Project Ideas

IKEA’s Ektorp sofa is a safe choice, and about as basic as you can get in the living room. Aga of Patchwork and Co. decided to kick it up a notch and deal with her bland, beige cover. Want to see what she did? Aga decided to dye it, and chose black for a more dramatic statement. With the added eclectic assortment of pillows, her living room now has a Bohemian vibe that is far from boring. Many thanks to Aga for sharing the project!

Shannon needed an easy way to update a dresser she found boring, and cycled through several ideas of what to do with it. She has tons of materials stored at home, so the solution came one day when she simply opened a drawer.

I think AgaP. would admit that this wasn’t her “best” project in terms of ease and fun. But the finished result is pretty spectacular and inspiration to those of us with entryways whose doors have seen better days. Take a look and see how it turned out: AgaP. had a “bad craft day” and encountered every DIY problem in the book. But, armed with her list of dos and don’ts, you’ll learn from her mistakes, and it’ll be all smooth sailing from there.

Kevin rounded up some old wooden pallets by driving around to various warehouses, and through Craigslist. He had a project in mind, and just needed a bunch that were roughly equal sized. Want to see what he did with them? This impressive reclaimed wood backyard deck is the result! After measuring the space, he laid the pallets where he wanted the deck to be. Starting with the first row, Kevin lined up all gaps and used pavers to level and support the pallets.

My parents bought this dresser over 30 years ago, but that doesn’t exactly make it an heirloom. It’s very sturdy, but the wood isn’t anything special, the drawers fronts needed patching, and the sides are veneer. The price tag sold me: free. To update the dresser, the first thing I did was use a jigsaw to cut off the scallop-y business at the bottom. (I wish I had a picture of me, eight months pregnant, wielding that tool.

Suzanne saw potential in IKEA’s popular BESTA shelf, and not just as vertical storage. When flipped and tweaked, she was able to make it into something else entirely. Keep on reading to see the pretty remarkable transformation… This might just qualify for a hack and a half. Using the IKEA BESTA as a base, Suzanne custom created a DIY tufted banquette that’s sophisticated and stylish (and offers extra hidden storage as a bonus).

Designer Jenny Sanchez and I connected through Instagram recently, where I found her most recent client project, a room makeover she did for her friend Maria Ortiz. Jenny’s main goal was to create a French Glam Vintage look, which was inspired by a simple Chanel bag. This 120 square foot spare bedroom was once a storage catch-all for Maria’s stuff, but her dream was to turn it into a dressing room, a sophisticated spot to apply makeup, prepare for the day, and relax.

We’ve see the IKEA BEKVÄM stool in every room of the house, but Kylie shares a hack that I have never seen before. With a few modifications (and nice new coat of paint), see what Kylie now uses it for in her kitchen these days, and the problem it solves… As you can see, the stool got an extra story with just a few pieces of wood and some screws. Now her daughter Matilda can get in on all the action, without asking to be held.

How many of you have moved into a new house that had a bathroom just like this? Although owner Mera tried to put a few bandaids on the style situation as long as she could (with new wall color and a rug), it was a hole in the ceiling and peeling paint that finally prompted a full renovation. See how it turned out… Not every room can carry off red and purple, but Mera managed to add just enough color to create a cheerful and happy bathroom.

For $40, this dresser was hard for Sarah Dorsey to pass up, even though the laminate was chipping and it looked worse for wear. So she snagged it and put in practice all the painting tips she’s learned over the years. See how it turned out… After carefully prying off all the hardware, and repainting the entire thing, Sarah’s dresser is now a far cry from cheap; it looks professional, high-end and totally bedroom-worthy.

Joseph picked this dresser up for $10 at a local thrift store, but wanted to do something special before it found a permanent home in his bedroom. After a lot of sanding, here’s what he came up with… Honk your horn if you like the final result! Joseph went to great lengths to complete the look: the four tail lights are from a 1958 Impala and the drawer hardware is actually old Buick door handles he cut down to fit. He found them all on eBay.

