Big Impact, Small Effort: Easy Upgrades for IKEA Furniture

Written by

Nancy Mitchell
Nancy Mitchell
As a former Senior Writer at Apartment Therapy, Nancy split her time among looking at beautiful pictures, writing about design, and photographing stylish apartments in and around NYC.
published Aug 18, 2016
We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.
Post Image
(Image credit: House Tweaking)

One of the best things about IKEA pieces is the myriad ways you can tweak, hack, tinker with, and customize them to create beautiful, unique pieces on a reasonable budget. And the changes you make don’t have to be big, time-consuming ones — sometimes all it takes is just a little effort (and a little ingenuity) to turn a piece into something you’ll be proud to show off. Take a look at these seven super-simple IKEA hacks.

Above: Dana from House Tweaking added a stylish twist to this IKEA shoe cabinet with handmade leather pulls.

(Image credit: Viriginia & Charlie)

The brass corners that dress up these IKEA frames are actually cut out of metallic tape. It’s a super simple (and also resersible!) project that can be completed in about 20 minutes. Find out how at Viriginia & Charlie.

(Image credit: Happy Mundane)

Jonathan Lo from Happy Mundane gave his IKEA desk a new, sophisticated look by covering the front of the drawer with wood-grain contact paper.

(Image credit: The Vault Files)

This IKEA nightstand from The Vault Files got dressed up with a contact paper top and new hardware.

(Image credit: The Surznick Common Room)

Blogger Sarah from The Surznick Common Room added midcentury-style legs to give this IKEA Kallax a bit of a boost.

(Image credit: Prettypegs)

Prettypegs makes legs specifically designed for attaching to IKEA pieces, like this little cabinet. They’re also a great (and quick!) way to add style to IKEA desks and tabletops.

(Image credit: Oleander + Palm)
(Image credit: Oleander + Palm)

A quick coat of spray paint on the brackets gives these IKEA shelves, spotted on Oleander + Palm, a colorful and unique new look.

Re-edited from a post originally published 8.18.2016.