The Most Impressive DIY Home Hacks of 2021

Being inventive goes a long way in this year’s list of our top DIY-design solutions.

Dec 31, 2021 - 20:51
The Most Impressive DIY Home Hacks of 2021

Being inventive goes a long way in this year’s list of our top DIY-design solutions.

Unsure of how to light under the loft, Monica turned to a friend from the gym who works in lighting design. He helped her with the design, the installation, and even gifted her materials.

As the saying goes, if you want something done right, you’ve got to do it yourself. While that may not be entirely true—skilled tradesmen, architects, and designers are all worth their salt—what you discover along your own road to good design may surprise you. Necessity, it seems, is the mother of ingenuity. Read on for this year’s most impressive DIY hacks.

A Gabion Wall Made of Driveway Gravel at a Cabin in the Canadian Rockies

The living area is furnished with a Gladom side table, a throw pillow, and cushions—all from Ikea. At night, the loft ladder leans over the sofa, secured with a bungee cord; during the day, it props up beside the Woodsman fireplace.

"We built a great gabion wall behind our fireplace," says Nathalie, who built this cabin with her husband, Greg, for next to nothing. "The gravel came from our front driveway. Greg hated it, so we raked it up, took it down, and put it into the wall."

Photo: Grant Harder

A built-in sofa and vintage 1964 George Mulhauser "Mr. Chair

"All the built-in furniture from the bunk room to the main living area to the bedroom upstairs is salvaged from home demolitions in Portland," says Ty, who renovated this cabin on the Oregon coast with his family. "So it’s all hundred-plus-year-old lumber."

Photo:

The Dodo Van has seats for the transport of up to six people. The side entrance leads directly to the kitchenette area behind the driver's seat.

In Ecuador, Diego Sayago and Tatiana Salas converted a 1993 Chevy van into a live/work space on wheels. Inside, plywood joinery conceals a portable table for eating and working, a bed for two people, a kitchenette, and ample storage space. The interior is designed to be flexible enough to adapt to different everyday situations, solving the basic needs of living.

JAG Studio

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