It took all the restraint I had to NOT buy more than 3 Ikea sheepskins when I was redoing my house a few years ago. I didn't even know what I was going to use them for, I just knew I had to have them.
I thought about a Meandering Goat costume but couldn't find any really believable horns. Plus there's the whole fear of being milked thing.
Turns out even without the goat costume ... I have a lot of uses for my Ikea sheepskins.
Which can be annoying. I move them from here to there. Change things up, ya know? Which the fella complains about. The fella likes structure. And sameness. And the convertor always to be in the exact same place without moving a millimetre because apparently if it's moved a millimetre he can't see it anymore because he is ... at times ... an asshead. Wait no. That's not right. He's a blind asshead. Who complains about things being moved.
I endure the complaining though because ... I LOVE MY IKEA SHEEPSKINS EVERYWHERE.
And truth be told, even though I normally like you to follow my instructions *exactly* (see Sweet Potato Fry recipe and all the comments in it), in this case ... you don't have to use an actual "Ikea" Sheepskin. You can use a sheepskin you got from any number of places. I just titled this post "5 Ways to Use an Ikea Sheepskin" because I got mine at Ikea. Plus, I was kind of hoping that the God of Ikea would see my post and offer me all kinds of free furniture. A new kitchen maybe. Or even just a retweet. Whatever.
So grab your sheepskin and let's going get through the options!
Table of Contents
Yup! A table runner. 2 of them together for a large table, just 1 for a smaller.
Throw it over the back of any hard chair to soften it up.
Pile 1, 2, or 3 as a rug.
Drape over wood benches for bum comfort and good looks.
Throw over the arm of a couch for texture, warmth and interest in a room.
And yes Cleo ... we all see you.
Where they go depends on my mood and the season. In the winter I usually have 2 on the bench in my dining room and one over the arm of the couch. Springtime sees me moving the bench ones upstairs to beside the bed as a rug, with one leftover for the wire chair in my dining room. And sometimes, I just go nuts and start throwing them willy nilly wherever I want.
Put them in a kid's sled, or by the fireplace for the cats to curl up on, or on the foot of the bed. Oh! And outside! If you're having a party or people coming over, they look great on wicker furniture or a rocking chair on the front porch in the middle of winter. Wherever you want. They're good like that, Ikea sheepskins.
They - unlike blind assheads - hardly ever complain.
Heh. I'm just kidding. I don't really think the fella's a blind asshead. I'm just trying to get his goat.
deanna
In Iowa it is a great compliment to have a song dedicated to you in which you are declared a "Horses Ass"! Just had to throw that in.
I am absolutely in total envy of your wide plank floor in the bedroom - stunning!!
Stephanie
Just voted for you too .... love that site! True Canadian here and in my home and in my parents homes - it has always been a "convertor". Maybe it goes back to the day when it was still hooked to the TV by that long cord that you followed to find the "convertor" under the couch cushion? Guess the name stuck.
Lisa
I often worry about my over-use of antlers in decorating and from your pics I can see that I am in good company. I actually have a few in storage because I thought I was overdoing it...
For the record, I grew up saying "converter" as well.
Also, "Asshead" is a favourite insult of mine, second only to "Asshat".
Jackie B
It takes ALOT to get me to chuckle. And a whole lot more to get me to chuckle OUT LOUD. Well you, my dear, have accomplished both while I've perused your blog this morning. Now in my "favorites" under Ass Head. ;)
Karen
Jackie B - In that case, have you heard the one about the priest and the rabbi who walk into a .... nevermind. Thanks! ~ karen
Melanie
I was vote #507. Cheers!
Karena
I have wanted one or more of these for the longest time. I wish we had IKEA here in Kansas City!
xoxo
Karena
Art by Karena
Andrea @ 101 Life Lessons
Favorite Memory: Austria Christmas 2010 Sitting at an outside cafe sipping a gluwein sitting on a chair draped with a sheepskin and covered with a wool blanket. Never been warmer on a bitter cold day. So drape a sheep skin over your lawn chairs, start a fire, make a little gluwein and head outside!
