The beginning of the year always inspires reflection for me, so I’ve been taking a look at my past projects and remembering some of my favorites. In this post I’ll share my top 15 favorite DIY furniture projects I’ve ever done, along with links to each tutorial.
This list includes furniture builds as well as hacks and makeovers. Ready? Let’s dive in! (In no particular order, cause that’s just too hard.)
The most challenging project I’ve ever done and definitely the one I worked the hardest on was this DIY desk. I designed and welded the base and there was A LOT of trial and error involved. But I learned a ton and even though I sit on my bed with my laptop most of the time, I still love it. You can find the full project here.
Next is this “modern farmhouse” dining table and benches. I let Chris keep this when I moved out since my new house doesn’t have room for it, but it’s one of my favorite builds for a couple of reasons.
First, it was one of my very first big furniture builds. And second, it has so much sentimental value. I’ve always said that it is so special to build a piece and then watch your kids make memories around it, whether it be doing their homework, eating meals, or building LEGO sets. This piece will always have a special place in my heart.
I’ve mentioned previously that out of all the coffee tables I’ve built, this slatted one is my favorite and it’s the one I brought with me to my new house. It was a simple build, and using pre-fabricated hairpin legs made it even easier.
This is one of my most popular projects not only on my blog but also on my YouTube channel. It’s an IKEA TARVA dresser hack I did for my son’s bedroom.
I did this project before I had a YouTube channel, but I loved it so much and it was so popular here on my website that I decided to replicate it and do it all over again for my YouTube channel. Now my son has identical dressers at my house and his dad’s house, so it worked out in the end.
Next up is the mini daybed I built for my kids’ playroom reading nook. Not only was I really happy with how functional it is for the space, but it also gave me an opportunity to upcycle our old crib mattress.
This was one of my very first furniture makeovers many years ago, when I was just starting out with this blog and hadn’t built anything yet. I gave this Craigslist dresser a vibrant, colorful makeover for my kids’ playroom.
The original blog post photos are atrocious, so I’ll just go ahead and spare you the time and let you know the paint color is Benjamin Moore’s Summer Nights. And if you’re looking for guidance on how to paint furniture, I have a tutorial for that here.
Speaking of the playroom, once upon a time when my boys were much smaller, I transformed an IKEA baby changing table into a LEGO table as part of a contest for Parents Magazine, and it was published, which was very exciting.
Ok looks like there’s a pattern here, because this next project was also for the playroom. I built this modern, glam version of a pipe bookshelf, and I might have to replicate this project for my new house because I left this behind at their dad’s.
Switching gears now since this project is most definitely NOT for the playroom, it’s actually the bar cart I recently built. I really like how it turned out and it adds some storage space to my small kitchen and dining area.
This project was another one I did twice, but in different colors. I replicated this project and it became my very first YouTube video. It’s a storage bench with an Aztec patterned design.
This one I love because of its cute miniature size. (Everything is cuter when it’s smaller, right?) It’s a plywood kids desk I built for Jonah’s room. I also like that it can grow with him if we just swap out the hairpin legs with longer ones.
This project is a unique one because it was one of my earliest projects ever, definitely my favorite piece I own, and unlike most of my projects it was actually a furniture restoration.
I restored this library card catalog that my grandparents got for me out of an old school building owned by a family friend. It was in bad shape, and some of the drawers were missing or broken, but I restored it and treasure it now.
Here’s yet another project I replicated for my YouTube channel, and gave the second one to my niece for her bedroom. It’s a floating desk with a geometric pattern painted on top.
This plywood coffee table was a fun one because I played around with creating patterned plywood, which is tricky but looks beautiful. I haven’t perfected it yet but I’d love to experiment more with this technique in the future.
Last but not least, I love this IKEA hack. It’s another TARVA, but a smaller version than the one above. I used this one as a nightstand even though it was a little tall. I felt like it elevated the style of the basic unfinished TARVA and transformed it into something more sophisticated and fun.
And there you have it! 15 of my favorite DIY furniture projects. I can’t wait to share more content with you in the coming year, as well as photography content. I would love it if you would connect with my on my new photography Instagram and Twitter accounts if you’re interested in learning more about upping your photography game! In the meantime, feel free to explore my project gallery.
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