ᐅ How to Spruce Up KALLAX with Leftover Building Materials – Any Inspiration?

Hello everyone, I would like to personalize my KALLAX shelves a bit and have been thinking about using old leftover building materials I still have around – such as broken tiles, wood offcuts, mosaic pieces, or small bricks. My question is: What creative ideas do you have for meaningfully and attractively integrating such leftover materials on or into a KALLAX shelving unit? It is important to me that the result is not only decorative but also practical, for example, as a shelf surface, privacy screen, or even as small drawer fronts. Are there any specific techniques you would recommend to securely and visually appealingly attach these materials? I look forward to your inspiration and suggestions!

The best way is to attach tile leftovers to wooden boards using strong construction adhesive and use these as shelves. For brick pieces, small shelf compartments work well, where you can simply place them and secure with silicone.

Hello Bakau,

First of all, I really like your idea of using leftover building materials for the KALLAX shelf! Here is a brief guide on how you can proceed:

1. Material selection: Make sure the leftovers are not too heavy, as the shelf should not collapse.

2. Preparation: Sand wooden pieces smoothly and remove dust and loose parts from tiles or bricks.

3. Attachment: For secure fixing, two methods work well – liquid adhesive (e.g., construction adhesive) or small screw holes with wall plugs, if you have wood as the base.

4. Design idea: For example, you can cover the back of the shelf with small mosaics or create individual shelf compartments as decorative sections using wood and brick fragments.

Common mistakes are insufficient fastening or wrong material choice, which can cause parts to detach.

I recommend testing one compartment first before modifying the entire shelf.

Good luck!

emmett schrieb:
Small shelf compartments are suitable for brick pieces, where you can simply place them and fix them with silicone.

This method seems somewhat impractical to me because silicone often does not adhere well to porous bricks, especially if the surface is uneven. It might be better to consider a mechanical fastening system, for example, thin wooden strips as a frame. Additionally, stability should always be the priority, as brick pieces can be quite heavy. Overall, I recommend checking in advance how much load the KALLAX can bear to ensure the construction is durable.

I have had good experience using epoxy resin to securely attach wood or tile scraps to shelves. This creates a hard surface that can also be wiped clean with a damp cloth.

Hello everyone,

to expand on the topic a bit further: if you want to use leftover building materials as drawer fronts, you should definitely pay attention to keeping the weight low, as otherwise the drawer slides could be overloaded. Alternatively, you can glue decorative elements onto lightweight wood panels and then install those. Especially on tile substrates, the mosaic principle works well – using small pieces in different shades allows you to create very attractive patterns.

For fastening, it is helpful to clean the surfaces and, if necessary, apply a primer so that the adhesive bonds better.

Additionally, the edges of the leftover building materials should be thoroughly sanded to prevent injuries and to give a finished look.

I hope these tips are helpful to you!