Wardrobe
Make Princess Wardrobe
Materials: HENSVIK wardrobe
description: Probably not a true "hack" because the piece has not been re-purposed but it is an excellent example of how you can turn something ordinary into something fantastic.
Our 6 year old daughter needed a wardrobe in the house of his clothes dress-up, and HENSVIK seemed like a good starting point because it was cheap and offer many storage. I'm pretty handy with wood moldings and a nail gun, so I thought it would not be too difficult to create something that was really cool looking.
Before installation I painted everything with an oil-based primer, since the beginning of latex I tried was having trouble sticking to the pieces of this firm are made. I have not used the trim piece that attaches to the top of the cabinet because I intended to install moldings instead.
After sanding the primary, I drove on a royal blue semi-gloss paint which I added glitter of gold, and all the pieces. I used a paint based on white oil for the shelves surface because they would be subject to more abuse than the rest of the cabinet.
After assembly, I added a three-piece crown molding to the top of the housing, molding the panel doors and sides, and the molding along the bottom. I also added a casting tape the leading edge of each shelf. All the molding was painted with spray or paint prior to assembly. The molding was cut on a miter saw and attached to the cabinet using a nail gun that uses 23 gauge nails (they look like straight pins without head).
I replaced the cheap cabinet knobs that came with the cabinet with some 11 "brushed gold handles.
To add some customization, I bought two wooden letters painted silver sides covered the top with the clear spray paint, glitter sprinkled on purple, then adds more clear spray. I got letters at every door with glue.
I wanted the firm to have a royal quality, so I used a hot glue gun to attach a row of fake plastic gems on each side of the cabinet doors above and below the handles, and added some to the corners of the crown molding as well.
I'm a big believer in accent lighting, so I added an LED light strip inside the cabinet and is wired to a small micro-switch that turns on the light when the right door is opened.
I also added two hooks clothes brushed aluminum inside of each door, then added some princess theme removable decals to complete the princess theme.
~ D. Hale, Alexandria, VA
the author
Julius Yap "I'm Jules, the engine behind IKEAHackers and one who maintains this website and in the course of execution. My mission is to capture all the wonderful, inspiring, clever hacks and ideas for our beloved IKEA products "
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