Boring Nightstand Becomes a Playful Bubble Table Lookalike

What do you do when you find the perfect furniture piece, then the price tag made you wish you were a Kardashian?

That’s exactly what happened to Marcus Merta (@marcusmerta) when he spotted the bubbly charm Brooklyn designer Steven Bukowski’s bubble table.

Marcus decided to challenge himself at making his own version. He adds, “The design is inspired from the original design by Steven Bukowski and is only for personal and non commercial use.”

The starting point of his project was an old piece of IKEA furniture he already had — the IKEA MALM nightstand.

If you’re shopping at IKEA US, the STORKLINTA nightstand is the closest option. Here’s what you need to do to get the look for less.

What You’ll Need

1 IKEA MALM (or STORKLINTA) nightstand
4 Pieces of 10-ft or 12-ft wood half-round molding (approx. 3-inch width)
Wood filler
Sander
Saw
Heavy-duty adhesive
Primer
Paint

DIY-ing the Bubble Table for Under $200

1. Assemble and Prep the Nightstand

Put together the IKEA nightstand according to the included instructions. Sand the entire unit to smooth everything out and get it ready for painting and gluing.

2. Cut and Prep the Molding

Cut the molding to size so you have enough pieces to cover the sides of the table and the drawer fronts. You’ll need 7 pieces for each side and 3 ½ pieces for each drawer.

To get the half pieces, simply cut one of the strips in half, using one for the bottom of the top drawer and the other for the top of the bottom drawer. When the drawers are closed, it should look like you have 7 pieces on the front of the table.

Use wood filler to even out any holes or cracks in the wood so you can get a nice, smooth finish. After the filler dries, sand everything.

3. Attach the Molding to the Table

Lay out the molding pieces on the table to test the placement. Make sure the pieces on the drawer fronts line up with the ones on the sides.

Glue in place with adhesive, taking your time to keep all the pieces straight and level. Repeat for both sides of the table and both drawers.

4. Prime and Paint

Prime and paint the finished table in the color of your choice. Marcus chose a vibrant red, but you can go with any color you like. Allow paint to dry thoroughly between coats.

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Designer Looks with DIY Twist

At a glance, this designer table hack looks very much like the original, but there are a few differences. For one thing, it’s the legs.

The original bubble table has matching bubble curves underneath, giving the table little feet. Marcus didn’t add any molding rounds to the bottom of his nightstand, but you could if you wanted to get a similar look.

Bukowski’s table is also available in custom designs, configurations, and sizes. Since you’re taking the DIY route, you could make a few customizations, too, using similar steps to the hack. Start with a larger MALM dresser, change up the colors, etc.

Bukowski constructs each drawer using solid maple (or other types of wood, on request) with classy finger joints. As for the MALM, it is what it is.

What do you think? How would you make it differently?

Check out the hack, and follow Marcus Merta @marcusmerta for more interior design inspo and ideas. If you have a hack that you’re proud of, send it to us, and we might highlight your project in a future post!