Make a Scandinavian-Style Table from IKEA Cabinet Yourself? Easy!

American designers Katlin and Menda create furniture and interior items and run their own blog where they share instructions and hacks for their DIY projects. The friends strive for rational consumption: they try to buy less and make more with their own hands. At the same time, both work with eco-friendly materials, mostly wood. They also love Scandinavian style.

In this style, the friends decorated their son Menda's room - a teenager's schoolroom. To make the work desk fit perfectly into the new interior, they made it themselves. We provide a detailed instruction that you can follow to repeat this transformation.

You will need:

✓ Circular saw
✓ Clamps (holders)
✓ Drill/Impact driver
✓ Drill bit
✓ Table saw
✓ Miter saw
✓ Hand saw
✓ Electric planer
✓ Wood screws
✓ Wood glue
✓ Hammer
✓ Sandpaper
✓ Water-based polyurethane finish
✓ Birch plywood
✓ Maple board (1 thick and 1 thin)
✓ Round maple legs (about 3 cm in diameter)
✓ IKEA ALEX cabinet with drawers.

Step 1. Determine the Size

Measure the depth of the drawer unit, subtract the thickness of the maple board edge. This will be the width of the plywood for your tabletop. Measure the width of the drawer unit, add the width of the working surface you would need for desk work, and add about 5 inches for table legs. Subtract twice the thickness of the maple board edge. This will be the length of your tabletop.

Step 2. Cut the Tabletop

Using a circular saw, straight board and clamps, cut the top of the table from birch plywood. It is better to use a thin blade with 60 teeth to avoid chipping. Smooth the edges with a planer.

Step 3. Make the Edge

Cut an edge from the maple board with a table saw, 1 inch wide. Use a miter saw to cut the front and side edges of the board. We recommend gluing the edge on the front side of the tabletop and sides, but leaving the back side without an edge so it fits tightly against the wall.

Trim the edges of the edging at 45 degrees. Join the edge with the plywood tabletop using glue and clamps.

Step 4. Join the Parts

Cut three strips from the maple board, about 5 cm wide and 1 cm high. Attach them to the bottom of the plywood tabletop and place the tabletop on top of the cabinet.

Step 5. Make the Legs

Cut a strip 5–6 cm wide, 3 cm thick, and 13 cm shorter than the length of your tabletop. Leave 5 cm from each end and drill holes for the legs.

Measure the height of the drawer and add the height of the strips between the drawer and the tabletop. This will be the height of your legs. Cut the legs to length.

It's not necessary to sharpen the legs, but if you decide to do it, here's how: Measure 30 cm from the bottom of the legs and make a mark. At the bottom of each leg, draw a circle with a diameter of 2 cm. With a grinding machine, move around the drawn circle, gradually going upward and removing less and less wood. In the end, a cone shape should result. Don't forget to sand the leg.

Step 6. Attach the Legs

Glue one of the holes in the strip and insert a leg until it lies flat against the strip. If necessary, use a spacer to ensure a tight fit. After the glue dries, remove the part of the leg that protrudes above. Attach the strip with legs to the plywood using screws.

Step 7. Finish the Wood

Sand the resulting structure and treat it with stain, varnish or special wood oil.

Step 8. Attach the Drawer

Secure the drawer to the tabletop using screws.