Ikea Malm Before and After

Luca DIY, Furniture Before and After 3 Comments

In my last post, I showed you the results of a master bedroom makeover. My clients had an existing Ikea Malm dresser that they wanted to keep; it was great storage, but not very stylish. So I decided to give it a makeover and I wanted to take you through the steps for achieving this look. First I roughed up the dresser’s slick finish with an 80-grit sanding block, which allows the primer to adhere better. I removed all the drawers, covered the edges with painter’s tape, and gave the piece one coat of Zinsser primer. Next I added two coats of Benjamin Moore’s Glacial Till, a light putty color. I bought 3/4″ panel molding from Lowe’s, and I expected to be able to have it cut down in store. Unfortunately they were only able to do straight 90-degree cuts, and I was looking for a 45-degree miter cut. I was about to rent a (gigantic!) table saw from Home Depot, but luckily the …

A Tranquil Master Bedroom Makeover

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I just wrapped up a master bedroom makeover in Marina Del Rey, a beachside neighborhood in Los Angeles. My clients’ original decor was sparse: a matching dark wood bedroom set and a light Ikea Malm dresser. Their windows were dressed with vertical Venetian blinds, which had been installed by the landlord, and translucent black and cream floral curtains. My clients wanted their new bedroom to be sophisticated and tranquil. They asked for contemporary furnishings, a neutral backdrop, and pops of vivid color. Their existing furniture was functional, but they were missing a few key items: a workspace and a comfortable place to curl up with a book.     My first recommendation was to buy a new bed. I am not a fan of matching bedroom sets because they lack personality and distinctive flavor. My clients kept gravitating towards inspiration images of upholstered headboards, so I suggested we go in that direction. I hired a local craftsman to make a custom winged headboard with deep, diamond button tufting and silver nailhead trim. We were able to hand …

Dwell on Design

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Yesterday I visited Dwell on Design, a three-day exhibition of products, furniture, and innovative technologies at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The show floor is nearly 300,000 square feet and brimming with goodies, but I wanted to share some of the items that caught my eye. Sitskie produces a line of benches and chairs made from a flexible network of wood blocks. As they explain on their website, “It appears to be a hard wooden [surface] but when you sit, your entire body sinks in, the blocks softly mold to you.” Above is the Block Bench from the Sitskie booth. Stikwood makes peel-and-stick wood panels in many different styles and finishes. This seems like a great product for creating wood paneled walls or for decorating cabinet fronts. Fringe Studio provides architecture and interior design, but they also fabricate readymade and custom furniture. This piece, The Watermark Cabinet, has a colorful underwater pattern. Ikea hacks are incredibly popular, and Semihandmade makes them so much easier. They sell cabinet fronts, panels, and trim specifically for Ikea wares. …