Gorgeous DIY custom furniture with 18 easy IKEA hacks: creative dressers, farmhouse cabinets, bedroom benches, craft room table, desk, kitchen island, etc!
Let’s face it: building custom furniture from scratch often requires special tools, workshop space, and lots of time! One of the reasons we all love Ikea hacks: gorgeous custom furniture made simple for DIY lovers!
These creative Ikea hacks will give you many ideas to create custom furniture for your kitchen, bedroom, living room, craft room and garage workshop! You can also transform them into any style you love from modern to vintage to farmhouse!
Video: Smart and Gorgeous Ikea Hacks
*Some resources in article are affiliate links. Full disclosure here.
(UPDATE: the video above is from a new article on more IKEA hacks, check out all the details here! )
1. Custom kitchen island DIY with Ikea Bekvam kitchen cart
This gorgeous modern farmhouse kitchen island is great for a small kitchen. Casters and towel bars are easy to install. They can add lots of charm and function to the piece. ( Source: Oliver and Rust )
Update: we just made a kitchen island, tutorial here, and it is also an IKEA hack! Or come visit our DIY IKEA kitchen here!
2. Reclaimed wood Ikea hacks
The easiest way to transform a piece of furniture is to change the finish using wood or paint, like on this DIY bench from an IKEA Kallax unit. Many fabulous IKEA hacks use rustic reclaimed wood or wallpaper to transform IKEA furniture and shelving units. ( Source: Bolig )
Helpful tip: IKEA Alternatives
Sometimes you may not have an IKEA store nearby, or the IKEA item may be discontinued. Luckily, Amazon carries more and more similar products, like these below-
You may also love: 12 Easy Pallet sofas and coffee tables to DIY in a few hours.
3. Farmhouse Kitchen table Ikea Hack
Transform a basic IKEA kitchen table into a big farmhouse table, and give it a warm stained finish. ( Source: East Coast Creative )
If you are thinking about using wood stain, try these easy home-made wood stains: they are all natural, long lasting, and cost almost nothing to make!
4. Window seat bedroom Ikea hacks
Take a simple IKEA Besta or Kallax shelving unit, add foam cushion to create a window seat, and furniture legs to create a buffet, we have a nice dinning room ready in no time! ( Source: Mommy Vignettes )
5. More easy Ikea hacks using Kallax unit
You can even add furniture legs to IKEA Kallax units to create a buffet table! ( Source: Ikea Hackers )
6. Industrial modern storage unit IKEA hacks
This Ikea hack by Shanon at AKA design is so rustic and gorgeous: I love how she distressed the door fronts by banging tools onto the wood at all angles. You can also use contact paper or wallpaper with wood plank designs.
Pallet wood would be GREAT for this hack. Here’s a guide on working with pallets-
7. Ikea Rast dresser hack
The colorful glamorous coral chest of drawers is an ingenious Ikea hack by Kariann at Thistlewood Farms. I love how she glued those large metal washers as drawer fronts decorations!
8. Ikea Rast dresser becomes vintage desk
Diane at In My Own Style turned the dresser into a vintage style rolling desk for her home office. Don’t you love the vintage inspired label pulls?
9. Ikea dresser transformation: mid-centry modern glam
Such a high-end look! Now you may see why the Rast dresser is one of the most popular Ikea hack inspirations. Get creative with paint, fabric, cabinet Pulls, furniture legs, and surface patterns using stencils or overlays. ( Via Bliss-atHome.com However, the tutorial is no longer on this site. Please let me know if you find it! )
10. Farmhouse style Ikea dresser upgrade
You can even reuse old chair legs on an IKEA dresser to create a farmhouse style cabinet. ( Source: Bliss Ranch )
11. Ikea hack garage workshop
Ikea dressers and cube shelving units are also great for workshops and craft rooms. ( Source: Polished Habitat )
12. Craft room table IKEA hack
Karen’s sewing room cutting table is a great craft room table and storage idea for everyone!
