The Best IKEA Hacks of 2023
As 2023 draws to a close, it feels like a good time to round up my favourite IKEA hacks of the year... this blog focusses on IKEA hacks for kids rooms, the nursery and playrooms and crafting areas - and my goodness, I have some beauties lined up for you....!
2023 has definitely been the year of the bobbin trend - I've seen people glue those little wooden half balls you find on Amazon on every conceivable piece of furniture or object known to man... and I LOVE IT! It's such a quick and easy hack, adding a vintage-style quirk to what would otherwise be boring furniture. Let's take a look at how Gemma from @beech.tree.cottage creates the cutest storage for her little girls bedroom using the IKEA IVAR cabinets, some 20mm half wooden balls (Amazon) and natural wood bobbin furniture feet / legs from Etsy. The paint colour is "Brown 02" by Lick paints;
WHAT YOU NEED:
- 20mm Half Round Balls: SHOP HERE
- IVAR Cabinet, IKEA: SHOP HERE
- Natural Wood Bobbin Furniture Feet: SHOP HERE
- Lick Paint, Brown 02: SHOP HERE
- Prefer a scalloped trim? SHOP HERE
- MATT VARNISH: SHOP HERE
How absolutely stunning is this IKEA KURA bed hack by @styleandsugar... and wouldn't Gemma's IVAR hack above look pretty with it! In the video below, you can see all of the materials and IKEA products the talented Greet uses to create this fun kids bunk bed hack. We love built in beds here, but they can often be costly, so the IKEA KURA hacks are a great, budget friendly / cheap alternative to custom joinery.
WHAT YOU NEED:
- IKEA KURA BED: SHOP HERE
- WARM WHITE PAINT: SHOP HERE
- MATT VARNISH: SHOP HERE
- PINK FABRIC: SHOP HERE
- D SHAPED WOOD PLANKS: SHOP HERE
- WOOD STAIN: SHOP HERE
I couldn't resist showing you this cute IKEA FADO light hack for kids by @sanna.emelie! It's the sweetest little night light idea for toddlers. Simply buy the FADO light for only £10 / $12 and pop on your favourite kids temporary tattoos! Easy! PLEASE ensure you use an LED bulb which doesn't get hot inside these lamps...
WHAT YOU NEED:
Sanna's Instagram account is crammed FULL of IKEA hacks - all in a stunning boho style with a scandi interiors vibe. Just gorgeous! Here are some of my favourites...
Toddlers will love this quick and easy chalk board hack. Simply place the IKEA WORST black scoreboard in the IKEA HOVSTA frame, and there you have it, a stylish chalk board to use with the IKEA MALA coloured chalks...
If a modern -scandi style kids room bedside table is what you're looking for, then you'll love the hack below. Watch @sanna.emelie's reel below to see how easy it is to make. You'll need: IKEA FNISSA, SNUDDA, RODEBY, plus a little glue and paint colour of your choosing...
I can't resist a bit of gingham fabric in kids bedrooms, especially in this rust colour! Sanna's IKEA IVAR cabinet hack is just gorgeous! So simple to achieve, cut your shapes out in the two doors, paint and attach fabric behind.
WHAT YOU NEED:
- IKEA IVAR CABINET: SHOP HERE
- GINGHAM FABRIC: SHOP HERE
- CUTE BRASS ANIMAL DOOR PULLS: SHOP HERE
- GREEN GREY PAINT: SHOP HERE
- MATT VARNISH: SHOP HERE
Looking for a cheap and easy way to make a fun light for your nursery, playroom or kids bedroom? @sanna.emelie created this adorable hot air balloon ceiling light using the IKEA RISBYN light shade (turned upside down) and the IKEA LURPASSA seagrass basket. Watch her reel below to see how easily you can create this beautiful kids room light fitting...
WHAT YOU NEED:
- IKEA RISBYN LIGHT SHADE: SHOP HERE
- IKEA LURPASSA BASKETS: SHOP HERE
- NATURAL TWINE: SHOP HERE
- ANIMAL TOYS: SHOP HERE
The final kids room IKEA hack that I will share from Sanna, is her IKEA TROLLBO light pendant hack below. It's the sweetest thing - and one I will be trying myself, as it will look perfect alongside my Babar The Elephant prints SHOP HERE.
WHAT YOU NEED:
- IKEA TROLLBO LIGHT: SHOP HERE
- WHITE PAINT (needs to stick to plastic): SHOP HERE
- RED PAINT (sample size): SHOP HERE
- BABAR THE ELEPHANT ART: SHOP HERE
How to decorate a shared kids bedroom is a regular problem to solve for parents of toddlers. Also, I know a lot of people struggle to know how to decorate rooms that have high ceilings, especially for nurseries and kids bedrooms, as you want them to have a cosy feel. The very talented Johanna of @villaalvsjo shows us how to create a built in bed using IKEA furniture as the base. Taking the structure up to the ceiling and softening with curtains helps keep the built in bed grounded and cosy for little ones. The blue/grey paint, teamed with the pretty woodland wallpaper finishes the room off beautifully. Please visit Johanna's page directly for more in-depth details.
