Alyson is a twentysomething decor8 reader seeking advice for her IKEA ANEBODA dresser. She says, “Okay, so I have this dresser from IKEA that I am sending the picture of. At first I loved it but now I am hating the clear poly thing! You can see how incredibly disorganized all my clothes are! Do you have any suggestions of how to either cover it or something? Any sort of advice would be appreciated!”
My first thought is to use paper or fabric applied directly to the interior of the polypropylene drawer fronts. This post over on the IKEA hacker blog may help you do something like this in a single afternoon. Casa Sugar also shows another good example of using paper and how to do it.
Anyone have DIY ideas for Alyson?
(image from IKEA)
Tags: furniture
January 26th, 2009 at 1:22 pm
Really great tip, I was looking for a dresser from Ikea and that one really got my attention, but now I may buy just to decorate the clear part with some fun paper.
Love this blog!!!
http://vivikas.etsy.com
Vivs last blog post: Bird Brooch/Pin
January 26th, 2009 at 1:26 pm
My roommate just happened to be looking at this blog and told me, “Your dresser is on decor8… with your name!” Thank you so much Holly! I really love the paper idea! Hmmm… What paper to choose now? Decisions… decisions…
Alysons last blog post: alysonisneat: My design dilema featured at decor8! http://snipr.com/argfy
January 26th, 2009 at 1:40 pm
Paint it black and pick a nice fabric to place in the polypropylene drawer fonts
January 26th, 2009 at 1:46 pm
I just saw this over at Design Milk, they were showing what you can do with Grppiks products on Ikea furniture.
http://www.grippiks.com
Elisas last blog post:
January 26th, 2009 at 1:55 pm
Maybe cute contact paper? That is my go-to idea, not that I have every done it myself ;)
But I am sure that I will cover something in contact paper soon, because it seems like a good fix it for functional but not great-looking furniture….
Good luck Alyson!
domesticinnycs last blog post: So much to see, so little time!!
January 26th, 2009 at 2:03 pm
That grippiks idea is cool.
Andy Mathiss last blog post: Selling Wholesale
January 26th, 2009 at 2:19 pm
I would paint the piece in yellow with a second coat of turquoise. Rub and age the edges to give it an old warn and rich look.Give it an acrylic (yellow tinted) coat of varnish to seal it.
Take the cheap plastic panels out and replace with smooth glass that you either paint on the opposite side (inside of drawer ) or decoupage with some antique fish and shell motifs (ala john Darian?)
You will end up with an art piece and have fun .
I did a similar paint job on a piece for my daughter using red coral pulls from Anthropolgy .
January 26th, 2009 at 2:26 pm
Why not print an image on to a vinyl sticker and cover the drawer fronts. If I were her I would get an image of organized and color coordinated clothes…
alittle pun on disorganization
http://www.back-to-basics-cleaning.com/images/475062_laundry.jpg
January 26th, 2009 at 2:36 pm
paint the polypropylene drawer fronts.
January 26th, 2009 at 2:41 pm
This Brazilian blog post something about covering exactly this dresser… have a look. if you need help translating, let me know
http://superziper.blogspot.com/2007/10/gaveteiro-ikea-hacker.html
It seems pretty simple! Good luck
patricia fontess last blog post: Brassière
January 26th, 2009 at 2:43 pm
The paper or fabric option is probably the cheapest and easiest. You could also see what other materials your hardware store has to offer that they could cut to size and you could insert instead. Maybe a thin sheet of metal cladding if you’re into an industrial look?
Allisons last blog post: Yarn, lovely yarn
January 26th, 2009 at 2:49 pm
check out stampinup.com and check out their decor elements brochure – they have uber cool things you could jazz the dresser up with, even elements to cover the poly thing entirely that would make it look a bit classier.
January 26th, 2009 at 2:54 pm
I own a few pieces of ANEBODA from collage. You could paint the plastic with Chalkboard paint in black or green (for color).
January 26th, 2009 at 2:55 pm
i would paint the poly on the insides of the drawers. giving the effect of back-painted glass. any color would work, but if you like the light frosted color, just paint the the poly white on the inside of the drawer. good luck!
ashley hawthornes last blog post: random question of the day…
January 26th, 2009 at 3:01 pm
ohhhh fun… I would whip out some modge podge or varnish and fun fabric or paper and really adhere it to all of the grooves of the front. Maybe do some distressed wild color brush painting on the actual dresser. You could do a gel stain or glaze using a chip brush and then seal everything in for a real dramatic change. Please post your finished product, whatever that may be so we can enjoy the transformation.
warmly.
January 26th, 2009 at 3:22 pm
You can get a really sturdy/ heavy cardboard and wrap it will some cool fabrics from Ikea. A staple gun should secure the fabric to the cardboard and some taks for the cardboard to the dresser.
