21 Gorgeous Ikea BESTA Hacks

We love simplicity in our furniture, it allows us to customise however we like. The Ikea BESTA units are as simple as it gets, so they are obviously ripe for upgrading with some great Ikea BESTA hacks!

The BESTA range comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes, so you’ll be able to find the perfect unit for your needs. They also have a large selection of choices for door finishes already.

But at the end of the day, they are simple boxes.

Let’s have a look at how we can turn them into something a little more exciting. We found a huge range of ideas for Ikea BESTA hacks that range from quirky and colourful to sleek and luxurious.


Luxury Dark Besta Sideboard

Ikea Besta Hacks sideboard
Source: @our_home_interior_3

We love the interplay of dark and light surfaces, as well as different textures. So this stunning Ikea Besta Hack from Our Home Interiors is right up our street!

They have added ribs to the front of the Besta doors to completely change the feel of the unit. At the same time, painting the whole thing a dark, moody grey gives it real presence in the room.

Don’t let your beautiful furniture pale into the background. Let it stand out!

Japanese Style Besta Cabinet

Japanese Style Besta Cabinet
Source: Fronteriors

How to make a real statement piece: Stack some Besta units, get a company like Fronteriors to supply some fabric-lined doors, create some gorgeous slimline legs and voila!

Ok, this is quite a detailed project, but it should inspire you to create something that looks hugely expensive on a bit of a lower budget.

You can find great looking legs at places like Pretty Pegs or find a local metal fabricator to create something like you see above. It’ll still work out much cheaper than buying a piece of furniture like this!

Floating Sideboard Besta Hack

Floating Sideboard Besta Hack
Source: The Posh Home

We really enjoy seeing beautiful, Instagram-worthy homes using Ikea hacks for some of their stunning furnishings.

It shows the world that you can create something amazing on an Ikea budget!

These fantastic floating units are based around simple Besta cupboards with wood effect doors and sides added. A thin, white marble top and some brass handles finish the look perfectly.

Colour Block Besta Units

Colour Block Besta Units
Source: Sugar and Cloth

Sometimes you just need a bit of colour… or a shed load of colour!!

These colour-block Besta units are a fantastic way to inject a bit of fun into any space that needs it. And why not!?

All you need to do is go down to your local DIY store and pick up a range of your favourite colours in tester pots (no need for a whole paint tin!). Then go nuts having a grand old time painting your Besta doors.

Rustic Wood-Topped Ikea Besta Hack

Ikea Besta Hacks
Source: @atmosphere_et_sens

I think this is my favourite Ikea Besta Hack. It’s such a simple way to completely transform the look of some simple Besta units from Atmosphere Et Sens.

They have found a lovely piece of live-edged timber (go to your local timber yard, saw mill or ask at your local timber merchant).

You can have it finished by the timber yard or take home a raw piece and sand and oil it yourself.

It’s a really great way to add a wow-factor easily.

Rust-Fronted Besta Door Decals

Rust-Fronted Besta Door Decals
Source: Behang Fabrik

Behang Fabriek have a huge range of decals for all sorts of Ikea products. You can transform your Besta doors with an exciting, unique finish that simply sticks onto the front.

These rust-effect stickers are one of my favourites and help turn your Besta units into an industrial inspired statement piece.

If you want to go a step further, you could add some stick-on rivet decals around the edge to give it a more realistic look. Find these at model shops.

Ikea Besta Bathroom Cabinet Hack

Ikea Besta Bathroom Cabinet Hack
Source: @9burcu0

We have created many bathroom cabinets over the years, some of which have been Ikea hacks. This great bathroom cabinet from @9burcu0 is a fantastic example of what is possible.

They have a used some Ikea Besta units with some hairpin legs and a thin marble top. The basin and tap have been fitted on top (you might need a plumber to do this bit).

It’s a great way to customise exactly what you want in your bathroom without having to choose from the bathroom cabinets that are out there.

Cane Door Panel Hack

Ikea Besta Hacks
Source: Lygge

Adding cane to Ikea products is a great way to easily enhance the looks and we have a post dedicated to Ikea cane hacks.

This Besta cane hack from Lygge is so simple and beautifully done.

Simply get some cane sheet, cut to size and stick to the front of a panelled Besta door.

Easy Peasy!

Curvy Custom Ikea Besta Hacks Sideboard

Curvy Custom Ikea Besta Sideboard
Source: Our Bears Home

Add a unique top to your Besta units and you’ve got yourself a hack!

The simple addition of a curvy top panel by Our Bears Home has created a sideboard with attitude!

If you want to jazz up your boring Besta units, take some inspiration from this!

Colour Matched Built-In Besta Units

Colour Matched Built-In Besta Units
Source: Our Rustic Home Renovation

A wonderful way to add storage to a room without it looking like it’s taking up too much space is to colour match it to the walls.

This stunning Besta sideboard hack from Our Rustic Home Renovation, embellished with some wooden strips at the front, has been painted in the same colour os the walls around it to fit in beautifully.

Add some stylish accessories on top and the look is complete!

