IKEA home office makeover – It’s almost 100% IKEA!

Jennifer and Sean didd a lovely home office makeover using mainly IKEA items. I love that it has lots of storage and is well balanced.

Though it has a mix of different IKEA shelving units, they play together nicely. I wish I had so much space (and oh my, all that storage) for my home office.

IKEA home office makeover with L shaped-desk

They write, “We started off with a very boring and bland 8×10 room with an off-center window and rad to contend with. What we ended up with was a functional and stylish office space for two 🙂

Here’s what we worked with for our IKEA Home Office Make Over:

  • 2 EXPEDIT bookcases (Replaced with KALLAX)
  • 4 EXPEDIT drawer inserts
  • 4 EXPEDIT door inserts
  • 2 MIKAEL drawer units
  • 1 BENNO CD tower
  • 8 NUMERAR 4 3/8″ legs
  • 1 GALANT leg
  • 2 NUMERAR countertops in aluminum/white (96″ long and 73″ long)
  • GUNVOR fabric

To maximize the desk space in the small room, we wanted to have an L-shaped desk configuration.

We also wanted wall mounted bookshelves as it would provide the storage we needed while not using up the valuable floor space.

After a bit of research, we found that using 2 EXPEDIT bookcases (one mounted on the wall, one sitting on the countertop) would fit our needs.

The IKEA sales guy wasn’t entirely sure if the EXPEDIT was suitable for wall mounting, but we figured by using extra wall brackets and strapping underneath, we would be okay.

before IKEA home office makeover
before
Hacking the EXPEDIT

First, we installed some wood strapping to provide support for both the countertop and the wall mounted bookcase.

A little hack on the EXPEDIT bookcase was next. We measured out the studs on the wall and installed 4 wall brackets underneath the top frame of the bookcase so they would hit the studs.

Then, we lifted the bookcase so it sat on the strapping and screwed the wall brackets into the studs.

wall-mounted-expedit

Storage for IKEA home office makeover

Next, we assembled the two MIKAEL file cabinets and put them on NUMERAR legs instead of castors. Then, we installed one of the NUMERAR countertops and attached it to the strapping.

We placed it on the MIKAEL cabinets which formed the support leg at the other end. Then, we set the second bookcase in place sitting on the countertop, over the file cabinets.

Storage units for our newly madeover IKEA home office

This side of the room looked a little heavy. So, we cut down the BENNO CD tower and used it as a support leg at the other end of the L-shape. The second NUMERAR countertop was then put on top and attached to the strapping.

IKEA has a $2 aluminum transition strip which we used to cover the seam between the two countertops. At this joint, we installed a GALANT leg under the countertop for extra support.

How our IKEA Home Office all came together

Also, since the CD tower had a shallower depth than the countertop, we found an EXPEDIT piece in the “As Is” section and butted it up to the tower to make it look deeper.

Home office setup with IKEA furnishings

A few final touches … We sewed curtains from the IKEA GUNVOR fabric. Then, used some IKEA picture frames and magazine files for decor. Lastly, we threw down an existing IKEA area rug and finished the room.

It took a bit of work but now we love working in our IKEA home office.”

See more IKEA workspace hacks.