But, if you want real wood, you can go to Home Depot. In the wood section, they have smaller pieces of nice wood like Poplar, cherry, etc.. Bring your dimensions and the HD associate can cut the wood to size for you. Measure your dresser thickness too and talk with the HD associate and they can help you with proper securing nails.
adriennes last blog post: Dirty Old Town print – 8×10
January 26th, 2009 at 3:23 pm
Personally, I can’t stand the coroplast Ikea picked to use in their furniture. It dents, folds and scratches just looking at it. Something more durable (and pretty) would be to have acrylic sheets cut to size (you can have this done at plastic suppliers — make sure you ask them to finish the edges or flame them) in either a frosted or clear effect. I would then either use cut vinyl in some nice patten or create a pattern (stripes?) with masking tape and spray with colours (spraypaint that bonds to plastic) or a frosted spraypaint.
January 26th, 2009 at 3:40 pm
I like that Chalkboard paint idea… I have been searching far and wide all day for some cool paper. I found some that I really like from paper studio that is just some orange poppies. I have thought about painting the poly but wasn’t sure what the priming process would be.
January 26th, 2009 at 3:57 pm
I second having acrylic sheets cut to size — Ikea’s coroplast is really heinous. You could then cover the sheets in some of Emma Jeffs’ pretty window film (http://www.2jane.com/decorative-window-film-moroccan-tile.aspx) to hide the clutter.
Averills last blog post: Rethinking Urban Outfitters
January 26th, 2009 at 4:13 pm
The paper idea would be amazing!
mary
January 26th, 2009 at 4:52 pm
How about white chicken wire?
Taylors last blog post: Valentine’s Wishlist
January 26th, 2009 at 6:32 pm
What if you did a vinyl decal on the clear panels like the one I made for the front of my ikea desk here: http://bacacreative.blogspot.com/2008/04/i-heart-writing-on-walls.html . You could write words or some adorable pattern or design. If you did a dark vinyl and placed it on the inside of the dresser it would be very charming as well.
January 26th, 2009 at 8:02 pm
I have two of these and they are currently “banished” to my son’s (he’s four) room. My husband and I got them when we first got married, but we too felt like we had outgrown them a bit. However what I do LOVE about these dressers is their size and height. I always loved their proportions, but you are right, the plasticy thing isn’t so nice. I’m completely hooked on mirrors these days… I would replace the plastic things with mirrors (you can get them cut to size at just about any glass place – even the one’s that do windshield glass) – in fact I am thinking about doing that to mine and then taking them back from my son!
Jills last blog post: housekeeping…
January 26th, 2009 at 8:24 pm
I have a Malm 6-drawer dresser in pine and it is so boring! What can I do if I don’t have clear panels like this one to show fabric?
January 26th, 2009 at 8:59 pm
I had the same dilemma and covered the panels with Florence Broadhurst Wallpaper: http://flickr.com/photos/32752452@N06/3230432416/. Now no-one can see the mess that is my store of sewing fabrics!
Bonnies last blog post: Kicking Butt
January 26th, 2009 at 10:38 pm
I also just got this dresser in white! I haven’t changed the door panels yet, but my biggest piece of advice is to CHANGE THE HARDWARE! I went to my home depot, picked up some new drawer pulls and it looks like a million bucks and it was such a cheap upgrade!
January 26th, 2009 at 11:01 pm
i have this exact same dresser and it is BROKEN. two of the drawers have split right in the middle. very annoying, but probably partly due to my husband’s penchant for stuffing the drawers very, very full.
lindsey clares last blog post: Things I Love – Wednesday 21st January 2009
January 27th, 2009 at 5:13 am
Ok, I would paint it to match the colour concept of your room and then add scrapbooking paper or wallcovering to the front and then modge podge it. So you are able to get rid of the plastic fronts AND you can change the look all the time when season or mood or style changes. So you will have a new piece of furniture now and then!
molines last blog post: Happy Butterflies
January 27th, 2009 at 5:55 am
well, it definitely looks better with fabric or paper on it, so those would be a good choice. I haven’t tried to paint on such surface, but perhaps you can give it a try?
good luck and can’t wait to see what you’ve come up with :)
Ivas last blog post: Climbing.
January 27th, 2009 at 8:05 am
well, i would replace the poly with piece of wood, painted in black or green to achieve the schoolboard look and write on every drawer with chalk or paint -if you don’t want to rewrite every other day- what is in the drawer, or maybe just sketch what’s in it. Hope i helped. Good Luck.
January 27th, 2009 at 8:18 am
These are all fabulous ideas. I would like to add one more. Paint or stain the wood part, perhaps even do a stain blending, tree different colors in gradation… Here’s the twist that would truly make this an original piece, applying a mosaic pattern using tiny tiles on the panels. You can even paint the tiles to match your decor or theme. I did this to an Ikea cart but the idea would be fabulous for this dresser.