Tandy
I wash mine on the gentle cycle with Eucalan, a wool cleanser. Stretch the hide out, lay flat to dry and brush with a dog brush. It'll shrink up a bit, and the hide does stiffen a little, but in my house it is unavoidable. I have five kids and a dog. Things need to be washed around here. A lot.
Rebecca
I use mine on the "throne" I created for our cat, Tuck. Put a piece of foam on an old "halacious" mosaic coffee table, covered it with fabric and put the Ikea Sheepskin on top . . . the old boy loves it and it looks good too!
Brenda
Mine are on my 2 Windsor chairs for the `cats`comfort and vacuumed often...my husband uses one to prevent `chafing`on long motorcycle trips, he is beyond the stage of wanting to be one of the cool bikers.... I want a black one.
Cindy Marlow
Congratulations for currently being in first place! I wish I could vote again...one point isn't nearly enough margin for my comfort.
Karen
Cindy - Don't worry about it ... you'll have plenty of time to vote next week. THis is just the preliminaries to narrow down the top 10. Next week is the "real" voting. So ... you'll all have to do it again. ~ karen
Mary
font for "Sheepskin" in the title? Enquiring ass-heads want to know.
Karen
Mary - Edwardian Script! Assshead. ~ karen
Mary
LOL. Thanks. Last I looked you're leading in the polls for best DIY blog. I may, however, take my vote back unless you finally blog on how well you did with your caged squash. hint hint.
Karen
Mary - No take backs. ~ karen
mimiindublin
it makes a great groundsheet if you're camping or got people on a sleepover and short of beds (for kids)
Anemone
#473...wow...the pictures look lovely. I just love your house. O boy...cats that think they are perfectly hidden. Cute. Cleo really does snuggle with that doesn't he...haha
lori
lol we call it a "tv box" go figure.not even sure how we came up with that. but a converter? lol
Susan
Voted yesterday for you Karen! Yes people, it's neck and neck - go vote: http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/best-diy-blog-nominations-the-homies-2012-166618
Meg
#461! Finally voted, 'cause ya made it eeeeasy. booya. You're #2 now by 7 votes... zomg!
Who are those bower jerks? Honestly who has to replace a gfci outlet for another gfci outlet. And drywall? I only want to see DIY stuff on HARD to do things. Or interesting things. Or things covered in plaster, lath, or sheepskins.
cred
this is a close race and I don't like it. Everytime I've looked, Karen has been no. 1 but Bower Power is always close. I don't like those assheads!
Karen
Now, now. Let's play nice folks. The fella's the only asshead around here today. ~ karen
Cindy
I love mine too! I sleep on it. It's in my bed. Nice and cozy. Winter AND summer.
My old one drapes over my ottoman.
Baaaaa. Baaaaa.
Marti
I had one of those, not from Ikea, for several years. I never answered the question "how does one keep this clean?"
How do you answer that question, Karen?
Btw, "ass-head" is totally Canook, you know that, right?
Karen
Marti - If by "Canook" you mean, funny, then yes.
Marti
I mean I have never heard an American or anyone else for that matter, call someone an Ass-head. It's entirely a Canadian put-down... er, endearment. You meant it as an endearment, right?
And don't avoid the question:How do you keep a white sheepskin white, if you use them as rugs? Your feet are clean but they have natural oils and the Ass-head... is he really that spotless/pure?
Karen
Firstly - I've only ever heard one other person use the word asshead and he was my boss. He was also Canadian. And therefore funny. I don't clean the sheepskins. I vacuum them the odd time and that's about it. You could possibly have them dry cleaned? Since mine aren't down as rugs very often, it's not much of an issue. Plus I'm pure, the fella is pure, the cats are pure and we don't let the chickens in the upstairs.
AmieM
This made me giggle. On my mom's side, Jack-ass is a term of endearment, and how we say I love you.
Laura
Throw 'em in a washing machine & hang dry.
Karen
Seriously? That frightens me. I .. I ... that frightens me. Maybe I could find a miniature sheepskin at the dollar store to try. I have washed my suede chaps before though ... ~ karen
Laura
I won't point out the obvious (it's a sheepskin that spent it's early life standing in the rain) but will say that I wash mine all the time and they look brand new.
