Ikea Hack: FÖRHÖJA Kitchen Cart

When Brooke and I moved to our little bungalow on the beach, we had to make some sacrifices. One of those being the lack of an actual real kitchen (no oven or stove top). As she is a student and I am a teacher, the rent in San Francisco was becoming too much for us and we couldn't continue to compete with those dot-commers. That being said, I absolutely love our little home and take much pride in all that we have done decoratively. 

I have had this Ikea cart since I moved to San Francisco 5 years ago (oh my god has it been that long?), but was never really into the plain pine look of it. It just didn't mesh with the rest of my style. So when I found some Ikea hack inspiration via google, I decided to give it a go.

before

Source

I like it as an island, but it needed more character

* Unfortunately, I slacked at getting pictures of the process, but I will explain it below *

After

So there you have it. Overall, I am happy with how it turned out. I would have liked the wood stain to be a little bit lighter, but I still think it looks much better than the original.

The Process:

      Materials

• miniwax dark walnut stain (or any color stain you want)
• white spray paint (at least 2 cans)
• paint brushes
• miniwax polyshades (gloss)
• wood conditioner

Day One:

1.  cover everything but the top cutting board. For this I used garbage bags and tape, but you could use anything.
2. apply your first light layer of stain

Day Two:

     1. apply your second layer of stain

Day Three:

     1. apply your wood conditioner first and then miniwax polyshade wood sealant (I did not do this step because I was in a rush, but it makes ALL the difference. I need to go back and do this as soon as I find the time).

Day Four:

1. Cover the stained part and spray paint the bottom of the cart with white spray paint. 
2. Apply the first layer, wait an hour, and apply the second
3. Let dry for 3 hours 

Voila! You're done! What do you think?

xx,
W