13. Window seats with storage using IKEA modular shelving units
It seems like Ikea may have discontinued the 2-cube unit, but you can find other similar units like below. to build this cozy nursery nook with seating bench and side table. ( Project Nursery )
Another modular design to make: Super space-saving and free shoe rack for the closet!
14. Billy bookshelf IKEA hacks
Transform IKEA cabinet into a piece full of industrial charm by Medina at Grillo Designs , using retro thumb tack trim, plumbing pipe and flange handle, and stenciled letters in charcoal color.
15. DIY modern farmhouse cabinet IKEA hack
One of my favorite ikea hacks! The IKEA Hemnes or Kallax unit also include matching door and drawer inserts. If you don’t have an Ikea store near you, Amazon has similar units.
Stylish new hardware such as brass or gold cabinet knobs and tapered legs make this piece look stunning. ( Source )
16. Living room storage unit IKEA hacks
A great example of how to build larger TV media console with storage baskets. ( Source: Honeybear Lane )
17. IKEA Billy bookcase kitchen island
This easy kitchen island and storage hack is made with several IKEA Billy bookshelf cabinets joined together. ( Source: Golden Boys and Me )
18 . Ladder shelf made with Ikea Hjalmaren towel holder
From towel holder to a gorgeous ladder shelf in 30 minutes? Here’s the how-to. You can also add hooks, hanging baskets etc to create a variety of storage options!
You may also love: 16 Simple DIY floating shelves
Stay inspired and happy building! =)
IKEA furniture can be customized in so many ways. The pieces are so easy that you can do endless modifications. Because DIY IKEA hacks have become so popular, the “IKEA Hack” is almost a separate category.
What a post of great ideas!
thank you Kathy! happy October! 🙂
Nice IKEA hacks Amanda! It’s always a big pleasure for me to find an IKEA ferniture and give a little touch of me. The farmhouse style is my favorite!
Love these IKEA hacks! We are going to try a dresser makeover this month!
I love these hacks. I want to do the one for the TV wall. I don’t seem to be able to find the directions to it. Can you link it to me?
hi tammy, which one? if it’s number 16, the link is working 🙂
What a delicious list of truly chic hacks. Honestly, I rarely look at IKEA hacks, my state doesn’t have one & I just get so aggravated trying to order online. That being said, many of these pieces can be found at Amazon or Big Box stores for very little, so it’s not inclusive to IKEA for those of us who can’t easily get them. I love how chic & unique these pieces end up, because affordable, albeit-not ‘high-quality’ pieces are plentiful, in about 2 shades,…white or black. Sometimes a sketchy looking ‘wood-grain’ brown of ash. Not much fun for the person who is trying to do as much luxe as possible with a little budget, and/or space. Even if they don’t work in one’s look, they are certainly inspiring-and prove that you can take inexpensive materials & make them look bespoke! I was always worried they’d just look like cheap fiberboard with a bad dye job. You are really great at picking out fresh ideas & looks from a sea of projects! Thank you!
Thank you so much ana! Happy building! 🙂
Thanks for including my hack…..
Wow, these are so creative ! I’m feeling inspired to decorate for my home , thank you !
Oh my goodness, these look amazing! Totally pinning this one for use later…
These are all GORGEOUS. I’m so bad with hacks, though, the one Ikea hack my hubby and I tried ended…not looking like the picture on Pinterest. Ha!
Coming Up Roses
These are some beautiful pieces. I’m feeling inspired to redecorate!
Love this roundup. I so love Ikea and hate that it’s a ways away from us. I have my eye on a couple of things from there now and now I have to add even more to my list.
I have always wanted to take a carpentry class. We’ve just moved into a new house, so these are definitely design ideas I will be taking into consideration.
These are so creative! I love how you take something so simple and give it such style!
OMG I love everything! Pinning!!
This is a great round up. I always love seeing how people transform ikea products. Its very inspiring!
I’m being inspired by you! Beautiful!
I love love the idea of outline the shelve with other wood! I would totally do that! I have been debating on getting a shelve and making it into a bench, but I was always wondering about the structure and if it could handle weight!