TL;DR
Apartment Therapy writer Cori Sears turned a secondhand IKEA TARVA nightstand into a dollhouse-style piece for her daughter’s bedroom. She added miniature windows, a hinged door and scalloped trim; Sears said the project supplies cost about $50, not including the nightstand she already owned.
Apartment Therapy writer Cori Sears has shared a DIY makeover that turned a secondhand IKEA TARVA nightstand into a dollhouse-style piece for her daughter’s bedroom. The project used miniature windows and a door, scalloped wood trim and stain; Sears said the supplies cost about $50, while the nightstand was one she already owned.
Sears said she took inspiration from Pottery Barn’s Sherwood Dollhouse Nightstand, a solid-wood design with carved details intended to evoke a small house. She wanted to make a customized version without buying that piece, so she used the TARVA nightstand she had found secondhand several years earlier. According to her account, it had stickers and crayon marks when she acquired it; she cleaned and lightly sanded it, then applied white-wash pickling stain.
For the new front, Sears bought a 3/4-inch-thick pine board, five dollhouse-sized wood windows, a miniature wood door, small hinges, more of the stain and scalloped wood trim. She reported spending about $50 on supplies. She said the pine board and stain came from a local hardware store, the windows and door from a dollar store, and the trim from Amazon.
Her process involved removing the drawer and hardware, cutting the pine board to size and measuring the layout for the windows and door. Sears used a jigsaw to cut the openings and wood glue to attach the miniature pieces, then added scalloped trim to the top of the new door. She stained the new parts and attached the door with hinges. Sears said the stain on the new pine did not match the older nightstand exactly, which she attributed to the older wood having yellowed over time.
A Secondhand Piece, Reworked
The project offers readers a specific example of how an existing, relatively simple furniture piece can be adapted rather than replaced. Sears’s account puts the reported supply cost at about $50, but that figure does not include the nightstand because she already owned it; it should not be read as the full cost for someone starting from scratch. The report also illustrates how a few added details—a small door, miniature windows and trim—can change the look of a familiar IKEA item.
For people considering a similar project, the article provides a practical outline and names the materials used. It does not establish that every TARVA nightstand or set of supplies will produce the same result, and the actual cost may vary by location and availability. Sears also described the measuring and layout work as time-consuming, a detail that helps set expectations beyond the project’s attractive finished appearance.
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Why Sears Chose the TARVA
Sears described the TARVA range as a popular DIY base because its pieces are made from solid pine and sold unfinished. She noted that the line includes a nightstand, two dressers and a bed frame, and said the untreated wood can be adapted with paint, stain or added wooden parts. The nightstand’s listed new price in her report was $79.99; she also said she often looks for secondhand TARVA pieces at thrift stores, garage sales and on Facebook Marketplace.
The nightstand Sears used had already been cleaned, sanded and stained before this makeover. Her project therefore built on an earlier refurbishment rather than starting with a new, untouched item. She said the dollhouse concept drew on the look of Pottery Barn’s Sherwood design, but the materials and construction she described were her own DIY approach.
“The finished piece is exactly what I was hoping for: sweet, straight out of my wildest fairytale, oh-so charming, and totally affordable.”
— Cori Sears, writing for Apartment Therapy
dollhouse miniature windows and door
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Costs and Finish May Vary
The reported $50 supply cost is Sears’s estimate for the materials she bought and does not include the secondhand nightstand, which she already had. The source does not provide a full itemized breakdown, labor time, or a total cost for someone purchasing a TARVA nightstand new. It also does not say whether all listed materials remain available at the same prices.
Sears said the stain colors did not match exactly, and attributed the difference to the age and natural yellowing of the original wood. The article does not report long-term wear, safety testing or how the added door and miniature parts hold up with regular use in a child’s room. The source also does not give measurements for the cutouts or a full set of step-by-step plans.
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Possible Dollhouse Interior Plans
Sears said the nightstand’s interior can be left as it is for storing books and other items, or decorated to resemble a miniature dollhouse. She suggested she may take the latter approach in the future, but did not provide a timetable or a confirmed plan. For now, the report documents the completed exterior makeover and leaves any interior changes as a possibility.
Readers following the project should treat Sears’s account as a description of one individual DIY build, not a tested set of instructions. Anyone attempting a similar design would need to measure their own furniture and confirm that the chosen materials and attachments fit the piece.
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Key Questions
What IKEA furniture did Cori Sears transform?
She used a secondhand IKEA TARVA nightstand that she had owned for several years.
What did the makeover add?
Sears added a new pine front with five miniature windows, a hinged dollhouse door and scalloped wood trim, then stained the new parts.
How much did the supplies cost?
Sears reported spending about $50 on supplies. The figure excludes the nightstand, which she already owned, and the source does not provide a full itemized cost.
Did the new stain match the old nightstand?
No. Sears said the stain colors differed, and suggested the older nightstand’s wood had yellowed with age.
Will Sears decorate the inside like a dollhouse?
She said she may transform the interior in the future, but did not announce a schedule or confirm that she will do so.
Source: rss