“Myrtle” is Capri’s 1964 Travco Motorhome, which she drives all over the country while on vacation. Over the years she’s also put a fair amount of work into this labor of love, slowly returning Myrtle to its Beatles-era glory. See what it looks like today! From Capri: Myrtle is 27 feet long and is powered by a 318 poly engine. She is equipped with a full bathroom, kitchen, couch, bench, closet, ample storage, rear double bed and two entrance doors.

Kristi recently remodeled her kitchen and didn’t give her toe kicks a second glance. Then she got a glimpse of Oh Joy’s recently remodeled studio kitchen, and was inspired to try something new… Switching up the white to black is a subtle but significant change. Rather than painting the actual toe kicks again, Kristi came up with a temporary solution that lets her try out a color, and change it up again down the road. Renters, take note!

IKEA’s KURA bed is meant to be flexible — the structure is reversible and the mattress can either be put on the bottom or on top as a loft bed. But even IKEA couldn’t have anticipated the changes that Gisela made to it, in this really nice hack… Gisela built up the structure of the bed (which she calls “The Little Forest House) then wrapped it entirely in a sheath of wood veneered MDF, making it both sleek and sturdy.

We’re nearing the end of our whole-house renovation, so I thought I’d share some of the products that have helped make our dream house dreams come true— and those that have thwarted us at every turn: Favorite Paint To Work With: Valspar Latex Gloss Porch & Floor This stuff went on like a creamy dream, and I declared that I was only going to use floor paint from now on, on everything.

Certain decor doesn’t transition well from college to more grown-up digs, and your futon is one of them. Which makes this a good hack for folks who don’t want to get rid of the one they currently own, or spend the money on a new sofa. Elizabeth shows you how to do it with IKEA’s GRANKULLA, but you can use any similar type of wooden futon. To make this new daybed happen, Elizabeth disassembled the futon, made a few modifications, and then reconstructed it into a different shape.

As upcycled projects go, this one is pretty impressive. Using recycled wooden pallets, Jack created a piece of DIY furniture that barely resembles its former life as industrial supplies. It also has a special feature that’s as surprising as it is inventive! Jack deconstructed the pallets to create this modern, angled coffee table, complete with a glass top from IKEA. And not only is this table nice looking, it’s also collapsible, making it great for small spaces.

Sandy grew tired of her painted birch tree entryway, and needed to switch it up. A quick trip to the hardware store and $28 later, she created a completely new look. Check out what she did and see what you think… Sandy bought four packs of shims and covered the wall from floor to ceiling with cedar. Here’s Sandy with the details on how she did it: Start at the top left hand corner of your wall.

When I wrote 10 Actually Awesome Countertop DIYs, I had a little trick up my sleeve: our own concrete countertops were already in the works. My partner completed them last week, and I’ve been singing “Concrete Counters Are A Girl’s Best Friend” ever since!

Meet Winifred! Reader Mera recently adopted her and, to celebrate Winnie’s official “adopted” status, decided that she needed a soft spot to call her own. The leather pouf she was using as a dog bed was nice and all, but maybe a little small? Yes, just maybe. Mera carved up a custom stamp, printed the arrow block-printed fabric herself, and sewed it up as a nice (large!) bed for little Winnie.

Shauna loves to experiment with bold choices on walls, and she got permission from her landlord to paint. Rather than choosing a safe neutral, she went with…..well, you need to see for yourself! It took Shauna about three or four hours to paint (by freehand!) the length of her hallway. After testing a few different designs out on large sheets of paper, she chose this super graphic black and white pattern.

Kristine picked up a couple of small cheap laminate dressers for $25 (one is pictured above), with an ambitious plan in mind for them. This is no makeover, or simple paint job — it’s a full on transformation. Click to see what they become… What’s amazing about these cabinets is the level of detail that went into the project. They look aged and weathered, have bronzed label holders, and now look like multi-drawer antique cabinets instead of cheap three-drawer dressers.

Caitlin over at The Shingled House has some mean DIY skills and recently took on a shed in her backyard. The 10 x 10 room had concrete floors, wood paneling, and a lot of stuff, but she wanted to turn it into a cozy and functional office space for her family. See how the conversion went, after the jump. Although the bones of the original structure were nice, the shed is so much more intimate and comfortable after the renovation.

