Happy Sunday everyone! I am back with part 2 of the IKEA cabinet upcycle we started last blog. I had shared my inspiration as well as the state the cabinet was in before I started. If you missed part 1, you can read it here: ikea-upcycle-part-1.html

I started off by purchasing the pole wrap that I was going to use for the fluted wood effect. The pole wrap I bought was primarily MDF but had an oak veneer that could be stained. It could be bought in multiple sizes, but I bought a 4 by 4 foot piece as that is the size that would allow me to cut out my front panels each in one solid piece.

To cut in between the slats of the pole wrap, I was able to use a box cutter and it was very simple. The width of each door was 13 inches, but my piece ended up being a slightly smaller width due to the size of each slat. On the finished product, I don't think its too noticeable at all! 

To cut across the slats I used a hand saw and miter box. It ended up being a little harder to cut across the slats than I had originally thought, because of the thickness of the pole wrap when it was rolled onto itself. It took a few passes but eventually I made it through!

I ended up with a slightly jagged edge after the hand saw but I was able to clean it up with some sandpaper. I also ended up putting that edge at the bottom of the doors so it was less noticeable. 

Then it was time to stain! I purchased this 2 in 1 stain and sealer in a color that matched some of the other wood tones in our living room. I ended up doing 2 coats of the stain and instead of just applying it to the veneer, I applied enough to let it sink into the MDF grooves so that everything was a cohesive color. 

The directions on the stain were to wait at least 6 hours in between each coat. I was impatient and did not wait that long and wished that I had. Although it ended up looking pretty good at the end, I do think the first coat went a little better and the second coat would have gone on smoother if I had waited the right amount of time!

After letting the panels dry overnight, I then used some construction adhesive to attach them to the doors. I do know that it would have likely been easier if I had removed the doors, but to be honest I was not 100% sure how the piece was assembled and I did not want to risk messing it up when I put it back together! I used a decent amount of glue and some clamps to keep things in place when they dried. 

I purchased 2 sizes of the same simple black handle and ended up using the larger size as it felt better with the size of the doors. In part 1 of this blog, I know I had mentioned wanting to do colorful legs and handles on this piece but after thinking on it, my husband and I actually decided black would look better with all the other decor we had in the living room which is where this would end up going.

To figure out where to drill for the handles, I dabbed a small amount of paint on the back of the handles and then placed them down in the correct spots. Then I had a perfect template for where the holes should go.

I bought some plain wood legs at Home Depot and used 2 coats of some black outdoor acrylic paint and 1 coat of sealer. Once they were dry, I added some furniture slidey pads that I attached with a dab of the same construction adhesive I had used before. 

I used the existing hardware that was already on the cabinet from the previous legs and also added a dab of construction adhesive before screwing the legs in to ensure they were very secure.

Finally, I purchased some battery-operated strip lights to light up the inside of the cabinet. I attached them to the underside of the top of the cabinet and the underside of the shelf to light up each section. You will see how that looks in the final shots!

I am so happy with how this turned out! I had quite a journey with this cabinet from thinking we would just end up throwing it away to turning it into this!

I'm really glad that I decided to upcycle it into something that worked well for us and fit the style of our living room. Let me know what you all think about it in the comments below!

​ - Rebecca

P.S. Today's photo on the homepage is from Pexels user Chris F:
www.pexels.com/photo/assorted-wine-bottles-1283219/

Hello everyone! Happy Sunday and Happy Mother's Day (in the US at least) to all the mothers out there!

Today I wanted to share a quick introduction to a project that I am going to be embarking on over the next few weeks. I have a simple IKEA cabinet that I plan to DIY and upcycle into something nice!

So here is the cabinet in question. This is what is looked like a few weeks ago:

I got this cabinet from my parents and put it in my craft room/office for a while. It is just a white particle board cabinet and I added the peel and stick wallpaper and gold knobs to the front of the doors. Recently I rearranged the room this piece was in and there was not a good spot for it anymore. I removed the knobs and peeled off the wallpaper, thinking I would be left with a nice clean slate, but that was not quite the case. I should have used heat when removing the wallpaper because just pulling it off actually ripped off the top layer of the particle board as well.

The cabinet also has a leg that's a bit wonky and caving in as well as some stains on the top.

Originally my husband and I were just going to bring the piece to the dump, but the longer I stared at it the more I felt that I could make it into something cute. It also felt wrong to dispose of something that, although it has a few flaws, is still a fairly sturdy piece of furniture.

So I got to googling and found a few inspiration pictures. The general vibe I will be going for is a decorative wood feature of some sort on the doors while leaving the base of the piece white. These are some cabinets I found online that fit the general idea I'm going for.

I'm personally a little more drawn to the West Elm one on the right as I'm intrigued by the fluted wood look. I follow several DIY Youtubers who have used a product called pole wrap to achieve the fluted look in an easier way. It is essentially wood or MDF on a backing that is intended to be wrapped around a pole in a house to make it more aesthetic but could also be applied as a flat piece. I have never used this product before so I think I would like to give it a try. I would certainly not need 96 inches of it as shown in the picture though!

I would also like to deviate from my inspiration pictures a little bit as well and add some color to the handles and feet as opposed to a wood or metal look. These are some feet and handles I found on Etsy that are speaking to me. They might not be exactly what I end up going for, but this is the direction I would like to take I think.

That's all I have today but I wanted to show you guys the beginning mood board stages of this project I'm excited to start! I'm not sure if I will need one or two more parts for this project, but there will certainly be more to come. Let me know what you think about my plans for the cabinet in the comments below!

 - Rebecca

​P.S. Today's photo on the homepage is from Pexels user Alexander Isreb:
www.pexels.com/photo/ikea-building-1797405/