Woman Makes Over IKEA Piece That's 'Made To Be DIYed' and It's Perfect

One thing I love about IKEA furniture is that a lot of it is pretty DIY-friendly. Most IKEA pieces are pretty simple and straightforward to begin with, and while you could simply assemble them like normal, with a little bit of refinishing and reworking, you can customize and reimagine them in all kinds of fun, unique ways.

Be that as it may, it's not like IKEA furniture is designed with DIY customization in mind... right? Well, DIYer Tina Le Mac swears that this one particular piece from IKEA is "made to be DIYed," and she proved it by transforming the simple no-frills furniture into an elegant, eye-catching statement piece!

I think @tinalemac was spot on when she says this nightstand is "made to be DIYed." Though she said this was an IVAR piece, the IVAR collection doesn't have a nightstand. I think this is actually a TARVA nightstand , which is made from untreated pine wood. The TARVA's product details mention that the nightstand will be "more durable and easy to care for" if the wood surface is treated with oil, lacquer, or stain. If that's not an invitation to flex your DIY decorating skills on it, I don't know what is!

Related: California Woman Flips IKEA Dresser Into the Perfect Midcentury Dupe

Breakin' out the Bobbins

As long as you've got the right type of paint, stain, or lacquer for the job, you could go all out decorating the TARVA nightstand - and for the sake of preserving its longevity, you probably should. Because it's untreated wood, you don't even have to worry about sanding away its old finish before breaking out the paint!

The possibilities are endless, but I love the unique approach that Tina Le Mac took when redecorating her TARVA piece. Tina's really into bobbin trim, which adds this really cute, bubbly texture. Since Tina couldn't find any bobbin trim to decorate her nightstand, she made her own by halving a bunch of round wooden beads and applying them to the trim using wood glue. She also glued some leftover flat trim to the drawer fronts for a more dynamic Shaker cabinet -style vibe.

Between the Shaker trim and the bobbins, the extra texture that Tina added transformed the ultra-basic TARVA nightstand into something way more fun and distinctive. To complete the makeover, she applied a rich olive green paint, which gave it a kind of mid-century modern chic, and replaced the old wooden drawer knob with one made of shiny brass. Tina's completed DIY flip was a sophisticated, retro statement piece that looks like it could easily go for $200+ at a boutique furniture store. You'd never guess that it started out as a $80 plain pinewood piece from IKEA - bought secondhand off of Facebook Marketplace, no less!

IKEA's Most DIY-Friendly Pieces

Like Tina said, this TARVA piece was practically made to be DIYed, and it's not the only one like it from IKEA. IKEA's wooden furniture catalog has a lot of options made from untreated wood specifically so that consumers can customize their color and appearance however they choose.

If you're a beginning DIYer looking to hone your furniture flipping skills with affordable IKEA pieces, their untreated wood furniture is absolutely ideal for the task. Unlike with their other pieces, you don't have to worry about sanding or stripping paint away before you can start working your DIY magic on them. IKEA's untreated furniture makes for the perfect blank canvas; whether you just want to add a unique coat of paint or go all out with new trim and hardware like Tina did is up to you!

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