{New Bedside Tables...they're a RAST hack}

Do you want to turn this...                                     into this?



Rast dressers from IKEA are pretty boring on their own (no offense, IKEA, you know I heart you), but I have seen IKEA's Rast pine dresser transformed into fabulous end tables out there in the blogosphere!

Look what Lindsay and Aubrey did to their Rast for their bedroom.  Absolutely divine...I love the mix of wood and paint. 

Source: aubreyandlindsay.blogspot.com via acharmingnest.com on Pinterest

Why don't my pictures turn out like this?

I love what Hodge Podge did to reinvent their Rast.  Very cool and chic with silver and black.

Source: hodgepodge-babselou.blogspot.com via acharmingnest.com on Pinterest

RAST dressers are solid wood, and seem to be pretty sturdy...which is a plus in my book.  I thought the drawers operated pretty smoothly as well...and at $34.99 they were cheap in our price range. 

Using the photos above as our inspiration, my goal was to transform these boring, and kind of ugly dressers into something fabulous for our bedroom. Justin and I really needed end tables for our bedroom. We have been using some that I had picked up at Walmart for several years, and although they fulfill the purpose of holding the alarm clocks, glasses, books and shelter magazines, we needed more storage.

What you'll need: Rast dresser from IKEA, nail gun, wood puddy, stain of your choice, poly, 6 pulls (or 12 if you want to keep the original holes), paint of your choice

Lumber you'll need:
2 (1x4) cut to the width of the dresser
1 (1x6) cut to the width of the dresser
lattice (about 40 feet)
1 (1x2) or firring strip cut to the width of the space under the third drawer

Using 1 piece of lattice and an extra piece of 1x2 lumber we built up the bottom, so there would be a place to attach the base molding to the bottom...

Add the base molding.  You could use anything here...if you don't like miter cuts, then use 1x4's...

We bought about 40 feet of lattice and trimmed out both sides and drawers with it.  We LOVE the way this turned out...

Use wood puddy to fill your nail holes.

For the top, we essentially just made a tray (check out the {LittleTrays} post) using two pieces of pre-stained (1/2 English Chestnut and 1/2 Special Walnut) 1x4's and one piece of 1x6 cut to the width of the dresser.  We nailed those cut pieces to the top side-by-side, and then trimmed the edges with pre-stained lattice...

Paint the rest of the dresser...we used a mixture of SW Extra White and a touch of SW Nomadic Desert that we had left over from wall touch-ups. 

Add knobs (we got these from Hobby Lobby for 50% off, so only a $1.99 each)!

Here's the top...

We have a his...

 And a hers...

Now, I have plenty of room for bedside storage and won't have to look at all that clutter.  I love the way they turned out!  I wonder what else I can hack from IKEA? Oh, the money saving possibilities! I heart IKEA...and I just can't leave it alone.