DIY Ikea Malm Gets A Makeover Into A Changing Table

Changing tables are too expensive, then again I think everything should only cost $5, MAYBE $10. So I have been searching the classifieds for something cheap that I could fix up.  I had in mind a pretty french provincial dresser but every time I found one for sale it was either more money than I wanted to spend or it was already sold (why can't I be the only one on the hunt for a good deal??) But one day it occurred to me that I had a dresser I could use, it just wasn't the style I had in mind. I bought this IKEA Malm dresser about 5 years ago when I came home from serving an LDS mission and I needed a dresser fast. I remember the day clearly because it was my first time ever going to IKEA and my Mom and I felt like we were rats in a maze and we couldn't find our way out; talk about a good way to give a girl a panic attack.

Here's the dresser before, very plain & simple. You'll notice, I'm sure, the bottom board which seems very out of place. You see, what happened is there were two boards the same exact size, one was blue and the other was not. Somehow I ended up with the blue piece inside of the dresser where no eye will ever see it and the very plain wood piece on the outside. Don't be like me. Read your instruction manual.

 
Step One:
Lightly sand. I didn't get a picture of this, but I'm sure if you tap into your 5 year old self you can imagine it up.

Step Two:
Prime. I Just used the same primer we have been using for our walls. Is that allowed? I don't know, I guess we'll see if it holds up. I also didn't bother to paint inside because once the drawers are in you can't even see it.  If anyone comes to my house and scrutinizes the dresser enough to see the original paint color then they deserve to know I'm lazy. Plain and simple.

Whenever I paint anything I always use a foam roller instead of a paint brush. This way it looks more professional and you don't get the brush strokes from the paint brush. I've seen a lot of people that paint it on with the brush then smooth it over with the foam roller, to each his own. I DO, however, keep a brush around to get in all tight areas where the roller won't fit. 
I use this Foam Roller Kit (affiliate link) and I love it. I also use the tray when I'm doing the trim on my walls.
This is my favorite Paint Brush (affiliate link) I also use this when I do the trim around the house.

Step Three:
Paint. I had a deep, deep internal struggle with myself deciding what color to do this dresser. I really wanted it white, but then I said to myself "Dude, let your child have a little color in her life! Just because you want everything to be white doesn't mean it should be." So I decided on Sherwin Williams "watery" because I had a jar of sample paint leftover from choosing colors in my master bedroom. My heart was still bleeding a little from being yelled at about the white paint, so to help ease the pain I took one cup of the watery and added a half cup of white paint to it.

 I absolutely positively LOVE how the color turned out! I have given myself many pats on the back for it

*TIP If you have to step away from painting for any reason, like, I don't know a baby that doesn't know how to take naps without being held for example. Just keep some plastic wrap and sandwich bags close by so that you can cover up your paint and keep it from drying out. My paint went hours without being touched & it was like I never stepped away.

 

It's hard to step away in the middle of a project, but when your baby wakes up early from her nap looking this cute it makes it a whole lot easier. 

Step Four:
Add Hardware. When I started this project the vision in my head had a single long gold handle on each drawer. Then life happened. The only gold bars that I could find that were long enough and the right shade of gold were like $20-$40 and I had to buy 3 of them! So I found some shorter silver bars that I was going to spray paint gold, but I kind of failed. Luckily I only tried it out on one of them so I was able to return the rest. So I went to Hobby Lobby to see what they had for me and boy did they deliver! I found these cute little teardrop pulls and I fell in love with them instantly. I'm actually pretty happy that the bars didn't work out because I love these so much! To add these I just measured out where I wanted them, drilled the holes and slid those puppies right into place! 

 So the dresser isn't in her nursery right now because she's getting new carpet- woohoo! Once her room is all ready I'll do a whole room reveal and you'll see this piece in it's proper home. I also made the changing pad cover you see here WITHOUT sewing and I'll tell you how this next week! As always, thanks for reading!!