IKEA Living Room Hacks

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When it comes to furnishing your living room, IKEA is a go-to destination for many. With its affordable prices and stylish designs, IKEA furniture is a popular choice for those looking to create a comfortable and functional living space.

But there's the risk of your living room looking like an IKEA showroom if you use mainly IKEA furniture. With a little creativity and a few DIY skills, you can take your IKEA furniture to the next level and perhaps even get a few people saying, "I can't believe it's IKEA!"

From easy IKEA hacks like adding new legs to your sofa to creating custom built-in storage solutions, there are so many fabulous ways to tweak your IKEA pieces into pieces that are uniquely you. 

In this page, you'll find some of the best IKEA living room hacks to inspire your own DIY projects and help you create a space that's both stylish and functional.

Most Popular Posts on Living Rooms

Take ordinary IKEA furniture and transform them into something extraordinary. From custom built-ins to clever hidden work spaces, these living rooms showcase the creativity and ingenuity of IKEA hackers.

Whether you're looking to add some personality to your space or simply want to make the most of your IKEA furniture, these living room hacks are sure to inspire. So why not take a closer look and see how you can create a space that's stylish and functional?

Jump directly to these categories:
Bookshelves Sideboards Room Dividers

Living Room Storage

The wonder of IKEA hacking! Take IKEA furniture and modify them to fit your specific needs and space requirements.

You not only create a storage system that's tailored to your living room and the items you need to store, but also seamlessly match your style and taste.
antiquing furniture - IKEA HEMNES hack

Antiquing an IKEA Dresser into a Beautiful “Vintage” French Cabinet

Antiquing is a beautiful way to give new life and…

ikea apothecary cabinet diy

Tiny Chests turned into a Space Saving IKEA Apothecary Cabinet You’ll Love

Tired of cluttered counters and misplaced items, one woman decided…

ikea besta hamptons makeover

IKEA BESTÅ sideboard hack in boho Hamptons style

When Karolina moved from a small studio to a newly…

ikea tarva dresser hacks

20 IKEA TARVA Hacks to go from Basic to Beautiful

IKEA TARVA dressers are affordable, durable, and easy to construct,…

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Coffee table and side table hacks

IKEA coffee table hacks are very popular on IKEA hackers. They are smaller DIY projects and a great starting point if you're beginning your DIY journey. But they are no less amazing. Here are some popular IKEA coffee table hacks.
antonius floating coffee table

Floating coffee table for a tiny apartment

Old laundry hamper repurposed into a stylish floating coffee table.…

back-lit world map coffee table IKEA LACK hack

Popular IKEA coffee table takes on the world (map)

I had seen a glass-top table made on an advertising…

elliptical coffee table ikea ingo hack

$5 thrifted dining table takes on the elliptical shape

I picked up an INGO dining table at a church…

skogsta natural wood coffee table

Natural wood coffee table hacked from 2 benches

After a lot of searching we did not find any…

Transform your TV dinners with this uplifting hack

Transform your TV dinners with this uplifting hack

When I started to live on my own I bought…

IKEA LACK Accent Table for succulents

IKEA LACK Stencilled Accent Table for succulents

Hi, my name is Elyse and here’s an IKEA hack…

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IKEA Bookshelf Hacks

Other than the fact that IKEA bookshelves are made to store a lot of stuff, they are affordable and so hackable. Which makes them a popular choice for built-in bookshelf hacks and so much more. Here are our top IKEA Bookshelf Hacks.
raffia diy bookcase doors

New DIY Doors for the BILLY bookcase: BOHÈME!

