One Room Challenge Week 6: Ikea Rast Dresser Hack

It’s back to business this week and officially week 6 of the One Room Challenge. Honestly, I was thankful for the break because I was running behind on getting things done in Aubrey’s room, BUT I made some progress this week I’m very proud of.

If you weren’t here for the beginning, see the plan here, the bedding here, the tutorial for the DIY Faux Olive Tree here, and the wallpaper here.

This week I tackled the Ikea Rast dresser hack. We had two Ikea Rasts we had used as nightstands in our main bedroom for years, then we passed them down to the girls, and most recently we moved them into Aubrey’s room to create a sort of faux dresser for her. Back when we bought them I was into the distressed farmhouse look so I painted them a dusty blue, replaced the knobs, and sanded the edges to distress them.

For Aubrey’s room update we’re going for a vintage fairy tale vibe and I knew I wanted her to have a beautiful wood tone dresser with an antique feel. We didn’t want to spend the money on a new or even new to us dresser so I came up with the plan to join the Ikea Rasts and refinish them.

The process started with sanding off the old paint.

Next I joined the two Rasts with a combination of screws and nails. (Note I only sanded off the paint that would be seen)

Next I joined two pine boards using pocket holes and wood glue to create a new and more substantial top.

Then I added some dental to the drawer fronts to dress them up a little. I used my miter shears and this process was pretty quick.

Then I got everything wood filled (effectively covering up some of my less than perfect joints).

Next I attached the top using my nail gun, and faced it out with 1/4″ plywood, covering where the two pieces came together, and under the lip of the top to cover up the gap between the old top and the new top. I used wood glue and painters tape to attach the thin plywood and avoid nail holes.

I had purchased small bun legs to put on it, but ultimately decided to leave it without legs. It’s the perfect height for our little girl as is so I left it alone.

Then it was time to sand and stain. I had a brain lapse and forgot to use my wood conditioner first and ended up having to apply three coats of stain to get a more even, less blotchy finish. I used my favorite stain color, English Chestnut.

First coat and second coat…

And three coats was the magic number to get a deep rich color and finish.