Karen
LOL. I know! But you can't wash a fur coat in the washing machine! Also the suede does get a bit crispy. Doesn't stay soft and drapey. At least that's what I've found with chamois and my chaps, but I'm very VERY tempted to try it. I ruined a silk top this way you know! ~ karen
Laura
Well, the backs do get a bit stiff.
LeeAnne Bloye
Hey Karen,
Since you are a horse person I won't explain all the details here. Having had real sheepskin fuzzies for my horse's grazing muzzle and girth cover, I can tell you they do wash and yes the leather gets crusty - but it took several washings. You could try saddle soap/conditioner on the leather part. Do it before the leather actually dries out though - supposedly at the time the suppleness is at the point you'd want it to be. Or maybe just a touch drier.
Halter fuzzy leather parts are not all that accessible, so I didn't do that but it's worth a shot. A single washing should not wreck it but several, without conditioning will. The fur part stays nice and you can comb it or work it with your fingers.
Karen
Hmm. Well, it's been confirmed by Laura that the sheepskin underside will get a bit crispy, and since I like how they drape on things (as I don't normally use them as a rug) I'm not gonna risk it. No need for me anyway. They're really just acting as an armrest and a bum cushion. ~ karen
su
best to hand wash or on gentle in washing machine with eucalyptus based soap or detergent anything aimed at woolen clothing then air dry for a day or two it is great baby gift here the babies sleep so soundly on them in australia
Karen
Hi Su - I took the plunge a few months ago and threw them in the washing machine on hand wash. I pulled them out and laid them down to air dry. They turned out perfectly! The one thing I did do was to pull and squish the leather underneath as it was drying to prevent it from going stiff. Worked like a charm. I was shocked. ~ karen!
Tracey
Yes, Karen don't do it. I put one of my ikea sheepskins in the washer on super gentle (front load)and it shredded to bits. my hubby has a washable suede shirt, so I thought the sheepskin would be alright. My dogs claimed the sheepskins as their own personal bed, so the ended up getting Bloodhound drool on them. Kinda yucky. They looked so damn cute with all their wrinkly goodness all snuggled up, I didn't have the heart to get them off. So, I just bought a few more.
Thanks for the tips!
Jamieson
You have opened the floodgates for comments about the term "converter". I'm calling it now!
My house: remote.
My parents: gadget, channel changer
Karen
OMG. Didn't even *think* of that. You're right. I should go delete that word right now so as not to distract from the day long photoshoot of Ikea Sheepskins I did.
Caroline
Didn't even know wtf that was when you said it!
I call it a "clicker" which I've gotten a lot of grief for.
Christi
I grew up calling it a "wand."
It sort of makes sense seeing as it must have seemed pretty magical at first!
Tinga
Thanks Jamieson! I didn't know what it was either. We call it the "tv thingy" and my blind asshead loses it all the time instead of keeping it where it belongs. (hmmm, maybe I'm the asshead!)
Great post! I love my Ikea sheepskin and I think I have to get some more.
Cyn
Didn't know what the hell a converter was either bahahahah. I call it a remote control. And yeah, my guy complains because I always put it on the tv console. He says that him getting up from the couch to get it is like living in the past when people had to get up to turn the tv on.
Jeanette
In our house it's called "the remote of power!"
Tracey
Hi Karen,
This post was hilarious. "IKEA hotdog is my spirit animal". I see a post called ode the the ikea hotdog...will read that next.
I think "converter" is a Canadian thing? We've always called it that. I did however get teased really badly by a neighbour last week who is around 30, (I'm 51). I was visiting and asked for the converter - "Converter...what the hell...are you still living in 1975"!!!! I'll always call it that I guess. Remember when the first "Converter" came out. A box on top of the TV that you could slide a little thingy to change the channel....then they add the wired "converter" so you could stay in your chair and change the channel. You just had to make sure you tucked the wire under the rug so no one would trip. Thanks for the chuckles this morning! I blame you for always being late for work now.
Janet
I have just bought two Ikea sheepskins and they smell awful. How to get rid of their odor?
Karen
Really? Are they natural or dyed? I'd just leave them outside for a bit and if that doesn't work you can wash them in the washing machine. Use cold water and a detergent for natural products. The only problem with washing the is the suede back gets a bit crispy so you have to bend it and work at it to soften it up a bit once it's dried out. ~ karen!