6 Ikea furniture hacks for small spaces to try right now

If you live in a tiny home, you will be all too familiar with Ikea furniture. It is a life saver for all us small space dwellers. Now we aren't about to throw any shade at Ikea – we love Ikea, all fans of Ikea here – but you can find that, as you start to fill your small place with all this gorgeous Scandi flat pack furniture, it does start to look pretty much like every other space on Instagram. Sound familiar?

Well fear not because that is where the best IKEA hacks come in. Little ways to make your Ikea furniture feel more like... yours. So keep scrolling for five easy ways to add some personality to your space (using your super affordable Ikea furniture).

Love finding great value home stuff? Make sure you keep an eye on our deals hub page for all the offers going on across our favourite brands. 

1. Get an UTÅKER stackable bed (it'll change your life)

This UTÅKER bed can be stacked – so you buy one bed, then can stack a second (and third) on top so that whenever you need extra sleep or seating space, it's right there, taking up no more space than a single bed. Look, below it's a daybed... but keep scrolling to see what else it can do.

Now (below), it's two daybeds/sofas (think guests piling in, filling those seats). Keep scrolling...

Now it's two singles...

Now it's a double...

Or, of course, you could just buy the one, and you've got a cheap single bed...

2. Make a really easy bedside light 

Bedside tables are very lucky if they make it into a small bedroom (although don't miss this DIY bedside table, made with an Ikea hack). Yes they are invaluable, but if you are working with a tiny space there simply might not be room. But you need a bedside light right? Well the answer is to wall mount it! 

Copy this idea by taking a Ekby Valter shelf bracket (they are just two quid) and wrapping around a lamp cord, there is already a hole in the top of the bracket for you to thread it through, add a nice warm bulb and voila. 

3. DIY a wallpaper headboard 

Headboards are beautiful, but when space is tight they can take up just a little bit too much room, so DIY one with some wallpaper! We love how this banana leaf print looks framed by the iconic Gjora bed – a super easy way to make a very popular piece of Ikea furniture look like your own. 

For more DIY headboards head over to our feature.

4. Create an alcove office 

In small spaces, alcoves can't be ignored! Put that space to use and use Ikea furniture to help you. This idea is super simple, just pick out some Ikea shelf brackets and shelving and use them to create a desk and some office storage. 

If you want to customise the size and look, you could pop down to a hardware shop and buy some planks of planed timber. Cut them to the perfect size to fit your alcove and mount them using the Ikea brackets. 

For loads more easy alcove ideas that are perfect for small spaces, head over to our dedicated feature. 

5. Replace a wardrobe with a stylish clothes rail 

Wardrobes take up sooo much room, so switch it out for this super stylish, super cheap bit of Ikea furniture – a clothes rail. Give it more of a built in wardrobe kind of feel by wall mounting a few floating shelves directly above it.  

Yes, we hear you, 'but not all my clothes look like they were made to match my home decor perfectly', but that's where under bed storage comes in. Pick out all your lovely clothes that need hanging and the ones you wear most often, and then neatly store everything else in boxes under your bed – still easily accessible, just not crammed to the back of a cumbersome wardrobe you don't really need. 

6. Use bed slats for extra wall storage 

Is this not the best Ikea furniture hack you have ever seen?! Literally all you need is bed slats and two wall hooks and there you have it, extra kitchen storage! Get some S hooks to hang off the slats and you can add loads of stuff – utensils, pots and pans, herbs, clip boards for shopping lists. Easy peasy. 

Totally works as bathroom storage too...

Read more: 

• 12 Ikea hacks you can do this weekend
• 6 ways to decorate your rented home (without losing your deposit)
• 10 ways to make a small kitchen feel bigger