Call them hacks, or makeovers, or just plain paint jobs, but these 25 DIY projects show you just what’s possible with IKEA’s TARVA dresser. It’s an unfinished wood blank slate, waiting for your personal stamp of style. Check out these ideas and finished projects, and try one yourself this weekend.

Fall is officially here, and everything is coming up gold. From garlands and wreaths to pumpkins and pears, read on for simple ways to DIY this metallic into your home for the season. TOP ROW: 1. Falling leaves garland from 6th Street Design School. 2. Gilded acorns available to buy from Light of Day Creations on Etsy, but an easy thing to DIY! 3. Gold-painted branches from Popsugar. 4. DIY no-sew burlap table runner from Inspired by Charm. 5. Gold-dipped log candleholder DIY on the Etsy blog.

Our eat-in nook is in the shape of half a hexagon. And our “temporary” table was a hand-me-down Craigslist loaner from some friends — in the shape of an octagon. I should have known we were destined for each other.

While Kristi’s fiancé loved the feel of this foam cube, she wasn’t feeling its bland look. With some pretty pouf inspiration, she covered this cube in something a little more stylish: From Kristi: The fabric was about $25, and the cube was about $15, so the total cost for this project was $40 … WAY cheaper than the ones I have seen in magazines and totally customized to fit my family room! Check out step-by-step photos and instructions over on Kristi’s blog.

When Tiffany Napper bought this New Orleans shotgun in 2010, she had major work cut out for her. The house – previously owned by a 93-year-old woman who had been born in the house and lived there until she died – had drop ceilings, faux wood paneling, and dirty wall-to-wall carpeting. The narrow 1400-square-foot structure had a small dark kitchen, one tiny bathroom, and four small bedrooms sandwiched together without a hallway.

Cedrick and Sunny fell in love with the Potence lamp by Jean Prouvé after seeing it in a few homes featured in design magazines. “It’s an innovative and bold way to bring light towards the center of a room when there is no built-in, hardwired ceiling fixture.” says Cedrick. With some time and help from professionals, you, too, can build a replica of this 1950s puristic pivoting wall lamp.

It’s not as fun as carving pumpkins or putting fake spider webs in all of your doorways, but there are a number of home maintenance tasks you can do right now that will help get your home ready for fall and the cold winter months. Book (or if you’re knowledgeable, do one yourself) a heat inspection to make sure your primary and secondary heat sources are in good working order and ready to keep you and your home warm this coming fall and winter.

The options are endless.

Writing this post made me realize that after over a decade in studio apartments, I actually have a porch that I could actually decorate for Halloween! Perhaps a combination of giant eyeballs and spider egg sacs, with some glowing orbs for good measure? 1. Spider Web from Janice & Jacob’s Home of Magical Curiosities Use your macramé skills for good (spooky spider web) instead of evil (hanging plant holder), like Janice did! 2.

When we bought our house two years ago, I was very excited about the thought of having a windowless air conditioner in the bedroom to keep us cool throughout the summer. However, I soon realized that an in wall a/c unit was very hard to hide, especially since it’s the first thing you see when you enter the room.

It’s hard not to romanticize the meet-cute between Sofia and her now stunning bar. Just an average, overlooked workbench is collecting dust all on its lonesome, until it finally found that special someone who came along and claimed it. From Sofia: I found this workbench under mounds of dusty boxes in the cellar at my mum’s house.

College living is chock full of design challenges (small spaces, random roommates, a general sense of impermanence) so I’m always impressed when people commit to living their best dorm lives. Roxanne came up with a pretty ingenious way to carve out a workstation for her daughter, seemingly out of nowhere. From Roxanne: My daughter needed a study area in her tiny dorm room. With no floor space available I had to get creative. Working with only 2 feet of wall space, I added a fold down desk.

I thought I’d already found the best example of a BILLY hack already —these built-ins from Gwen of Makerista, which we posted early last year. Then this project came to my attention, and I’ve made room in my heart for two loves instead of just one. Kristina of Ich Designer created a series of these sliding doors for her BILLY bookcases. They move on casters with the help of a u-shaped channel she affixed to the front of the shelves. IKEA bar pulls complete the job.