I could not find a piece of furniture for my…

sliding bookcase doors

Sliding Bookcase Doors KALLAX hack to divide your rooms

I replaced single-glazed sliding doors that divided the sitting room…

ikea shiplap kallax

12 ways to close up the back of the KALLAX

An interesting question popped up on our FB group. Stacy…

How to make a corner unit from regular BILLY bookcases

How to make a corner unit from regular BILLY bookcases

In the gangway to the bedrooms in his home, Marc…

ikea wall anchor kits alternatives

3 EFFECTIVE METHODS TO HELP YOU ANCHOR BOOKCASES TO THE WALL

Moving to a new home can be exhilarating, but it…

ikea havsta built in

IKEA HAVSTA, THE NEW FAVOURITE FOR BUILT-IN BOOKSHELVES

Who doesn’t look having a classic bookshelf as a backdrop…

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IKEA Hacks for sofas, poufs and stools

Upcycle or customize an IKEA sofa, armchair, stool and pouffe to create a unique piece of furniture that reflects your personal style and meets your specific needs. We go beyond adding new legs to the sofa or reupholstering the cushions to show how much more you can do with your IKEA sofa, armchair or ottoman.
Bekväm Chair project

Bekväm Chair project

It was an imposed project during my first year in…

IKEA GORM lounge hack

IKEA GORM lounge hack

Correction: The IKEA item used is referred to as the…

RAST nightstand into small storage seat

RAST nightstand into small storage seat

Materials: RAST nightstand I picked up a RAST pine night…

IKEA bench seat with lots of storage

IKEA bench seat with lots of storage

Materials: 2 Alex Drawer Units and 1 Double and 1…

KOLDBY Cowhide Rug to Cool Chrome Chair

KOLDBY Cowhide Rug to Cool Chrome Chair

This hack used an Ikea KOLDBY rug to re-upholster a…

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All our IKEA Living Room Hacks

We love this BILLY Bookcase Hack with NANNARP legs

We love this BILLY Bookcase Hack with NANNARP legs

I was inspired by other BILLY bookcase hacks so decided to hack my own version. Here’s more information on the BILLY bookcase hack I made for my daughter’s 9th birthday. IKEA items used: BILLY bookcase with OXBERG glass doorsNANNARP legs Other materials and tools: Wooden board for top and bottomWhite…

library wall bookcase IKEA BILLY hack

Building a Beautiful Bookcase Library Wall with BILLY

Philippe works for a builder and has designed the last two houses we have lived in. I had a small built-in library in our previous house in Melbourne. Given my absolute love of books, that library was jammed full, with smaller bookshelves around the house for all the extras. We…

IKEA RAST dresser makeover to flat file cabinet

Rast Dresser gets a makeover and it’s so good

For the last few months I’ve become a big fan of furniture makeover videos on YouTube and felt really inspired to craft something on my own. As I was both looking for a new weekend hobby and a Christmas present for my younger sister, I decided to makeover a used…

raffia diy bookcase doors

New DIY Doors for the BILLY bookcase: BOHÈME!

I could not find a piece of furniture for my living room that can contain my many books and did not look like an ordinary bookshelf. Looking at the popular BILLY bookcase, I thought it would look amazing against new DIY doors with a natural material. Raffia was my choice…

sliding bookcase doors

Sliding Bookcase Doors KALLAX hack to divide your rooms

I replaced single-glazed sliding doors that divided the sitting room and dining room with a sliding KALLAX bookcase. For one “door”, I used two 2×2 cubes and one 2×1 unit. As we already owned 4 separate KALLAX 2×2 cubes and they seemed to be exactly the same width as the…

bed slats repurpose

See these abandoned bed slats in a new light

The saying still holds true, “One’s man trash is another man’s treasure.” Trammell repurposed a set of SULTAN LÖDINGEN bed slats salvaged from the trash into a chair. He says, “Amsterdam’s trash is full of renewable resources, if you have the right bike to carry it home.” The SULTAN LÖDINGEN…

ikea shiplap kallax

12 ways to close up the back of the KALLAX

An interesting question popped up on our FB group. Stacy asked, “Has anyone put a back on their KALLAX shelving unit? What did you use?” Well, glad you asked. The KALLAX shelving unit comes with open cubes, which is why it makes such an awesome room divider. But there are…

