Home Office Desk Unit IKEA Hack – Week 6 of the One Room Challenge

Welcome to week six of the One Room Challenge (ORC), Home Office Desk Unit IKEA Hack. For the Spring 2024 ORC, I’m taking an area of our unfinished basement and transforming it into a serene home office. This week, I planned and constructed a desk unit using IKEA components including two IKEA dressers, two IKEA Pax cabinets, and IKEA kitchen countertops. In this post, I’ll share how I created this desk unit and how you can use IKEA pieces to create a custom desk unit in your own home.

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In case you want to see the progress I made in the first five weeks of the One Room Challenge, you can read my earlier posts here:

Less than two weeks remain in the One Room Challenge and I still have a significant amount of work to do. I hope you’ll stick around to see the big reveal May 22.

Our Home Office

If you’ve been following along with me and this year’s first One Room Challenge, you will have seen this project from its humble unfinished basement beginnings. In the fall we finished framing and drywalling this room. Then, a few weeks ago I painted, installed flooring, built a shelving unit, and constructed a daybed from scratch. To save time and to take advantage of the functionality of IKEA furniture, I decided to construct a desk unit using IKEA pieces. The desk wall is a very long, almost 18-foot-long wall! My husband and I have been waiting a long time for a home office so we knew what we wanted.

Our Wish List for the Desk

We knew we needed a dedicated work surface for each of us. My husband sometimes works from home and also requested a place to store paperwork (a lot of it) and pay bills. He wanted a large work surface and a place for our printer. I work from home blogging and running a craft business. On my list was a large work surface with space for a computer and a sewing machine. I also knew I needed space to store craft supplies and finished products for my Etsy shop. We both wanted a large and smooth work surface. You can see the area I’ve been using for a home office here. It’s a cute space but does not have nearly enough storage and my husband currently has no place to work from home. He migrates from kitchen island to kid’s desks and deserves a dedicated home office space.

Inspiration Photo

This desk unit in the image below was designed and made by the talented Samantha Potter. You can read about how she created this fabulous desk here. It is my inspiration for our Home Office Desk Unit IKEA Hack. I fell in love with the green colour and liked the use of IKEA components. However, our wall is much larger and we needed a desk solution for two people, so I designed a bigger desk unit.

Planning the Desk Unit

I made a scale drawing on paper using the dimensions of IKEA countertops, cabinets, and dressers to guide me. Next, I searched for the right combination of IKEA components to fit the 212″ long wall. Finally, I made a plan and then headed to IKEA to ensure that the pieces I had selected online would provide the exact look I was going for. The three main components were the Songesand dresser, Pinnarp countertop, and Pax wardrobe. Everything else I would build myself.

The Songesand dressers will anchor each end of the desk unit, support the desktop, and provide valuable storage.

Two IKEA Pinnarp countertops will provide large and smooth work surfaces for both paperwork and crafts.

The pair of Pax wardrobes will provide separation between my husband’s side of the desk and mine. Plus they will provide lots of valuable storage.

Materials List for One Desk Unit (Double for 2-Person Unit)

From IKEA:

1 Pax wardrobe (19 5/8″ W x 22 7/8″ D x 79 1/8″ H) or choose whichever size fits your space
1 Songesand dresser (32 1/4″ W x 31 7/8″ H)
1 Pinnarp countertop (74″ W by 25 5/9″ D)
1 Bersbo door and hinges for the Pax wardrobe
Whichever combination of shelves and drawers you want for the Pax wardrobe

From a Hardware Store or Lumber Mill:

2 x 4 x8′ pine for cabinet base
2 x 3 x 8′ pine for cabinet base
Wood screws for assembly (1 1/4″ to 3 1/2″ long)
2 x 2 x 4′ pine for cabinet topper
6″ wide (1/2″ or 3/4″ thick) plywood for cabinet topper to match the dimensions of the top of the Pax unit plus extra to extend to the back wall
Solid (3/4″ thick) plywood to match the dimensions of the base of the Pax unit

I purchase my plywood from KJP Select Hardwoods in Ottawa as they have great quality Baltic Birch plywood. It’s fine-grained and very strong and when it’s painted, it has a smooth appearance.

Assembling the IKEA Furniture

I assembled the IKEA furniture while listening to an audiobook (Fourth Wing!) and the pieces came together very easily in less than two hours. IKEA furniture assembly is just Lego for adults.

Making the Cabinet Base

The cabinet base matches the dimensions of the Pax cabinet base. Since I knew I was placing two Pax units side by side, I built the base to match the dimensions of the two Pax units when placed side by side. The base measures 5 1/4″ high by design so that the 5 1/2″ baseboards would completely cover the base. To build the base, I used three layers of 2 by 4’s for the front, middle and back. I also used a few 2 x 3’s for extra support. Each of these layers was 1 1/2″, resulting in a thickness of 4 1/2″. To top off the base, I added a 3/4″ thick piece of plywood for extra support. This brought the total height of the base to 5 1/4″.

