Follow these tips to create expensive-looking built-ins for a fraction of the cost

Built-in furniture makes every home look more elegant—but hiring people to create built-ins from scratch can be pricey (ranging from $1,500-10,000 a piece). Luckily, IKEA is here to save the day! With a little painting and woodwork, you can make IKEA furniture look like a luxury built-in piece for just a fraction of the cost! Keep reading and we’ll offer you plenty of DIY IKEA hacks to enhance the aesthetic of your space.

Things You Should Know

  • Prop your IKEA furniture on wooden bases so they touch your walls and ceilings. This will make stand-alone pieces look like a part of your home.
  • Attach IKEA Billy bookcases to wooden bases to create built-in bookshelves, cabinets, and mudroom lockers.
  • Secure wooden worktops to IKEA MALM drawers to make window nooks and desktops.
  • Create a fully-integrated closet or armoire by adding doors, wood packers, and crown molding to IKEA PAX units.
1

Built-in Bookshelves

  1. Create chic, custom bookshelves with an IKEA Billy bookcase. Use a circular saw to craft a wooden top unit out of 2 ft (0.61 m) x 4 ft (1.2 m) planks. Attach vertical wood pieces to your top unit, spaced out to match the number of vertical columns in your Billy bookcase. Once you’ve built the unit, flip the Billy bookcase upside down and screw it onto the top, lining up the vertical pieces. Then flip the entire thing back over and anchor the combined pieces to the wall.[1]
    • Make the base unit’s height the exact distance between your Billy bookcase and your ceiling.
    • Fill in any nail holes or other cracks in the bookshelf with spackling.
    • Use caulk and/or paint to cover the spot where the two furniture pieces meet.
    • To make your bookshelf blend in with your wall more, place it in a spot that already has an existing trim, like crown molding.
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2

Built-In Kitchen Cabinets

3

Built-In Closets

4

Built-In Media Unit

  1. Turn an IKEA BESTA into a gorgeous entertainment center. Find two bookcases (we recommend IKEA Billy bookcases for their affordability) that match the color of your BESTA unit. Then, measure and cut a wood base unit the exact distance between the top of these bookcases and your ceiling. Place these bookcases on the base unit, side-by-side with your BESTA. Then, space out and drill in horizontal slab fronts from the bottom to the top of your bookcases to make shelves.[4]
    • Add lighting to match the overall ambiance of the unit. For example, if you want the media center to have a cozy feel, add dimming lamps or wall sconces. If you want to enhance your TV and movie-viewing, try attaching LED strips.
5

Built-In Dresser

  1. Use IKEA MALMS for stylish built-in wardrobe storage. Create a wood base out of 2 ft (0.61 m) by 6 ft (1.8 m) MDF. Anchor and secure this base to the floor with screws. Then, attach your MALM(s) to the base and use caulk to fill in any screws or rough edges. Finally, add a wood trim between your MALMs and ceiling to cover the gaps and elevate your piece’s overall look.[5]
    • Measure your MDF base so it fits the exact length of the wall you wish to place your dresser.
    • Add a crown molding to the top of the dresser if necessary.
    • Stain your wood trim to give it a more classic, earthy aesthetic.
    • Paint the pieces of your built-in dresser before installing them to avoid hassle.
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6

Built-In Window Nook

  1. Create a cozy window seat using IKEA cabinets. Place 2 MALM cabinets on opposite sides of your window, right up against your walls. Then, build a wooden frame that measures the exact distance between your cabinets and place this frame between the MALMS to serve as a connector. Cut a piece of MDF and screw it onto the top of your MALMs to serve as a window seat. Then, add cushioning and throw pillows to suit your tastes![6]
    • Attach horizontal pieces of MDF to the front edges of your wood connecting frame if you want your window seat to have shelves.
    • A window seat doesn’t need to fit as snugly into the walls as other built-in IKEA hacks. The seat cushion will cover and compensate for the small cracks in the overall unit.
9

Built-In Armoire

  1. Upgrade your entryway by adding a wardrobe closet. Start creating a base support by placing 2 ft (0.61 m) plywood packers on a 4 ft (1.2 m) plywood sheet. Then, place at least 2 PAX wardrobe frames on the base support, adding as many frames as you can fit into your hallway. Finally, screw in your wardrobe's doors, and caulk and paint the unit to match the color of your wall.[9]
    • If there’s still space between your walls and wardrobe frames, but not enough to fit another complete PAX unit, space the existing PAX units out proportionally and use wood boards (we recommend pine or walnut, but plywood works too) to cover the remaining space between the PAX frames.
    • Use door buffers to ensure your wardrobe doors attach straight and upright.
    • Cut the base support to match the distance between the top of your PAX and the ceiling.
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10

Built-In Spice Racks

  1. Build IKEA BEKVÄM spice racks right into your kitchen cabinets. Start by removing the shoe molding from the base of your kitchen cabinets. Then, create the vertical frame of your spice rack by placing 2 ft (0.61 m) x 4 ft (1.2 m) plywood pieces on either side of your cabinets. Wrap your plywood beams and attach lattice strips to either side to soften their edges. Install the IKEA BEKVÄM shelves inside your plywood frame once it’s in place. Finally, caulk, putty, or paint the spice rack shelves until they’re smooth.[10]
    • Add a small base and chair rail molding at the top and bottom of your spice rack, respectively, for a more ornate, completed look.
11

Built-In Mudroom Lockers

  1. Create easy storage for muddy boots and coats with IKEA bookcases. First, create a wooden base support using 1 ft (0.30 m) x 4 ft (1.2 m) plywood that measures the width of all your bookcases and the height of the distance between the bookcases and the ceiling. Place your IKEA Billy bookcases side-by-side along your mudroom wall on top of the base support. Then, rather than adding in the attachable shelves that come with the bookcases, add a hook to hang up coats and other items.[11]
    • IKEA Billy bookcases come with a pre-cut notch in the back of their structure to help them lie flat against the wall. If your baseboard is taller than this notch, cut a larger notch so the bookcases can lie flat.
    • Use one bookcase for each locker.
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About This Article

Finn Kobler
Co-authored by:
wikiHow Staff Writer
This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Finn Kobler. Finn Kobler graduated from USC in 2022 with a BFA in Writing for Screen/Television. He is a two-time California State Champion and record holder in Original Prose/Poetry, a 2018 finalist for the Los Angeles Youth Poet Laureate, and he's written micro-budget films that have been screened in over 150 theaters nationwide. Growing up, Finn spent every summer helping his family's nonprofit arts program, Showdown Stage Company, empower people through accessible media. He hopes to continue that mission with his writing at wikiHow.
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Co-authors: 3
Updated: February 27, 2023
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Categories: Furniture
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