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Home » Create » Ikea Rast Dresser Hack

Ikea Rast Dresser Hack

By Lynette on May 30, 2017 · 43 Comments

Ikea shelf hack rast

ikea rast dresser

Ikea Dressers Hack

I’m so excited to share with you the newest addition to our guest room.  I was able to transform an Ikea Rast Dresser into something I’m super proud of.  With just a little paint, new hardware, fabric and a piece of wood – this dresser is now a new bed side table that’s perfect for guests.  They’ll now have storage if they need it, but also some room to place items that they need.

Are you ready to see how to make a shelf within one of the Rast Ikea Dressers?

(Get ready for some picture overload.)  🙂

ikea rast dresser hack woodIn addition to an Ikea Rast dresser, you will need to purchase a piece of wood for the shelf.  This shelf is going to replace one of the drawers so that you’ll have space to display items.  I purchased this piece of spruce wood from Menards.  It was the perfect width of 12 inches.  The length was about twice too long so we measured and had the length cut down to fit the Ikea dressers.  Menards cut it for us which was nice since we don’t own any cutting tools.
shelf added to ikea rast dresserThe first things you’ll want to do is to put the Ikea Rast Dresser together by using the directions.  To make things easier for yourself, make sure to leave the back piece of wood off the dresser.  Attach the wood shelf by drilling screws into the sides.  This is a two person job to make sure it’s level and straight and will line up with the dresser drawers.  To be honest, my dad and husband tackled this job for me.  🙂

new dresser holes for ikea rask dresser hackTo make my life easier, my dad and husband also drilled new holes for the Hickory Hardware I had picked out for this project.  It was much easier to do it before I painted.  Be sure to measure, if you have to drill two holes for your hardware.  I also found that the holes that were pre-drilled were not centered.  The two holes above with arrows show the new holes I drilled for the hardware.  See how off-center they look?  They’re not.  They’re perfect – it’s the Ikea holes that were not measured correctly.

Pittsburgh Paints on Ikea Rast dresserI decided to use Pittsburgh Paints, also found at Menards.  They have paint and primer in one.  Since I was in the midst of painting my kitchen cabinets, I did not want to add anything to this project I didn’t have to.  No primer!  (It also makes it cheaper.)  I bought a quart in a deep blue that matches the curtains in the room.  I decided to go with a Satin finish since most online searches revealed that satin was a good decision for dressers.

Menards is also carrying the Trim, Door and Furniture interior and exterior paint by Pittsburgh paints.  I missed that when shopping for this project.  Have you tried it yet?

Painted blue ikea rast dresserHere it is all painted!  I decided to put three coats on.  Two was really enough but with two young boys, I wanted to make sure.  I also had a quart of paint that I wanted to use up.  However, I still had some left even with the three coats.  (By the way, I only really painted what you would see.  I didn’t painted inside the drawers.  Why?!

How to add fabric to wood on Ikea Rast dresser hackWhile the last coat was drying I grabbed some fabric I had picked out, and got ready to mod podge it to the Ikea supplied back.  This is the reason it’s SO MUCH EASIER to do this before you nail it into the back of the dresser.  I know from experience.  Do you see the nail holes in the picture above.  I made my hubby take it off after he had already nailed it.  Thanks, dear!

attach fabric to wood shelf on ikea rast dresserTo make the fabric stick, I painted a thin layer of Mod Podge to the wood backing.  I then laid the fabric flat and flattened and straightened it by hand.  You’ll need to do this step quickly as it dries fast.  I then put a thin layer of Mod Podge on the top.  It will look streaky and white as you can see in the picture above.  Don’t worry, as it will dry clear!  Let it dry.

how to add fabric back shelf to ikea rast dresserOnce the fabric is secure, you can then nail the backing onto the dresser.  The nails go in really easily and I loved how tightly the backing fit.

hickory hardware on ikea rast dresserThe last step was the hardware!  I just love these knobs.  I picked them out from Hickory Hardware and I think they “pop” with the deep blue background.  They are a brilliant silver.  (They have a green sheen in the picture because of the outside grass where I was assembling everything.  What do you think?

shelf hack on ikea rast dresserI just love the deep blue of the dresser with the background.  The blue looks a little bit of cobalt here with the lighting.  It’s really more of a deep navy color.