I used my new Kreg Jig 720 to fasten some of the pieces together. So far, I love this handy tool and I can’t wait to use it on additional projects. I also purchased the Pocket Hole Screw Kit so I will never run out of screws in the middle of a project. I also used wood glue to secure everything into place.

Making the Cabinet Topper

There was a 7″ gap between the top of the cabinet and the ceiling, and since I wanted a floor-to-ceiling unit, I needed to add a cabinet topper. I decided to make the topper 1″ shy of the ceiling for ease of installation. Since I will be adding crown moulding, the gap at the top won’t be visible. I used pieces of plywood (cut in 6″ strips) to construct the top. I used 2 by 2’s to strengthen the corners, glueing and screwing everything together.

Note that because the Pax cabinets are slightly less deep than the Pinnarp countertops, there will be a gap at the back of the Pax units. I plan to cover this gap with some trim. For the cabinet topper, I decided to make it big enough to extend to the back wall, providing extra support for the crown moulding which will extend around the front and sides of the cabinet unit.

Securing the Cabinet Parts

I placed the cabinet base and then lifted the two Pax cabinets on top of the base. Next, I secured the two cabinets to each other with dowels through the shelf holes and special screws that IKEA provides specifically to secure Pax units together.

Then, I secured the Pax units to the base I had constructed using screws and washers through the base of the Pax units.

Next, I attached the Pax units to the wall using the hardware provided in the IKEA box. I had to add a 2 by 4 to the wall behind the cabinet to screw through because of the gap behind the cabinet. Finally, I secured the cabinet topper to the cabinet using No More Nails adhesive and brad nails driven up through the inside of the Pax cabinet top.

Securing the Dressers and Desktop

The dressers will be secured to the side walls with screws driven from the inside of the dresser through the wall studs. To support the countertop, I secured a 2 by 4 to the back wall. I will be painting this the same colour as the wall and it won’t be visible from the front of the desk since there will be a trim piece below the front edge of the desktop. The desktop will be put in place after the desk units are all painted. I plan to affix it using an adhesive so that it is very secure.

For the edge of the desktop that abuts the cabinet, I will be screwing through the interior of the Pax unit into the desktop. This won’t be necessary to support the desktop but will ensure that the work surface remains completely level.

Adding the Cabinet Trim

In the image below, you can see how the various parts of the desk unit were put together. Various trim pieces will be added as a final step to this home office desk unit IKEA hack. I will be removing the desktop, cabinet doors, and dresser drawers and painting everything this week. Then I will be able to put everything back in place and secure the remaining pieces together.

Priming and Painting

This is the colour I will be painting the entire desk unit with. I’ve started priming and painting and will share the whole process with you later this week. I can tell that the paint is going to make a huge difference to how this space looks. I’m already in love with this colour, Lush by Benjamin Moore.

Here’s a little sneak peek at the primed walls (note that the primer colour is several shades lighter than the actual paint colour). I also primed the IKEA units using a special high-grip primer designed for shiny or slippery surfaces.

What Else Did I Accomplish this Week

The desk unit was quite time-consuming and I had a few other exciting things going on in my life this week (travel and family activities). However, I did manage to order some office chairs, receive them, realize the colour wasn’t going to work and exchange them for a different colour!

Progress on the Project List for the Home Office

Here’s my updated project list for the One Room Challenge Spring 2024 edition:

Plan an optimal layout for the space ✔
Clean up the space- remove everything, sweep, and wipe every surface clean ✔
Construct window jamb extensions and frame the window ✔
Prime and paint walls and ceiling ✔
Install vinyl plank flooring ✔
Design and construct a reading bench ✔
Plan and construct built-in shelves ✔
Design and construct a two-desk wall unit with storage ✔
Apply feature wall behind desk unit
Prime and paint desk unit Started
Apply and paint trim
Install lighting
Make a cover for the reading bench and choose/make pillows
Decorate with rugs, cushions, plants, and accessories

Plans for the Coming Week

My goal for the coming week is to finish painting the desk unit and build the custom shelves for the desktop. I also plan to install the last two lighting fixtures. And I hope our doors are delivered this week so we can install them before May 22nd!

Summary

I hope you enjoyed reading about my home office desk unit IKEA hack. Thank you for joining me for the first six weeks of the Spring 2024 One Room Challenge. There are less than two weeks until the big reveal on May 22, so please stay tuned. I can’t wait for you to see how this turns out! Please head over to the One Room Challenge site to check out the posts by the other participants.