Small outdoor spaces suffer the same fate as indoor rooms— where to put all the clutter? Outdoor furniture cushions, lamps, and pillows all need a place to live when you’re not using them. The answer is one the most important rules of small spaces: furniture that serves two purposes at once. Amy of Hertoolbelt posted free plans for these wooden reclining chaise lounges over on Remodelaholic. They’re hollow which means they’re perfect for storage inside.

This is not your grandma’s cross-stitch. These projects take the art form of stitching tiny X’s with thread and turn it on its head. Giant painted cross-stitch wall murals, stitched sterling silver bangles, an embroidered IKEA stool – trust me, there’s a lot more to this craft than alphabet samplers. Greet your guests with a cross-stitched welcome sign.

Think you don’t have room for a bar, dining nook, or food prep station in your small outdoor space? Think again. These DIY tables, bars, and carts fold flush to the wall, wheel inside, and make use of plain ole’ efficient design—turning the dream of al fresco dining into a reality for small space dwellers. When open, this Murphy bar offers plenty of shelf space for cutting boards, bottles, and glasses, plus, a dining table for two.

Summer sun and warm breezes can be fabulous things, but they can also be damaging to your skin, lips, and hair. Protect yourself with deliciously scented sunscreens and balms, refresh yourself with invigorating facial mists, and recover from an accidental overdose of sun with easy and all-natural DIY remedies.

It’s summer, and flowers are suddenly appearing everywhere, not just in nature, but also in DIY projects all over the internet. Flower bombing — covering things in faux (or real!) flowers, is the latest trend, and it’s a great way to get a huge impact while spending not a lot of money. Read on to find out how you can transform pretty much anything own with the magic of flowers.

While I’m not the type of person to cut off all her jeans on the first hot day of the year—I only have two pairs, after all—I can’t help but appreciate the inherent summery-ness of a well-done pair of cutoffs. This summer, transform old jeans, horribly out-of-date jean skirts, and denim yardage into pieces you’ll be rocking all season long.

Add some curb appeal and get those numbers noticed.

If you’re looking for clever ways to update your backyard or patio, without dipping into your ice cream budget, these projects are right in line with your priorities. They add seating, storage and decor for very little cash. Above, VT Wonen combined buckets and wood to make cheap and plentiful seating for outside. Add some spray paint and felt to some grapevine string lights for a welcome addition to your outdoor wall. From Drawn to DIY.

There’s really no need to spend big bucks on garden decor. Look around the house or scour places like Goodwill and flea markets for common items you can turn into planters, feeders, furniture, and decorations on the cheap. Above, this mid-century modern style bird bath from The Red Jet was created with the legs of one of those round plywood decorators tables and an inexpensive bowl —both of which are easily found at Goodwill.

I’ve always been a huge fan of 1950s style kitchens, and was lucky enough to score a tiny vintage refrigerator from a few years ago. The small size made it a bit of a challenge (we had to be very cognizant while grocery shopping!) so, when we added a member to the family this year, we also decided it was time to upgrade to a bigger refrigerator.

No matter how many times I see magazine articles demo’ing how to achieve flowing beach-y waves, I still just throw my hair up into a style that keeps my neck from becoming a sweaty, sticky mess. (Minnesota’s more than 10,000 lakes are basically just beautiful, relaxing, humidity factories!) Any effort I make to create curl wand magic instantly becomes completely pointless as soon as I step outside.

Almost a year ago, my husband and I moved back to our hometown of Long Beach, CA. We found a gorgeous two bedroom 1930s apartment in our favorite neighborhood. Our landlords updated the space with grey floors and fresh paint. It was almost perfect . . . except for the terribly outdated entryway. It’s the only carpeted, unpainted space in the entire home, and the first thing you see when you arrive.

When it comes to taming my ever-growing collection of stuff, there’s really nothing simpler or more useful than a wire basket. To be honest, I have five (is that too many??) in my bedroom alone. And while I love how functional they are for stashing everything from notebooks to ribbons, they can start to feel a little utilitarian.

