I Swapped My Dresser for This Beloved IKEA Staple, and I’m Never Going Back

A lot of my apartment decor consists of hand-me-downs or vintage finds, but just about everything else is IKEA. The Swedish superstore is a great place to find budget-friendly, stylish furniture. But now that I’ve had a chance to really settle into the space and get a better sense for how I use it, I’ve been wanting to switch things up a bit — starting with my bedroom. 

There was nothing “wrong” per se about any of the pieces I had in there, but it just felt haphazardly thrown together … because it was. My clothing storage consisted of two items: a gorgeous solid wood bookshelf from the basement of my building (that I quickly cleaned up with some light sanding, wood conditioner, and contact paper) and IKEA’s 5-drawer KILBERGET dresser.

One of the most basic and affordable IKEA dressers, the KILBERGET was a fine solution; it worked well for the 10 months I had it. But the modern, stark-white vibe of the dresser just didn’t mesh with the vintage wooden bookcase beside it. And I felt like having all of my trinkets and clothes on display in the bookshelf just made the space look cluttered and less intentional. Something had to change — so last week I listed both pieces on Facebook Marketplace, and headed back to IKEA! 

This time, though, I had a plan: I bypassed the bedrooms and made a beeline for the living room furniture instead, in search of the beloved BILLY bookcase.

After checking them out in the showroom, I brought home two of the 31.5” BILLY bookcases with OXBERG doors. I fell in love with this new setup right away; as soon as I got the bookcases assembled, the whole room instantly looked cleaner and more cohesive. They were quite easy to build (although those flat-packs are heavier than they look; I definitely pulled a muscle more than once in the process). And I swapped out the plain white knobs for these tiny (and shiny!) brass ones, which helped elevate the overall vibe from basic to beautiful.

The BILLY bookcase is one of IKEA’s most iconic — and versatile — pieces, so I know that as my needs might evolve, so too can my bedroom storage setup. Even designers love this piece, citing its classic, simple look and “hackability” (they work especially well for DIY built-ins). My dream is for this one day to be a sewing station; all I’d have to do is add in the BILLY foldable desk.  

For now, to button up the space, I hung some float frames on the wall above the bookcases — but soon I plan to install shelves to display my vinyl collection, now that I finally have a place to put my record player! I’m all about romanticizing my life right now, and I think putting a record on in the mornings while I get dressed will be such a fun little ritual to add to my routine.

My main worry was that I might miss the ease of dresser drawers — but so far, that hasn’t been the case at all. I love that the shelves give me the option to store (and hide away) more than just clothes; a few of my more well-worn books, trinkets I haven’t had a chance to style yet, and some of my dressier shoes all found a home in the first BILLY bookcase. The second was the perfect size to store my folded pants and sweaters, and two of the DRÖNA storage boxes fit all of my socks and underwear comfortably for easy access on the top shelf. 

Long story short, I encourage you to think outside of the box (or the drawer!) when considering your next furniture purchase. For just about $200, I got a slimmer, chicer, and more versatile storage solution than most other dressers on the market could offer. Plus, knowing that I can rearrange, paint, or even “hack” these into built-ins later made this a total no-brainer purchase. 

Seriously, it’s a classic for a reason: The BILLY really is the GOAT!