ikea hack: malm dressing table.

Six months ago, I assembled this IKEA MALM Dressing Table to use in our master bedroom as a glorified TV stand. The size and height worked beautifully with our space, but I didn't anticipate the eyesore in created: a mass of crazy cords from our TV, cable box, and wireless router. After staring at these cords every morning, I decided to take matters into my own hands. I needed an easy {and affordable} solution stat.

Since we aren't going to be in this apartment forever, I didn't want to spend much money on the solution. The dressing table itself cost $149, so I ideally wanted to round out the project for under $200. I realized the best method to cover this mess would be some sort of curtain. Since curtains don't really come in that size, I knew I would have to make my own. 

To hold the curtain, I found a white tension shower curtain rod at Bed Bath & Beyond for $11.99. I used a 20% off coupon, so I took it home for only $9.59. For the curtain itself, I wanted to use a few yards of the Pottery Barn linen fabric to match our headboard. However, our budget got the best of me. At $40 per yard, I knew it wasn't worth the price for a nine-month solution. I stumbled upon NY Fabric Center online and found a nice linen for half the cost: $18.49 per yard. I was even able to score a free shipping coupon via RetailMeNot.com, so my grand total for the fabric was $36.98. {Note: I'm sure you could find some other fabric to your liking at your local fabric store; I just made a quick decision late one night and went with this!}

Below,  you can find a little play-by-play of how I made this hack happen--pin it for later or download a PDF for easy reference by clicking here!

The total cost of this project came to $195.57 {$149 for the table + $9.59 for the rod + $35.98 for the linen}. As for a time investment, I would estimate at least 60 to 90 minutes for the assembly of the table itself {more if you're not familiar with IKEA products}. The sewing of the curtain should take less than 30 minutes. I'll admit that it had been a little while since I used my sewing machine, so it took me a bit longer than I had hoped. All tolled, I was at my sewing machine for 60 minutes.

I apologize for the long post, but it was necessary to include all the details. Coming in under $200 with relatively little headache, I'd say this was a win for me. {cv} even agreed ;) Have you found any other fun hacks {that worked} across the interwebs lately? Please share! xoxo {av}