Transform IKEA Dressers Into Built-In Bookshelves

[ad_1]

It’s been a busy but productive week in the nursery built-in department, so I’ll cover a lot in this post. Buckle up, crank your favorite Swedish electropop, and get ready for the nitty-gritty details on how we transformed two free-standing Ikea dressers into a built-in dresser and bookshelf combo (the mock-up on the right is just a Photoshop rendering, not the finished result).

We bought two FJELL dressers because their size was perfect and they’re made of solid wood. That made them a great starting point, but a few issues needed attention before they could look built-in:

The indented side profile prevented the dresser from sitting flush against the wall, creating a noticeable gap.
Existing baseboards along the side and back blocked the dressers from hugging the walls tightly.
The bottom drawer didn’t have enough clearance above the floor to accommodate wrap-around baseboards, which we wanted to add for a finished built-in look.

None of these were deal-breakers, but they required extra work. We started with the baseboards—the kind of obstacle anyone will encounter when trying to build furniture into a wall. The solution was simple: remove the offending sections. I marked where to cut, keeping in mind that removing the side baseboard would allow the dresser to shift left against the wall, and removing the back baseboard would let it sit further back.

To cut the baseboard out I used a Dremel Multimax. A leftover metal radiator cover protected the floor and made a loud sound if my blade got too close, which was a helpful warning to avoid damaging the surface beneath. After cutting through, I scored the seam between the wall and the baseboard with a utility knife to prevent paint from peeling. Then I pried off the quarter-round and the baseboard.

With the back and side baseboard removed I pushed the dresser into the corner—only to find the dresser top was now the problem. The top overhung the bottom and kept the dresser from sitting completely flush. The fix was to trim the top slightly. Since this was an IKEA piece, the top came off easily. I marked the cut line and wrote measurements on the side so I wouldn’t accidentally cut the wrong piece downstairs at the saw.

On the table saw I set a guide to the correct measurement and trimmed the two sides. This was one of those moments we were glad to have chosen solid wood over particle board, since the cut came out clean. After reattaching the trimmed top the dresser sat flush against the back wall, but there was still a 3/4″ side gap to address.

The side gap was an easy fix: I slipped a 1×2 scrap piece of wood into the space after cutting it to length on the miter saw. It fit snugly, but I drove a couple of nails through the dresser into the scrap for extra security.

The final challenge was raising the dresser so the bottom drawer wouldn’t be blocked by new baseboards. We built a simple platform out of 2×4 framing lumber to lift the dresser about 3.5″ off the floor. I cut the pieces and attached them with a Kreg jig and heavy-duty screws. The dresser then sat right on top of the base. I didn’t attach the dresser to the base, which led to the next important step: securing the whole assembly to the wall.

Stability was crucial—dressers can tip if all drawers are opened at once—so I used a stud finder and drilled through solid wood into studs along both the side and the back. Anchoring both the base and the dresser to studs made the whole thing rock solid and flush with the wall.

The work wasn’t flashy, but careful measuring, cutting, and screwing took a full day for each dresser. After that, we paused construction to tackle painting and staining while things were still disassembled. Painting in stages meant less taping and neater edges, which ultimately saves time and yields a cleaner result.

First we stained the tops to showcase the wood grain and provide a contrasting accent. We compared two favorite stains by looking at previous projects: one in Red Mahogany and one in Dark Walnut. In person Dark Walnut matched the room’s wood tone better and complemented other wood pieces we planned to place in the nursery, so we went with that. Each top received two coats of stain followed by two coats of Acrylacq sealer. Because we let each coat dry fully, staining and sealing stretched over about four days.

While the tops cured, we primed and painted the dresser bases. We were mindful of potential knot bleed-through in this solid wood. To prevent stains from bleeding through the paint we used a couple of techniques: filling prominent knots with wood putty and brushing a thin layer of wood glue over those areas. The putty step is time-consuming and required careful sanding, but the glue was quicker and cleaner. We could have used a shellac-based primer to stop bleed-through, but we prefer low-VOC products in a nursery, so we used Kilz Premium primer and added the putty and glue as extra insurance.

Once primed, we painted with Benjamin Moore Advance in Senora Gray—a durable, low-VOC furniture/cabinet paint with good self-leveling properties. The color appeared lighter when wet and gave us pause at first, but it dried to a richer tone that complemented the stained tops and hardware. The lighter finish also helps brighten the room, which only has a single window, and creates a pleasing contrast with the wood element.

After two coats of paint we reassembled everything: drawer fronts, stained tops, hardware (we kept the original FJELL hardware), and started installing floor molding. We’ll paint the baseboard and shoe molding to match the built-ins after some careful caulking so the whole piece reads as one built-in unit.

Update #1: We chose to paint the baseboard and future crown to match the built-ins for a cohesive, floor-to-ceiling look. It feels intentional and allows the stained top to serve as the main accent.

Update #2: Some readers asked about filling the dresser’s interior indentation for symmetry. We actually like that small architectural detail and plan to keep it for now, though it’s easy to change later if we decide to balance the edges differently.

Assuming the final steps go smoothly, we expect the built-ins to be fully finished and painted within a couple more days—right on track with our timeline for baby boy’s arrival. With the big project nearly checked off, we’re excited to move on to the fun parts: bedding, a mobile, art, curtains, a bold closet door, wall treatment behind the crib, and lighting.

More Built-In Storage Projects

We’ve completed several built-in cabinet projects that might give you more ideas and inspiration, including custom hacks and built-in bookshelves using stock cabinets and dressers.