How to make a cheap DIY — Bay Window / Ledge Desk in Singapore for only~S$80-130

A cheap alternative to maximize the perennial interior design problem in Singapore — the dreaded ‘Bay-Window’.

Front View

Side-view — Notice the short legs at the back and long legs in the front

This project came about because I had just moved into a new apartment with a LOT of Bay-Windows and wanted to make use of the bay window area, while still keeping the room as a bedroom with a Queen Sized bed for guests. Often seen as a waste of space — the bay window was finally outlawed by the local regulator — LINK: Bay window loophole slammed shut by URA (asiaone.com) but remains an issue in older / existing apartments like mine. I am renting so didn’t want to spend too much for a desk given my next apartment may not have bay windows etc.

So off I went to create my own Bay Window table on the cheap! Here are the instructions:

Only 4 Parts to Buy (as pictured):

4 parts to source — not too difficult!

1. OLOV Leg, adjustable, white — IKEA — for S$30 each (2 pcs required). Adjustable, easy and comes with screws from IKEA. The names of the product models sometimes changes but IKEA will have some table leg that is similar, so head to the store to check it out and pick up a couple (2). Note that these ‘extendable’ legs are significantly more expensive than the alternative non-adjustable legs model called ‘Adils’ which is available for only S$5 each! If you’re trying to save money, I think the ‘Adils’ table legs would be a suitable alternative and would save you S$50! I personally preferred the more expensive adjustable legs as I wanted to make the desk a tad taller (I’m 6’1" tall!). Again, these 2 table legs will come with the screws.
2. LINNMON Table top, white, 100cm x 60 cm — IKEA for S$19 or similar table top from Ikea. Comes in a range of colours and dimensions (table length). I preferred the 120CM (w) x 60cm (d) dimension given the wider space to put my Screen and Laptop together. The 120cm model is what is pictured in my setup.
3. Shopee: Search for Metal Adjustable Height Furniture Leg / Foot (Link — May get outdated over time: https://shopee.sg/product/463010678/8881303220?smtt=0.132288989-1647941405.9 — thanks to user @pastelmorgue for the update!) — 18cm Height White which I ordered from Shopee. These are the shorter legs for the bay window. Around S$15 each (2pcs required). Do make sure the height fits your needs — by measuring the difference between the long ikea table legs, and your bay windown height. These fit my bay window height but double check that it fits yours. Order early as it will take awhile to arrive — mine took about 2 weeks. Some come with screws, and some don’t. If it doesn’t you would need to buy screws (see below I bought from Daiso).
4. Screws for the short/rear legs — which I bought from Daiso (in case your short legs don’t come with screws). S$2 for a pack — or you can buy from any hardware store. Again the short table legs I bought on Shopee did not come with screws, so it had to be purchased separately — but yours may. The screws cannot be too thick that it can’t be screwed into the short legs ‘holes’. The thickness of the table top is 3.5cm so buying a 3cm or slightly shorter screw should work.

ASEMBLY STEPS / INSTRUCTIONS:

Only 3 STEPS! Super Simple! Took me 10 minutes. Now that you’ve gathered your parts —whip out your ‘star’ screwdriver and let’s get going.

1. Basically I laid the desk top on a flat soft surface like a bed (to avoid scratching it). Then I screwed in the longer IKEA table legs into the appropriate pre-drilled holes for the ‘front’ of the desk. Easy-peasy as the holes come pre-drilled by Ikea.
2. Next, I put the short adjustable rear legs in, by screwing 1 screw into the pre-made hole in the table top first. Then, I force-screwed 1 more screw into the opposite side (I found hammering it in slightly to keep it in place and get the hole going was helpful). Again there will be no ‘pre-drilled’ hole for this 2nd screw but the material of the ikea table top is soft enough for you to force screw your way into it easily without a pre-drilled hole
3. Lastly — which oddly took the longest amount of time — is to adjust the height of the legs to all be the same. I had my table height at 70cm (standard height). My bay-window height here is 50cm so the short rear legs should be adjusted to about 20cm in height.

How the legs would look like screwed to the table top (left is the short leg / right is the IKEA 'longer' desk legs).

And that’s it! Congratulations you’ve built yourself a Bay Window Desk! 😊

I secretly regret not being more playful with the colour choices (a Green table-top with black legs would’ve been fun). Best bit is — you could also use the area on the bay window BELOW the desk for storage (e.g. to put a printer, chargers etc) which is what I’ve done.

Optional — you can buy felt stickers like the one pictured below to stick below the legs — making the table easier to slide in and out as needed (lessens ant damage to the floor and bay window).

Enjoy! :) If you have read this far and found this article helpful.. Please do like the article below and tell me in the comments (or message me via carousell). If you do build one would love to see a pic of how it turned out. ☺ It’s my first (and only) article so far so it would mean alot to me to know I’ve made a small difference in the world! And let’s be honest everyone could use a good dopamine hit once in awhile. 😉

And the best bit is — you can push the desk all the way in if you are done with the desk and need more space in the room!

The great bit is.. If the table top gets damaged or you want to change it up — the parts are very modular and can be reused or taken apart for disposal or sale.

FYI: My Bay Window dimensions are 50cm (h) x 55cm (d)