WHAT YOU NEED:
- IKEA PLASTA: SHOP HERE
- IKEA HJALPA: SHOP HERE
- IKEA BILLY BOOKCASE: SHOP HERE
- WALLPAPER USED HERE: SHOP HERE
- CHEAPER WOODLAND WALLPAPER: SHOP HERE
- BLUE GREY PAINT: SHOP HERE
- MATT VARNISH: SHOP HERE
For those of you who long for that built in bed for your child's bedrom... the talented Wendy at @thankfifi delivers. Using the IKEA MYDAL bunk bed as the base, and then cladding around using MDF, she shows us how you can get that bespoke joinery look, for a fraction of the cost. Here's what you need:
WHAT YOU NEED:
- IKEA MYDAL BUNK BED: SHOP HERE
- IKEA DRAWERS: SHOP HERE
- GREEN PAINT: SHOP HERE
- PRE-CUT TONGUE AND GROOVE BOARD: SHOP HERE
- BEADING: SHOP HERE
- BRASS HANDLES: SHOP HERE
- IKEA VINDKAST LIGHT: SHOP HERE
- RATTAN WALL LIGHTS: SHOP HERE
- DINO BEDDING: SHOP HERE
- DINO TOYS: SHOP HERE
- DINO ART: SHOP HERE
Continuing in the children's room theme, this beautiful IKEA BESTA + FONNES drawers hack by @baeglad caught my eye. Complete with dusty, soft pink paint, natural wood handles and some simple MDF additions, she's created something that looks like expensive, bespoke built in storage. It's gorgeous and I also love the shelves above the with scalloped trim.
Trine of @baeglad kindly got in touch to let me know she has written two in-depth DIY blogs to show you how to make the pink drawer unit above and the scalloped shelving below. Her website is in Danish, however your browser should suggest to translate it into English - that said, the imagery is so good you could probably follow along with that alone!
PINK DRAWERS BLOG: TAP HERE
SCALLOPED SHELVING BLOG: TAP HERE
WHAT YOU NEED (Drawer /Storage Hack)
- IKEA BESTA: SHOP HERE
- IKEA FONNES: SHOP HERE
- MDF Cut to Size: SHOP HERE
- DUSTY PINK PAINT: SHOP HERE
- WOODEN DRAWER PULLS: SHOP HERE
- MATT VARNISH: SHOP HERE
If you love the IKEA hack PAHL shelving in the above, check out @bageglad's tutorial reel below... it's so easy! Trine has used her Cricut machine to cut the scallops (blummin LOVE cricut machines!!), but don't worry, if you don't have one, I've linked below to a pre-cut scallop trim, which doesn't break the budget.
WHAT YOU NEED:
- PAHL IKEA shelving: SHOP HERE
- Scalloped Trim: SHOP HERE
- OR Cricut Machine: SHOP HERE
- Sage Green Paint: SHOP HERE
- MATT VARNISH: SHOP HERE
Next up it's a very easy IKEA hack for kids toy storage - how else will you keep that playroom tidy?!... @life.with.madison.evie has added a pre-cut plywood scalloped trim to her child's TROFAST storage, plus some little wooden legs, to raise them off the floor and make them look a little more bespoke. The final touch are plywood labels for the TROFAST storage bins - helpful to teach kids how to keep their toys organised and tidy.
WHAT YOU NEED:
- Scalloped Trim: SHOP HERE
- Wooden Furniture Feet: SHOP HERE
- Wood TROFAST Labels: SHOP HERE
- TROFAST Toy Storage: SHOP HERE
- CUTE WOODEN TOYS: SHOP HERE
- MATT VARNISH: SHOP HERE
Encouraging children to do their homework is a difficult task, but with a dream desk set up like the below by @mamamikolaja, homework becomes as fun as crafting. This easy to create IKEA hack using the TROFAST storage units and IKEA kitchen worktops, is the perfect way to store kids arts and craft supplies, toys and school work. The woodland nursery wallpaper gives the room interest, but if wallpaper isn't in budget, a pretty paint colour will do the trick.
WHAT YOU NEED:
- IKEA TROFAST (base units): SHOP HERE
- IKEA TROFAST (top units): SHOP HERE
- TROFAST LABELS (optional): SHOP HERE
- WALLPAPER (optional): SHOP HERE
- PLAY WALL WORD: SHOP HERE
If you like the above, but are looking for small nursery / playroom or small kids room storage ideas, then the below IKEA hack is for you. Once again, we see the TROFAST storage being used, but this time the wall space has the IKEA FLISAT wall storage / shelf. These shelves are fantastic as you can hang them either way up. Use upright for books and toys, and flip upside down to use for the large drawing paper roll (as shown below).
WHAT YOU NEED:
- IKEA TROFAST (base units): SHOP HERE
- IKEA FLISAT (shelves): SHOP HERE
- TROFAST LABELS (optional): SHOP HERE
- PAPER ROLL: SHOP HERE
And last, but by no means least, one final IKEA TROFAST storage / desk hack from the talented Johanna / @villaalvsjo.
WHAT YOU NEED:
- IKEA TROFAST: SHOP HERE
- MDF CUT TO SIZE: SHOP HERE
- IKEA MOPPE DRAWERS: SHOP HERE
- IKEA DEESK LAMP: SHOP HERE
- IKEA PEG BOARD: SHOP HERE
- IKEA CHAIR: SHOP HERE
- BLUE GREY PAINT: SHOP HERE
- MATT VARNISH: SHOP HERE
So, I hope you enjoyed my latest round up of the best IKEA hacks for kids I've found in 2023, and that it's inspired you and your interior design projects. If you enjoyed this blog, please do share on your social media, with friends or on Pinterest - it really does help keep my little website going!
Until next time my friends...
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