We recently got into building with the SANNAHED shadow box frame from IKEA while we were scrolling Rebrickable for something to do with our LEGO 21336 The Office build. The Office is one of our favorite shows and the build was loads of fun. However, after having it displayed on the shelf for a while collecting dust we really didn’t enjoy the space it took and couldn’t get a great view of all the shenanigans unless we were right up on it. Before we break down any set to store for building later we always scroll through Rebrickable to see if there are any alternative builds, maybe turning a building into a robot or a Speed Champions car into a Star Wars ship. While searching for something different to do with our Office set we came across marderbrick’s alternate build of The Office into a box frame to display on the wall. This allowed us to reduce shelf space and enjoy the set without standing over it, and the best part is it only used the pieces that came in the original set! (Of course we modified our set a little and did use some extra pieces).
The IKEA SANNAHED frame comes in black, white, oak, birch & walnut.
SANNAHED and LEGO Dimensions and Tips
As of writing this the SANNAHED frame comes in 2 sizes: 25cmx25cm (9.75inx9.75in) and 50cmx50cm (19.75inx19.75in). For our builds we’re using the 25cmx25cm (9.75inx9.75in). This size makes a perfect fit of 30 studs wide, 6 studs deep and 24 bricks, 2 plates and 1 tile tall. Unfortunately, the standard 32×32 LEGO baseplate does not fit inside the inner or outer frame without physically modifying the plate as it is slightly larger than 25cm.
For our demonstration below we did 3 levels. However, for your own creation you can have as many or as few levels as you want. Just remember in your planning that 3 plates is equal to 1 brick height. You can even completely remove the back wall bricks and use a printed image to correspond with your LEGO scene. That’s one of the things that makes building in the IKEA SANNAHED box frame so fun and pragmatic. We have seen this frame used not only for converting standard LEGO sets to wall art but also for collectible minifigure displays, boxed in 3D LEGO personal picture frames and more.
*Baseplate will not fit in inner or outer frame
Now that we have made our SANNAHED Office build we have multiple builds in the works based on some of our favorite movies, books and minifigs for which we wanted to make stories. Our biggest problem, which we’re sure many of you have, is that once we start creating a story build more ideas keep coming and the build keeps getting bigger. We really wanted to do a frame story for Retro Space Hero from Series 17 but that has now turned into a 6 baseplate MILS (Modular Integrate Landscaping System) system and a lot more bricks!
Other SANNAHED Builds
Here are some other cool builds we found on Rebrickable that take a standard LEGO set and converts them into a wall hanging piece of art.
As always, the best thing about building with LEGO is your own creativity. Here are some other great builds people have made
