A pair of LACK tables goes from lackluster to beautifully functional with Sara's budget-friendly idea for a faux-marble-top kitchen island. Glue the legs of one table to the top of the other, prime and paint the frame, add casters to the base, then apply marble-patterned contact paper to the tabletop to create a posh and portable prep station.
Related: 9 Simple DIY Ways to Reinvent Your Kitchen Cabinets
As the renaissance women of A Beautiful Mess illustrate, the wide white frames of MALMA mirrors provide an ideal blank canvas for paint. Tape off 16 mirrors, spray-paint the frames with eye-popping colors, then splatter gold paint on the vibrant surfaces. Hang the mirrors on the wall in a four-by-four grid for a lively decoration.
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If your FALSTER chair is looking worse for wear, cheer it up with a wild watercolor makeover. Following Victoria's lead, snag a clean canvas drop cloth and brush on bright colors like yellow, blue, and pink in random strokes. When dry, cut the cloth into long strips and use Mod Podge to glue them over the slats of the chair, lending a punch of color to a plain-Jane piece.
Related: 11 Insanely Easy 60-Minute Paint DIYs
In the right hands, a bottom-dollar SIGNE rug can be transformed into a boho-chic storage basket. To repurpose it, you need only cut off the tassels with scissors, make a few creative cuts in the fabric, fold it, and glue the edges to form a container. You can then use it to stash magazines, books, or electronics. For added structure and style, fold down the upper edge of the bag.
Related: 14 Easy DIY Living Room Updates Anyone Can Do in a Day
Natural stone furnishings add a luxe look to any interior but can cost an arm and a leg. Spare your wallet by spray-painting the frames of a pair of RISSNA nesting tables in a copper tone, then topping them with marble contact paper. Park the custom set in separate locations in a room, or stack them together in a corner for space-saving style.
Related: 10 Coffee Tables for Under $100
This plush bench wasn't discovered on the showroom floor of a high-end furniture store. Instead, the faux fur seat was made at home by cutting out portions of a TEJN rug and stapling them to the cushion and arms of an old-fashioned rolled arm bench.
Related: 12 Doable Designs for a DIY Bench
To lend her home office a rustic-meets-industrial vibe, Taylor revamped her MALM dresser with metal drawer pulls and a shelf made of stained scrap wood, pipe, and floor flanges. The spare but striking changes make room for extra storage and allow for easy access to files or office equipment.
Related: 9 Ways to DIY a Dresser on a Dime
You're guaranteed to score points with the video game lover in your family when you transform a SMILA STJARNA wall lamp into a Super Mario star. Natalie's original design isn't hard to re-create, either: Simply cover the star-shaped lamp in a few coats of yellow spray paint, use black and white acrylic paint to draw on a pair of twinkling eyes, then let the star shine!
Related: 16 Brilliant Lighting Ideas You Can DIY on a Dime
Don't let your eyes deceive you! This chic chest has only three drawers. Roxanne's clever transformation, which involved cladding the three drawers of an IVAR chest with nine squares of scrap wood then covering the chest in chalk paint, creates the illusion of a whimsical, low-to-the-ground card catalog with nine drawers.
Related: 21 Clever Little Things to Do with Scrap Wood
It was no mistake that Betty left out the center divider of her KALLAX unit during assembly. By doing so, she created the framework for a file cabinet with something extra: a deep drawer for primary storage and five shallow drawers for stashing supplies and papers. For the finishing touch, she coated the drawer fronts in gray stain and topped them with metal drawer pulls that look right at home in an industrial-style interior.
Related: 18 Clever Storage Solutions You Can DIY for Free
If your feline friends are accustomed to the finer things in life, reward their good behavior with a stay at Brittany's luxury cat condo—which is actually two LACK tables glued together, painted, and outfitted with cat-friendly features. The table legs, wrapped in sisal, make for fetching scratching posts, while a faux-fur-covered tabletop will elevate naps to new heights of comfort.
Related: 10 Astonishing Feats You Can Accomplish with Kitty Litter
Sports buffs and gym fiends alike will relish keeping their prized possessions safely stashed in this at-home locker lookalike crafted from a 16-cubby EXPEDIT bookshelf. All it takes to re-create Katie's playful storage solution is to attach thin squares of painted wood with metal door hinges to the shelf, then adorn the door fronts with pulls and aluminum numerals.
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When you run out of floor and shelf space for your little one's collection of Legos, corral the unruly bricks on this converted LACK table. All it takes to re-create Cindy's fun-loving play table is to cut two colors of Lego baseplates to fit the top of the table, then glue them down with spray adhesive.
Related: Control Kids' Clutter with 7 Creative DIYs
Antique meets modern in this ivory chest of drawers with a Greek-inspired key overlay. The high-end look comes from surprisingly humble beginnings—it's nothing more than a TARVA dresser finished with white paint and then topped with gold-painted pieces of screen trim and metallic drawer pulls.
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Perhaps the best thing about remaking a piece of IKEA furniture is that no matter what you choose to make, you can customize it to perfectly suit your space. Your imagination is the limit!
For the handy home improver, few pleasures compare to the joy of a well-stocked workshop. Take a look at this roundup of some of the best and most essential tools for DIYers of every stripe, and see which items might be missing from your own home improvement headquarters.
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