Before and After: A $24 Peel-And-Stick Project Makes a Basic IKEA Vanity Look MUCH More Expensive

Statement-making natural wood vanities are having a moment in bathrooms right now, and for good reason: They’re beautiful! They look like high-quality furniture and they add storage under the sink, too — a win-win. Solid wood vanities can also be quite expensive, but they don’t have to be, thanks to examples set by a couple of DIYers featured on Apartment Therapy.

First, Amy and Mitch Disselkoen built one from scratch for a fraction of the cost they were quoted, and now, Farwa Moledina (@thehousewiththepinkbed) and her husband have made an approximately $300 version of their $930 inspiration vanity.

“We were in the process of renovating our whole bathroom and really wanted a wooden vanity, but the ones we liked were all out of our budget,” Farwa says. Their solution? An IKEA HEMNES vanity cabinet with a faux wood vinyl covering for the same look.

They bought the cabinet brand-new and unassembled, which made covering each piece of the cabinet in vinyl easier. “It took about two days,” Farwa says. “My husband and I worked on it together… it was his idea!”

They used two rolls of wood grain film (about $12 each) for their project, and you can find similar here.

The first step was cleaning the surface, the second step was wrapping each section and smoothing out any air bubbles, and the third step was assembling the piece. It was one of those projects that “really was minimum effort for maximum reward,” Farwa writes on Instagram, and it looks great with their pink herringbone tile and gray paneling.

Better yet, it’s actually the perfect material for a bathroom. “It’s completely waterproof and wipeable,” Farwa says. “It hasn’t warped or been damaged by water; it looks great and very much like real wood… I love it! I wouldn’t do anything differently.”

Inspired? Submit your own project here.