For years people have complained at how tricky some of Ikea’s assemby instructions can be for their flat packed furniture, but at last they have launched the first of a series of assembly instruction videos.

The Swedish company’s usual printed instruction booklets have always just used pictures to illustrate what you need to do to put your furniture together, and many have found this frustrating to say the least!

The first video they have released is a how-to on putting together their Malm bed frame, but they plan to add to this regularly, focusing on their most popular items.

So let’s hope that now Ikea furniture stress becomes a thing of the past!

Have you had problems following Ikea instructions in the past and what do you think of their video help?

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With extended family and friends staying over during the festive season here’s a quick guide to what’s best for your sleepover needs. When a property is topsy turvy from home improvements, space saving furniture is one idea to minimise disruption.

With children in mind a single foam chair bed is made especially for little people; when it’s time to sleep, this  sleepover solution flops out into a single bed and is a chair when storing during the day.

For more than one child another favourite is the popular foam sofa bed, which as the name suggests, is a small sofa during the day and can flop out within seconds to a bed suitable for two small children up to the age of 5, depending on size.

With adults to accommodate, look no further than a traditional futon. The futon base can be solid pine or a metal action futon. Consider the depth of mattress when buying a futon, mattress range from a 9cm depth to a luxury 14cm thick futon mattress. Look for a cotton drill cover as these will be available in a range of modern and funky dyed colours.

With a price to suit every budget from divan beds to guest beds, the Comfy Living online store has the perfect sleepover solution for everyone to enjoy, with free delivery to mainland UK on everything!

DIY Doctor fans are entitled to a limited 5% discount on any item on the website www.comfy-living.co.uk simply enter the code DIYDOCTOR at the checkout. Offer expires 11/12/11.

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A group of ten architecture students from Columbia University GSAPP have created an amazing double sided bench which consists of 119 interconnected sections built out of 18 sheets of plywood. The bench was inspired by the undulating action of a slinky, as it’s 928 sections become an interactive balance board, transforming int’s shape depending on the movements of it’s occupants. Take alook at the video below! 

“>SlinkyVids-Part I from ble”>Charlie Able on Vimeo.

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If you are expecting guests this bank holiday weekend, you may well be cleaning and preparing a spare room or a comfortable place for them to sleep. But don’t forget that if you are placing any orders that delivery days and times are also affected by the shorter working week.

In terms of the choice of sleeping solutions for guests, Comfy Living have made some recommendations:

Chair Beds
Chair beds are constructed from a firm foam-like filling and are best suited to children up to the age of around 10 years old. These are often called ‘Z beds’ or ‘flop out beds’ due to the simple nature of construction and children are easily able to use these in their bedrooms.

Futons
For small rooms where space saving is paramount and to accommodate guests would be a struggle with buying a spare bed, consider buying a futon to help with holiday sleepovers. Futons are versatile items of furniture, quickly changing from a sofa to a bed within seconds. Futons are available with a metal or a wooden frame and are suitable for adults of all ages.

Divan beds
Divans are a seen as a permanent addition to a spare room. Budget divans have no storage in the base and come with a mattress suitable for occasional use. Options with upgrading divan beds include storage options (drawers or slide storage) with a mattress which is deeper than a budget range, perhaps to a hand tufted variety, or memory foam.

Delivery recommendations
Comfy Living have released order times for the forthcoming August Bank Holiday and would like to inform all customers of the following dates and order cut off times:

• For delivery Friday 26^th August order online by 3pm Thursday 25^th August.
• Orders taken after 3pm on Thursday 25^th August and by 12 noon on Friday 27^th August will be delivered on Tuesday 30^th August.
• Orders taken after 12 noon on Friday 27^th August will be delivered on Wednesday 31^st August.

Comfy Living telephone support will be up to 2pm on Friday 27^th August, after which time the telephone lines will re-open on Tuesday 30^th August. Over weekends and Bank Holidays there is no telephone support as the office is closed at these times.

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Usefull storage space in a comfortable bed

School holidays: Guide to stress-free sleepovers and encouraging tidy rooms

When children have their own rooms, most adults agree that getting the little tykes to clear up after themselves is a never ending job like painting the Forth Bridge. There are a number of ways to approach this (and could include the ‘naughty step’ from Supernanny) and to keep a positive approach is usually the best start.

Rather than having toys in boxes around the room, buying a piece of bedroom furniture like a cabin bed will appeal to a wide audience as this is especially designed with children in mind. There are a number of drawers and storage shelves, together with the added excitement of sitting underneath your own bed with a desk to work from, whether it’s a laptop or written homework. Encouraging the younger ones to look after their own belongings could often start with the basics, starting with their own bed.

For small rooms where space saving is paramount and to accommodate guests would be a struggle with buying a spare bed, consider buying a futon to help with school holiday sleepovers. Futons are versatile items of furniture, quickly changing from a sofa to a bed within seconds.

Choosing a futon should be based on the advantages of a wood frame versus a metal frame. If you intend to use the futon as a sofa primarily, and as a bed only on rare occasions, the metal frame gives a better seating posture. If the futon is mostly going to be slept on, or used regularly in a children’s room, for example, the wood frame would be a slightly cheaper option. Most futon mattress covers are fixed, so consider buying a modern colour to match the scheme of your home.

Children’s space saving ideas on a budget are chair beds and sofa beds. As children are lighter than adults, the fillings used do not need to be solid and firm, or use internal springs. A foam cube bed, or chair bed are cheaper than buying a single bed and great for occasional use, they come in a wide array of colours. These flop-out collapsible beds are also perfect for children to put down and pack up again with no risk of injury. Every child loves the novelty of sleeping round a friend’s house, and using a bed they have made themselves surely adds to the experience to compliment jammy dodgers as a midnight feast!

Comfy Living recently featured on ITV’s ’60 Minute Makeover’ with one of their bed frames and have had encouraging feedback from the programme designers and customers alike.

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