Have a look on how to do this yourself visit http://www.miycreations.com/minwax-make-it.html
Cheers
MaddyLane
January 27th, 2009 at 10:48 am
How about putting some decorative tiles? Maybe Ceiling tiles like these:
http://www.armstrong.com/resclgam/na/ceilings/en/us/tiles.asp?shapeId=2
January 27th, 2009 at 11:00 am
I agree check out this website for inspiration….http://ikeahacker.blogspot.com/
there are great ideas her on how people have customized their ikea pieces – I am sure you will find the inspiration you are looking for!
You may want to remove the drawers completely and keep it as open shevling with baskets, you can also add some nice scrap paper patterns to the interior so it shows through the cheap coroplast, or replace it with tinted or frosted glass. Also how about a nice adhesive pattern, the kind you would use on a bathroom window there are some nice patterns out now. My last idea would be to add decals to the coroplast of decal letters to id what is inside each drawer.
good luck!
Kims last blog post: I think we’re seeing a pattern here
January 27th, 2009 at 12:25 pm
Oh mansies! All of these suggestions have been so wonderful and inspiring. I cannot wait to redo this dresser and I will definitely send pictures once it is done.
January 27th, 2009 at 3:54 pm
I’ve hacked a couple of IKEA dressers. If you want to maintain the look but hide the clutter like I did, you can cut sheets of Foamcore to place on the inside of the drawer. Foamcore is stiff enough that once you cut it to fit, you don’t have to worry about it moving or wrinkling. Here’s what I did with my glass front IKEA dresser… http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3331/3231569943_3effd30233.jpg?v=0 if you want to change the look all together you could apply something to the front and change the knobs like I did on this dresser… http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3287/2960498578_dafa3261bd.jpg?v=0 Have fun!
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January 27th, 2009 at 10:20 pm
i have the same dressers! i also hated that you could see my mess of clothes. so i taped a white polkadot contact paper to the inside and it looks great, very subtle
January 28th, 2009 at 2:04 am
I actually have two of the wardrobes that match this dresser and am having the same problem! Especially since they house our clothing and are in the living room (our bedroom is too small for furniture besides the bed).
I had planned on tacking some pretty paper on the inside. But I thought I’d take a look at some of the ideas and now I’m at a loss because there are so many good ones!! I really like the mirror idea. Do you think that would be really expensive? It might make my room look bigger to.
January 28th, 2009 at 10:12 pm
I reckon you won’t need to cover the clear plastic areas if you can detract attention from them with other design elements … like maybe some cabinet handles ;-)
Check out: http://www.architecturalclassics.com/category.php/1,77/Cupboard-Handles.html
Lucy Atkinsons last blog post: Revolving Doors – There is a God
January 29th, 2009 at 9:52 am
Hi, i think i saw this on a make over tv programme here in the K some years ago…. Spray paint the laminate with hobby spray (homebase do a good one) I would suggest white…remove the clear parts of the drawers. using upholsterers staple gun staple chicken wire to the inside and then behind that attractive fabric/s. Make sure the edges of the wire are flat and nail on some ply to protect fingers from it.
Sounds simple enough to me!
Hope you think its a good idea.
February 1st, 2009 at 8:52 am
I have the same dresser and a wardrobe and am trying to solve the same problem. I was thinking of chalkboard paint on a sturdy pc of cardboard or something.
I’m not sure what to do about the laminate, though. I’d like to change the color, but not sure how it would work.
Bonnie, I love the way your dresser came out! How did you paint it?
August 1st, 2009 at 5:50 pm
I just did something fun with my Ikea cabinet that might work for you as well. I first used paint primer and then painted it a totally rad wild cherry color. It took 3 coats and I painted the parts BEFORE putting them together. BUT it was worth it and the color is stunning.
Next, because you have that corrugated plastic on the front you could do one of two things:
1) get some ikea long lights and shine them on the back of your pretty plastic pieces at the bottom. This will add a hint of elegance to a bland material.
2) Cover the plastic in a fun new wall paper or art paper. Sherwin Williams has some great new removable wallpapers and most art stores have papers that can truly inspire you. You can go elegant or silly – its up to you!
I hope this helps.
Best,
Alison
.-= Alison´s last blog ..IHeartSwitch Gets a Makeover! =-.
January 9th, 2010 at 2:17 am
you can fit photographs shoved in the wood looks cool and changes the look of the dresser
January 7th, 2011 at 4:48 am
I like the paper idea too! Sometimes I find the cutest pieces of fancy wrapping paper at paper stores or gift shops. Usually I use them to line drawers, but this would be really cute with some Modge Podge action. Good luck!
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