Thrifting can be an excellent way to furnish your home on a budget, but finding the perfect item that suits your style and offers much-needed storage can be challenging. DIY furniture is an ideal solution if you have a unique vision, and the prefabricated designs from IKEA provide a fantastic starting point. With hundreds of pieces across nearly two dozen collections, IKEA items can be customized to fit your needs. The Journal of Consumer Psychology highlights the “IKEA effect,” which suggests that people appreciate products more when they build them themselves. This is why you should explore custom DIY projects, like Instagram user @do.it.yourself.mum’s stylish table design hack for an IKEA KALLAX shelving unit.
IKEA’s KALLAX series begins with a simple box priced at around $25 and expands into various entertainment centers using interlocking boxes, available in numerous colors. The coffee table hack by @do.it.yourself.mum uses a two-by-two KALLAX unit in its natural oak finish (though you can customize the size to your liking), adding sheet wood paneling, accent molding, and door hinges for built-in storage. A smaller KALLAX unit could serve as a side table instead of a coffee table, offering ample space in your living room. A cost-effective DIY paint job can then transform your furniture piece to match your vision.
