were quite similar on mumsnet and ApartmentTherapy – it’s basically “paying peanuts to get monkeys”.
At Comfort Works however, we beg to differ.
Comfort
Considering how the Klippan has been sold at IKEA for more than three decades, it shows that people do enjoy the sofa.
We have one in our office as well which we use to hold private discussions, or as a waiting “chair” until everyone’s ready to go out for lunch.
It’s a simple couch, with no seat and back cushions – and is a tuxedo back sofa where the back is the same height as the arms. You literally have no neck support as such.
The IKEA Klippan we feel, performs fairly well in terms of comfort for the butt and perhaps for taking a short nap. But if you’re looking to spend countless hours binge-watching Game of Thrones, we’d recommend putting several comfy pillows on it for the best experience.
Verdict: 7/10 With cushions: 9/10
Price
This is always the main selling point when it comes to basic couches like the IKEA Klippan, but there’s something that has been overlooked.
At US$299 / AUD$249 (This is the price at the time this post was written) – for the Loveseat cover in Granan White, this sofa isn’t exactly dirt cheap.
So how is the IKEA Klippan “cheap”? It is when it’s compared to its counterparts at IKEA, where a decent sofa would cost around $500 upward.
With a relative pricing like that, I think people should be a bit more careful using these terms so loosely.
Verdict: 6/10
Aesthetics
And of course, its slipcovers come in several different colours in which the higher you pay – the nicer it looks.
At this time this is posted, the Klippan sofa covers come in:
2 Patterns (Glottra Multicolour and Marrehill Pink/Green)
2 Blended Fabrics, 65% Polyester 35% Cotton (Granan Black and Granan White)
3 Synthetic 100% Polyester (Vissle Grey, Vissle Green and Vissle Red-Orange)
I can’t say that these are the best colours but with the covers starting at $29 and the most expensive being $79 – it’s no wonder people consider the Klippan to be so economical.
For those who want a more premium look, adding a $100 would get you a leather version (completely upholstered). It doesn’t come with slipcovers though, but you can always DIY slip-on covers for the Klippan from our tutorial here. That way, you can take advantage of getting the replacement covers from IKEA, and interchanging looks between fabric and leather.
Verdict: 6/10 (fabric), 8/10 (leather)
Durability
Surprisingly, we’ve had our sofa for the past 5-6 years and it’s still holding up strong.
And it’s not as if we keep it in the office just for our guests to sit on, it’s been napped on and slept on by our friends at night as well.
Yes, of course we changed the slipcovers and washed them often.
Despite what some reviewers say about some broken spring or two, we gotta hand it to IKEA for designing a pretty durable couch.
Verdict: 8/10
Hackability
For the most part we’re very happy that we’re able to easily swap slipcovers out with new ones – as I believe many other people would be. Aside from the Leather Klippan, the fabric slipcovers are easily machine washable so it’s 10/10 for practicality.
The other simple modification for your Klippan sofa would be to unscrew the standard silver legs with wooden ones to make it look more vintage.
The most recent hack we did was to give it a bit of a tufting makeover, inspired by some of the more classic Chesterfield sofas. While we didn’t tuft the entire sofa, we thought a more contemporary look with a single line of button tufts would be fine (and I was a bit lazy as well). Check out the finished product below.
Verdict: 8/10
I love how affordable the sofa is, and hacking it to make it look so premium was extremely satisfying. It was a little difficult to do the tufting at first (I have zero experience mind you, nor am I good with DIY), but once you get the first one you’ll get the rest of it done quite intuitively.
The IKEA Klippan is definitely quite an easy (and fun) to hack sofa.
Check out some other possibilities as to how simple covers (and leg swaps) can do so much to this basic IKEA couch.
Klippan sofa cover in Liege Biscuit Linen
Klippan Sofa Cover in Rouge Indigo and Cordless Piping
Overall Conclusion
At its most basic, the Klippan is indeed just a normal couch with no frills. But whatever you add on to upgrade it doesn’t have to be expensive, and that’s what I like about it – you create a sofa most suited for your living space and for yourself.
For that, I’d give it a final verdict of 8/10
Love it or hate it? Let us know what your thoughts are on the IKEA Klippan in the comments below!
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