Pin this brilliant project and save it for a sunny day: Brush an inexpensive IKEA pillow cover with solar-activated dye, lay some leaves on top, and watch in wonder as the sun’s rays turn the white pillow an eye-popping orange. Of-the-moment palm patterns and new dyes in modern colors make this a fresh take on the classic blue sun print. And the best part? The look on your friends’ faces when you tell them you made it yourself.

This week Camille is sharing her real life rental challenge and how she transformed her dingy carpeted entryway stairs (with her landlord’s permission!) into something more welcoming, yet still temporary. If you want to see the first post, check out the before photos here. My husband and I decided to DIY this project ourselves, and broke it down into manageable steps, each of which could be completed in a weekend.

This week Camille is sharing her real life rental challenge and how she transformed her dingy carpeted entryway stairs (with her landlord’s permission!) into something more welcoming, yet still temporary. If you want to start by hearing all the plans, check out the before photos here. Updating an old home is filled with challenges.

When you’re lucky enough to live in a home with beautiful historic architectural features, you probably want to highlight those features with your decor. Paint can work, sure, but maybe not in this icky green color? That’s what Danny and Lyndsay faced when they moved into this Portland, Maine rental. So they used the power of paint to cover up the unpleasant green, refresh the space, brighten the home and turn the focus on one charming architectural feature in particular.

There should be a medical or scientific term for that visceral aversion to seeing cords and ugly electronic boxes (something on par with trypophobia for example). Getting rid of them is an endless quest as fraught with difficulty as getting tickets to see Hamilton with Lin-Manual Miranda in the lead role. Figure out how to cover up those unattractive bits— and improve the look of your home in the meantime —and you’ve truly mastered the art of organization and storage.

Don’t throw out your faded or stained napkins, rugs, or quilts just yet—give them a new lease on life by overdyeing them. Here’s how it works: Mix up a big batch of dye, then dunk old textiles to camouflage stains and brighten faded fabrics. Roll up your sleeves, grab the biggest plastic bin you can find, and get ready to turn outdated items into colorful, modern pieces. What is overdyeing? Just as the name suggests, overdyeing is the process of dyeing over already-dyed fabric.

Years of back-to-school shopping programmed me to crave new accessories each fall season. Here are 15 quick and cheap leather accessories that you can make in bulk while binging the newest season of the perpetually foggy and chilly Peaky Blinders. And for my fellow vegans, all of these can be made using faux leather! This sweet and subtle bracelet requires only a 1″x8″ piece of leather or pleather and 1 yard of cord, so it’s cheap as well as quick.

Autumn is that dreamy time of year in which you, like the titular characters on Gilmore Girls, can wear scarves for fashion and comfort rather than survival. Here are a dozen DIY knit, no-sew, hand-painted, faux fur, and pom-pommed scarves that will keep you looking and feeling fabulous all early fall—and some are even cozy enough to carry you into the winter.

It may only be matter of time until wall-to-wall Tuscan faux plaster makes a comeback (Olive Gardens everywhere rejoice). Until then, we prefer these easy, natural-looking antiquing methods to give new furniture an aged look that doesn’t feel dated. Speed up the “Aging” Process: Sturdy materials like wood and brass look great with age (we think humans do too). Get creative by envisioning your furniture’s past lives and layering a variety of finishing techniques.

Oh, how I love a good clutch! I have a vintage collection given to me by a friend over the past decade and 50¢ thrift store favorites that I don’t have to worry about treating too gently. So, you’d think I wouldn’t need every single one of these DIY confetti-filled, fringed, tasseled, and pom pom-ed clutches… but I definitely do.

Wearables like the Apple Watch, Fitbit, and UP by Jawbone can change your life in high-tech ways, from encouraging lots of steps and tracking your sleep to sending calendar alerts directly to your wrist. Thanks to their tech-y designs, however, they don’t generally come dressed properly for your chic arm party.

Chalk paint may be the undisputed champ of aged, vintage-style furniture, but this matte medium is actually incredibly versatile, and can be used to revamp pieces in a wide range of styles. From mid-century modern apartments to artsy bohemian interiors, this easy-to-use, environmentally-friendly paint is showing up everywhere. Find inspiration in the projects that follow, then learn everything you’ll need to know about mixing up homemade chalk paint.