The 1-Step Hack That Makes an Ikea Cabinet Unrecognizable
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Interior designer Victoria Solomon of Victoria Elizabeth Design had a mission: to add a media cabinet to her small NYC apartment that would add extra storage while hiding the ugly wires under her TV. In her dreams, she envisioned a 140-inch built-in-looking piece of furniture that could hold its own on the long 180-inch wall — but in reality, nothing like this existed. So what did the clever designer do? She turned to Ikea and hacked her way to the expensive-looking custom console of her dreams!
Victoria realized that three Ikea Besta shelf units, when lined up, totaled about 140 inches. So, she purchased three Besta ($100) shelf units with high-gloss white doors and gave them an undeniably glamorous (and ridiculously simple) makeover by adding agate pulls ($49 per pair).
Want to re-create the look at home? Read on for Victoria's expert tips!
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To ensure the Besta units hid all the TV's wires, Victoria cut preplanned holes in the back of each cabinet based on where outlets were and added holes between the cabinets for cords to run through.
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Because the walls in Victoria's modern condo don't have wooden studs to support the weight of the floating shelves, she had to purchase a special butterfly toggle in order to mount them in the dry wall.
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Victoria suggests drilling from the inside of the cabinet door outward when making the holes for the knobs as to avoid accidentally scratching the front of the doors while drilling.
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While she loves the agate knobs now, Victoria likes that she has the option to switch them out with something new and fresh in the future.