ivar louis cubes parquet

IVAR with beautiful Louis Cubes parquet design

I would never recommend trying this. Because it drove me nuts.  The end result is kind of cool though. Whose cubes?Louis Cubes is named after King Louis XIV as the design was very popular and widely used during his 72 year reign as the King of France. The pattern can…

poang armrest hacks

3 ways to IMPROVE the POÄNG armrest for work and play

The iconic POÄNG is one of the most popular armchairs in IKEA and with good reason. It’s comfortable, with timeless good looks good. And you can bring one home for less than $80. The POÄNG’s bent wood armrests is its most striking feature and the area we’re focussing on today.…

risor room divider

This See Through Room Divider provides subtle separation

See Through Room Divider that doesn’t block the view. In our 1960s house, the Dining Area and Lounge are one open space that seemed to beg for some separation. I wanted to keep the Lounge’s cozy feeling for reading or watching TV, but not hide the Dining Room from view.…

How to make a corner unit from regular BILLY bookcases

How to make a corner unit from regular BILLY bookcases

In the gangway to the bedrooms in his home, Marc needed extra place for the books to read in the bedroom. The most suitable space was a corner just outside the rooms. However, the corner BILLY unit sold in IKEA would have taken up too much space. So, he took…

elm coffee table

The Old Elm Coffee Table from old IKEA coffee table

Upcycling at its best. We wanted to have a heavy rustic wooden table, with only two or three pieces of wood glued together. This style fits our house and other furniture very well, but it’s hard to find in stores and it gets very expensive. And we wanted to have…

ikea wall anchor kits alternatives

3 EFFECTIVE METHODS TO HELP YOU ANCHOR BOOKCASES TO THE WALL

Moving to a new home can be exhilarating, but it also comes with its share of tricky challenges. A common hurdle in that situation is rental agreements that restrict drilling into walls.  This can be a major headache, especially when it comes to securing your tall bookcases and DVD storage…

step stool side table

Convert this popular step stool to an occasional side table

I wanted a small, portable table that I could use to put my food and drinks on when sitting in my garden. As I would use it only occasionally, I didn’t want to buy something that would just take up space in my house or shed. (I already have a…

chaise FRIHETEN

IKEA FRIHETEN sleeper sectional downsized into a chaise

Our cats had basically destroyed this poor couch (see the photo of sidearm below). We decided that it was time to change it. I had even posted it free on Craigslist. BUT … I loved the storage and the couch and chaise were both still very comfy. Related: FRIHETEN sofabed…

ikea havsta built in

IKEA HAVSTA, THE NEW FAVOURITE FOR BUILT-IN BOOKSHELVES

Who doesn’t look having a classic bookshelf as a backdrop to their office or living room? The only challenge here is that built-in bookshelves like HEMNES can cost you quite a hefty sum. But luckily, with some DIY skills and IKEA magic, you’ll be able to build a built-in bookshelf…

ikea lack upcycle

2 easy ways to upcycle the IKEA LACK side table

I had two old LACK tables that were left over from a house remodelling.  Both the IKEA LACK tables took a couple of hours to upcycle. The comics were a free gift from the thrift shop and the Mod Podge cost 8 dollars.   The tiles and grout were left from…

cube shelf lighting

How to add lighting to a KALLAX cube shelf

I decided to make this change because I like to customize objects. Adding the cube shelf lighting to the KALLAX took me a couple of hours. The total cost is €67.73. IKEA item used: Other materials: Cube shelf lighting steps: Buy a KALLAX shelf (42×147 cm) Related: Light up the…

solsta pallbo footstool with storage

Old IKEA footstool gets makeover and new storage

I’m coming back with what I love the most, giving makeovers to old stuff and making them not just nicer but also giving them a new purpose. I had an old IKEA footstool laying around my home for a while (so old it’s already discontinued). The cover looked not only…

ivar folding screen cane

8 ways to turn IVAR into a super useful folding screen

A folding screen is a quick way to divide a room and create private spaces. IKEA currently sells the RISÖR room divider and that’s it. Nothing much in this department. But fret not, it’s easy to make one. The IVAR side units are perfect for this DIY project and can…

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