IKEA Hack – Sideboard

Oh the amounts of times I’ve been walking the winding roads of IKEA, getting lost in short cuts and inventing various hacks I could be doing. I bet I am not the only one who’s been wanting to do this for ages. Browsing Pinterest or IKEA Hackers can lead to many afternoons spent down the rabbit hole…but it’s oh so inspiring. So much so, that after hours of searching for the “perfect” sideboard, I decided to give this hacking thing a go. Also, all the sideboards that I liked, fit within the dimensions needed and were somewhat practical cost about £600 and up. *shakeshead* Not what I had in mind spending on this thing.

It took me well longer than expected (doesn’t everything take longer than ever imagined?!), but the results are in and, ta da, I squeaked at the sight of it all being put together.

Step 1

The Tarva Chest of 5 Drawers in Pine proved to be the perfect victim for this project. Practical, cheap and raw!

Step 2

Browse Pinterest for more hours of inspiration to figure out what you really want to do. I had two concepts in mind and it all depended on the knobs. Either I was going to go for colour blocks (i.e. pinks and blues and greens and possibly any other rainbow colour) and simple, elegant drawer knobs, or the sideboard would be classic, muted with playful knobs.
Let me just say: There are too many knobs on this planet!
I decided for the animal concept and searched the web for hours and hours for classy animal knobs. You’d be pleased to know that I had found those classy knobs but was blissfully unaware of how much a single knob cost until I was ready to order. Since I needed 6 knobs, the total would have been well more than the price of the chest of drawers itself. Oh, hello again rabbit hole…
The end of this little story: This guy kindly brought me my knobs I had found at Anthropologie in the US over the pond.

Step 3

We all know that assembling IKEA furniture is the ultimate marriage test. Ha! Kid’s play! Try doing an IKEA hack. That’ll teach you. Anyways, all ended well with the trusted input from my mother as to what wooden board we should buy to use as shelf inserts. We needed space to put folders and stuff, so two of the drawers had to go. The husband volunteered to file little rounded holes at the end of each board to fit onto shelf hooks.

Step 4

Luckily I didn’t have to sand anything, it being fresh from IKEA. I waxed the frame and sides of the drawers with the Briwax 400g Wax Polish in Antique Pine to make it a little bit darker and to protect the wood. If you fancy an alternative to lifting weights, it makes for a good workout for shoulders and biceps.