Custom Built-In Storage

Custom Built-In Storage
Source: My Domaine

If you really want to hide the fact that you’re using Ikea Besta units, then take a leaf out of this beautiful project shown on My Domaine.

They have built Besta units into a wall space and added custom wooden boxes to create a completely unique look.

We love the wooden slats added at the back of the wooden boxes for a textural detail.

Fretwork Door Panels

Ikea Besta Hacks
Source: Front Cover

A bit of texture or pattern instantly changes the look of a piece of furniture and this Besta sideboard hack from Front Cover uses a stunning fretwork panel to do just this.

They custom make panels to fit a variety of Ikea products and these diamond pattern panels are simply gorgeous.

Add some brass legs to the bottom and you have a stylish piece of furniture without the high-end price.

Mid-Century Sideboard Hack

Mid-Century Sideboard Hack
Source: @ourhouseinwrigley

This image from Our House In Wrigley is a beautiful example of how well wood and dark walls go together to create a sumptuous look.

The wood is in the form of custom made doors for their Besta units which have been given a dark stain. They have then added some mid-century tapered brass legs to easily give the sideboard a mid-century look.

Simply add some stylish accessories and a plant and you have a gorgeous focal point in any room.

Ornate Besta Sideboard Hack

Ornate Besta Sideboard Hack
Source: Hokus Pokus Home

Sometimes there are Ikea hacks that you just have to sit back and applaud while admiring the beauty of it. This incredible sideboard from Hokus Pokus Home is one of those!

You can’t quite believe this is a Besta hack, but I’m taking them at their word!

Actually I can see how it’s been done and it has taken a lot of hard work and talent. Bravo! Check out some of their other creations for inspiration!

Plywood Surrounded Besta Units

Ikea Besta Hacks
Source: Dirksdotter

Now this project hasn’t taken quite as much work as the previous one, but I’m not holding that against them. It’s still a fantastic hack from Dirksdotter and much more accessible to everyone.

They have simply cut (or get the timber merchant to cut it if you don’t have the tools) plywood sheets to fit around the outside of their Besta cupboards.

It’s a simple, yet transformative hack that gives a great, industrial look to the room.

Tile-Topped Besta Hack

Tile-Topped Besta Hack
Source: Binti Home

As you’ve seen, sometimes all you need to do is add a unique and stylish top surface to your Besta units. This gorgeous sideboard from Binti Home does something a little bit different.

They have used tiles to create a lovely and hard-wearing top to their Besta sideboard.

If you’ve wanted to have a go at tiling but don’t want your first time to be in a big bathroom project, why not have a go at creating a tiled surface for a piece of furniture like this!?

Three-Dimensional Door Fronts

Ikea Besta Hacks
Source: Ikeahackers

I’ve talked about adding texture and pattern before, but this awesome project takes it to another level. This is extreme texture!

This great Besta hack from Ikeahackers uses stick-on geometric panels to create a futuristic, sci-fi sideboard.

This looks like it’s straight out of Lost in Space!

Minimalist Marble Besta Hack

Minimalist Marble Besta Hack
Source: Little Design Corner

Another simple addition of a top surface has made this Besta unit into a luxury piece of furniture.

This project, shown on Little Design Corner, was all about minimalist and expensive-looking materials.

You don’t even have to spend a lot doing this if you can find a reclaimed marble kitchen work surface and get it chopped down. There are also marble-effect acrylic worktops that you can use for this.

Ribbed Besta Unit

Ribbed Besta Unit
Source: A Beautiful Mess

These fluted or ribbed finishes are very much on trend. They add that elusive bit of texture to a room that has a super-transformative effect.

This Ikea Besta hack from A Beautiful Mess uses half-round mouldings that you can pick up from your local DIY store or order online.

Stick them to your Besta doors and then paint to create a rather unique, textural piece of furniture.

Under Stairs Cupboard Hack

Under Stairs Cupboard Hack
Source: @bouwnummer_29

We love a bit of well-used space and under the stairs is always a tricky one to get right. This fantastic Ikea Besta hack from Bouwnummer 29 does it really well.

They have gone for the rib-fronted look and created a completely custom-made look for these storage units.

It’s so simple, but looks so utterly timeless.

Colourful Rattan Besta Hack

Colourful Rattan Besta Hack
Source: Studio DIY

Let’s finish with a bang and one of the most colourful Ikea Besta hacks from Studio DIY.

The colour is awesome, the knobs are big and bold, the rattan/hessian inserts work perfectly and the little tapered feet with their brass finish are utterly adorable!

Have some fun with your Ikea hacks, as these guys evidently did!


There is only one outcome when you combine a simple, practical, well made box with some out-of-the-box creativity and imagination… A stunning, unique Ikea Besta hack that you can be proud of.

The Besta units are the perfect base for your Ikea hacks and if you have some that you don’t know what to do with, I hop you do now!

Have fun creating some stylish additions to your home and share them with us!

1 thought on “21 Gorgeous Ikea BESTA Hacks”

  1. This post was super informative!! My husband is super talented and I know we can create a Besta of our own. Good work in creating this!!

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