Ikea rast dresser with removed shelfHere’s the shelf with all the accessories in our guest room!  I decided to add some books because my oldest son spends a few hours in the afternoon reading while his younger brother naps each day.  It’s his quiet time.  I also added a small bowl that I found so that guests had a place to put their rings or earrings while traveling.  The clock, I just absolutely love.  And there’s my oldest as a baby pictured there.

Drum roll…

Ikea Rast Dresser unfinished

Here’s the before picture of the Ikea Dressers….

ikea rast dresser hack completedHere’s the final look!  I think it looks completely different than the original. It’s amazing what a little paint and hardware with some creativity will do!

Looking for another fun DIY project? Check out this post on how to make a Futon Cover from a fitted sheet!

What do you think? Have you ever “hacked” one of the Ikea Dressers?

All supplies for this product were provided free of charge in return for sharing my Ikea Hack project.  All opinions are my own, as always!

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About Lynette

Lynette is the home cook, recipe tester and photographer for Cleverly Simple which she created in 2010.  Most of her recipes come from the treasured recipe box passed down from her great-grandma, grandmother, and mother.

Lynette’s recipes and projects have been featured in Country Living, Good Housekeeping, House Beautiful and others.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jamie

    February 20, 2022 at 5:15 pm

    I love what you did! I’m hoping to give this a try, but had a couple questions. Are there any tips for where you lined up the shelf you added? Also, did you fill in the spots where you screwed in the shelf? Thanks!

    Reply
  2. Cheryl

    February 02, 2021 at 7:04 pm

    Is there a reason you couldn’t use the discarded drawer front for the shelf?

    Reply
    • Lynette

      February 05, 2021 at 12:35 pm

      Hi! You could if you wanted it to be those dimensions. I can’t remember what the dimensions are exactly since it’s been a while since I did this project.

      Reply
  3. emma williams

    January 11, 2020 at 2:23 pm

    How much was the initial Ikea dresser. How much total spent? thx very pretty!

    Reply
  4. Vas

    August 07, 2019 at 6:15 am

    Hi Lynette, excellent work! Loved your idea! Do you by any chance remember what is the length of the extra piece of wood ?

    Reply
  5. Valerie

    May 16, 2019 at 7:05 am

    LOVE this idea and cant wait to make this after my renovation is done.

    Think i will paint the pieces first before assembly.

    Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
    • Lynette

      May 16, 2019 at 9:38 am

      Yes, paint first! That would have made my life easier. 🙂

      Reply
  6. Natalie

    May 06, 2019 at 2:25 pm

    I’m painting the tarva dresser for my daughter’s nightstand. Did you put a coat of polyurethane on when you finished painting?

    Reply
    • Lynette

      May 16, 2019 at 9:39 am

      I did not. It’s totally up to you if you want to add that layer of poly.

      Reply
  7. Cynthia

    February 05, 2019 at 2:53 pm

    Hello im doing this in few days and i was wondering why you didnt paint all the pieces before you assemble them together? Great job btw!

    Reply
    • Lynette

      February 06, 2019 at 10:17 am

      I didn’t paint them first, because I wanted to avoid touchups. I think painting them first would definitely be easier but you will need to careful as you assemble the piece and then touch up later. It could really be done either way. Let me know how it turns out!

      Reply
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Lynette Rice head shotHi, I’m Lynette. My desire is to help women who feel uninspired weave time honored recipes into their routines to create a sense of simplicity. Most of my recipes come from the treasured recipe box passed down from my great-grandma, grandmother and mother. And I want to share them with you.  Learn more.

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