Materials: 2 HEMNES Shoe cabinets, 2 wooden planks, sanding paper, wood sealer, paint, small angle irons
Description: The design of the slim HEMNES shoe cabinet is the perfect solution for my narrow hallway (and a vast shoe collection)...
Only problem was that a double HEMNES set-up would exceed the wall space I had to play with. Each Hemnes is 107cm wide, meaning you need 214cm for a double set-up - and my wall space stretched no further than a maximum 205cm. Hence, hacking was required. My solution? - Giving HEMNES a new double topping!
STEP 1: Start by removing original top boards of the HEMNES Shoe Cabinets. Push the cabinets tightly together (this shrunk the space requirements with 4 cm!)
STEP 2: Find a new top board of your choice. I simply took two wooden planks which painted in high gloss light grey (remember to prep using sanding paper & wood sealer)
STEP 3: Keep HEMNES nice proportions by making sure there is a top board overhang on the front and to each side of the double unit. Due to my limited wall space, I had to clip one corner of the back top plank (this gave me the additional 5 cm I needed to fit the cabinets against my wall).
STEP 4: Fasten your finished top planks to the cabinet units. Glue and small angle irons will do the trick.
THE RESULT: The result is a seamless, fitted look, where the 2 HEMNES cabinets become 1 unit. Thanks to the topboard overhang, the lean proportions are kept intact.
In comparison to a "un-hacked" double HEMNES set-up, this hack adjusts a functional and an aesthetic flaw by using the otherwise wasted middle space and by saying bye-bye to the ugly middle seam. Furthermore, it allows for customization, as wood top planks are easy to paint in any favorite color!
Remember guys, this hack can be extended into infinity - should you be so lucky to have a super long hallway - why not triple or quadruple the HEMNES topping?
Best of luck HEMNES-hacking!
See more of the double Hemnes shoe cabinet set up.
~ ScrapHacker, Stockholm, Sweden
can we see a pix with the shoes in cabinet?. this seems like a great idea, i love infinity idea of narrow cubbies for all that stuff that piles up in hallway. Orderly and Out of sight is next to Godliness in my book;
ReplyDeleteOne of the "sides" in the middle could also have been removed; that would remove another 3-4 cm.
ReplyDeleteI love your idea here. It looks gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteLove your idea..but i'd use 1 wider bord..so that no seam would be wisible on top..
ReplyDeleteOther than that..great,
Marko
This is exactly what I need for my home.
ReplyDeleteAnd the whole entrance seems really clear. Can you tell us what kind of light you put to the ceiling?
Very informative article... awsome
ReplyDeleteHey guys, happy you like the HEMNES hack!
ReplyDeleteLove your feedback - here´s mine:
To Archangel: Pics of the "inside story" (showing the storage capacity of the HEMNES cubbies) have been added to my tutorial, go to this URL to see them: http://scraphacker.com/seamless-hemnes-shoe-cabinets/
To Anonymous: Removing one of the inner "sides" is indeed an option to save inches if you´re really handy. For me (only semi-handy) I think it might have been a bit to tricky.
To Eva/Marko: I do agree it would be really nice to use one single top board instead of 2 planks. I went for the 2 planks as it was the cheapest idea and as I thought it gave a more hand-made look (which I like), but hey, the options are endless!
To Franck: In my hallway I have 2 of IKEAs "TRÅL" ceiling spotlight with 3 spots http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/products/10158537/
Glad if i can inspire you guys to do some HEMNES-hacking!
How do you feel about coming to Texas USA and doing one? LOL nice nice
ReplyDeleteNot such a bad idea LOL. We should all go on a Hack World Tour and help each other...Tourism & Hacking would be an awesome combo;-D
DeleteThis turned out great. Nicely done.
ReplyDeleteThanks;-)
DeleteNice hack but the top planks look better unpainted in my opinion. Nice work nevertheless.
ReplyDeleteThe unpainted planks looked cool too, I know! Yet, i opted for the painted high gloss finish, as hallways tend to get messy and high gloss finishes easy to swipe clean...Thanks for the feedback;-)
DeleteI hate to say it, but why didn't you just shift the whole cabinet over a couple inches ~5 cm (and reduce the overhang of the top) so that you didn't have to cope the top to go around the door trim? Looks like you have the space to the right from the picts?
ReplyDeletelooks nice though, might have to look into using that idea as I like the landing strip function that's added to the cabinets now.
Awesome observation skills you got there!
DeleteCorrect - I did have some space on the right hand side, but I have electrical and telephone sockets blocking it! I use those sockets every day, for charging my cell etc so moving them wasn´t an option & didn´t want to rewire the place, so I chose to clip a corner on the left hand side instead.
Thanks for the feedback, appreciate it!
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Deleteahhh...those are always just in the wrong spot sometimes.
Deletealso...you did that with a standard handsaw! and not even a coping saw at that...you are a brave person - that's not particularly easy.
@ScrapHacker - what a clever solution to suit your needs!
ReplyDeleteI agree with the comment about removing one of the middle 'sides' because it would make the two units look like a single piece, but that's just nitpicking. And whether you prefer one top plank or two, painted or not, the idea in itself is ingenious.
Yeah, that idea stuck with me too, a clever hack of the hack;-) Happy you like the idea!
DeleteGreat, great ingenious hack! And the best part- I think I could do it! Looks great so I'm saving it for future use, might need it on my next move. Nice looking, classy entrance.
ReplyDeleteGreat hack, love it!
ReplyDeleteInspiring.
ReplyDeletePaulo
Love it - I was planning to double up the cabinets in my dining room for a narrow buffet - now you just improved an already great idea - I will be copying your idea to get rid of the middle seam and have a single flat surface on top (only one board for me...) Love it!
ReplyDeleteHi, love this!! Please can you tell me how wide the 2 cabinets are without the top board
ReplyDeleteHi anonymous,
ReplyDeleteEach cabinet is 100cm wide so the two of them placed together is 2m wide.
thanks for your reply scraphacker, I see the pix of shoes in the unit. looks great!
ReplyDeletearchangel