Hi guys, welcome to another episode of Hester's House Updates and today is a good one as I get to do what I love doing best, furniture hacking!

I’ve been meaning to do a Ikea Ivar hack for ages, in every house I lived in I’ve had a Ivar bookcase and although they are very practical they sure are not stylish. People seem to hack almost every Ikea item for sale but so far I haven’t come across many Ivar hacks but that will change today, just have a look at this transformation!

Do you like it? I think the bear brings the whole look together, isn’t he adorable? The magnetic wallpaper is from a company called Groovy Magnets and besides the bear they do a horse, a fox, a bunny, a lion and many more have a look at their website. If you’re not into animals they also have a paintable version of the magnetic wallpaper and if you are short for space have a look at the wall stickers.

Want to see how I transformed the plain Ivar bookcase into a stylish cabinet? Have a look at the video below

What do you think? Do you like the bear and the new look of my bookcase? If the images in the video went to quick for you have a look at these step by step pictures to see how I transformed the plain bookcase into a stylish cabinet.

You Need:

2 pieces of hardboard, 50cmx158cm
some filler
white paint
plywood for the doors, work out what size would work best for you but don't make the doors to big as they will become heavy.
butt hinges, 2 per door so in my case 16 hinges
small screws and screw driver
magnetic wallpaper from Groovy Magnets and wallpaper paste

I kept the bottom 80cm of my cabinet clear as I like the open feel it gives. Arrange your shelves and fill the holes you don't need anymore with polyfiller. Close the sides of your bookcase with hardboard nailing it in place. Give the case a lick of paint, I just did the sides, legs and front of the planks. I made it easy for myself and had the plywood cut to the correct size for my doors. I hung them in place with hinges, 2 per door in 5 cm from the top and one 5 cm from the bottom. Just the plywood on its own already looks fab but I finished the look of with my bear wallpaper, have a look at the video above to see how I did that.

The new cabinet really fits in with the overall white look of my workspace and the bear just gives it that little injection of fun. If you like what you see in the picture above tune in this weekend as I will post a video with several office makes like the desk divider, magazine storage and more!

Are you tempted to transform your bookcase? Would you use the bear or rather an other animal or maybe no animal at all? Would love to hear your thoughts.

Until next time x Hester

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