When it comes to fashionability, IKEA isn’t always tops on the list for a high-end look. But when it comes to DIYing the high end look, IKEA pieces can make for a great sturdy starting pieces! Our guest today picked up an older IKEA piece for $25 at an antique market and put some love and elbow grease into it to turn it into an amazing rustic bar (with a metal top, too!):
Starting with an existing piece of furniture (IKEA or other) can save so much time on building from scratch! Lisa has the details of her bar below, and if you have a boring piece of furniture needing some love, try these:
Inspired? Good! Here’s Lisa:
Upcycled Rustic Bar with Metal Top
by Lisa from 2Perfection Decor
Hi I’m Lisa visiting today from 2Perfection Decor Blog. I’m so excited to be back here at Remodelaholic with yet another Upcycled furniture transformation. I am so honored to be here for a second time (see the first here).
Today I am showing our Rustic Bar transformation, using an Ikea Varde Kitchen island as the base.
I believe our bar was once this!! A Ikea Varde Base Cabinet! Not bad for $25! 😉I
My philosophy has always been if you can’t find it, build it! So that is exactly what we did to make our Bar. Our Bar transformation was was a true labour of love and I couldn’t have done it without some handy help from my hubby. I was the vision and he was the strength behind creating our perfect Bar.
First it started with ‘the HUNT’.. I was on the lookout for the perfect bar for months, I sourced everywhere, All the comparables were around $1500-$2000 so I searched local thrift shops, antique markets and my local Re-Store until finally one day I was talking to a local Antique dealer about what I was looking for and she said she didn’t have anything like what I wanted ‘exactly’, but she did have this old unit missing a top that was the size and dimensions I was looking for, but needed a lot love. It definitely wasn’t the look or height I was going for but it did have 3 working drawers, open shelving on the back and the width and depth were perfect, so I was sold! And hello the price was only $25!! You could NEVER build a ‘BASE’ for that kind of price.
For the bar we knew we needed to add height, add some sort of counter overhang and it needed to be rustic look to flow with the rest of our basement. The inspiration came from these great vintage barn doors that I picked up at an Antique sale last summer.
First we added an additional base using 2×4’s.. they would all be covered with planks soon enough.
Then came the fun part of adding horizontal planks of Cedar wood on the sides and front of bar. Once we had the base planks screwed in. We framed the edges with more cedar planks creating a ‘Picture frame” effect. for the front of the bar, we went with a arrow design similar to what you would find on old barn doors. Now it was looking like the rustic Bar I had envisioned.
We decided to stain the cedar in a grey tone like the doors and went with Minwax Classic Gray.
We went back and forth of counter top material options but finalized our decision on Galvanized steel. We found a local Sheet metal shop and gave them the dimensions and for under $80 they were able to create a custom galvanized metal counter top for our bar. But before my hubby could install the new counter top. He had to essentially build a whole new top to act as a base to create our much desired over hang, for our future bar stools.
Once he drilled in the 2 pieces of plywood for a thicker counter top base, then we used construction adhesive to attach our newly custom moulded to fit Galvanized Steel counter top. It totally completed the Rustic industrial bar look we were craving.
We then added 3 inch casters to make it bar height and the added option of easy mobility. So great to move around for summer parties.
Lastly we drilled wood fronts to all 3 drawers with new industrial 6 inch oil rubbed bronze pulls from
The plan is to add a pipe foot rail down the road.. hopefully coming soon!
Total Cost:
Ikea Base from Vintage shop – $25
Cedar wood planks $ 100
galvanized steel counter top $80
R.H Bronze Hardware pulls x3 $30
construction adhesive $5
Minwax Classic Gray Stain – $20
Misc. (screws and nails) $10
For approx $270 we now have a custom looking, rustic barn inspired Bar. This bar could easily be a kitchen island as well.
If you liked our bar you may want to check out my Blog master bedroom or our Full Basement post Reveal HERE.
Thanks for taking the time to read my post today, Have a great day!
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Thanks, Lisa!
Head over to 2Perfection Decor to see more of Lisa’s home, like her new sofa table and her master bedroom and ensuite bathroom.
I love the bar! I’m trying to figure out where I can put one in my house!!! Pinning.
Thank you so much Cassity and Lorene for featuring our Rustic Bar!! I couldn’t be more thrilled!
Have a great week!
[email protected]
Thanks for sharing, Lisa! We love it!!
Oh how I love metal countertops, and the metal meets rustic look, I love this!!
This is so cool! I love the stain color and industrial counter tops. She definitely achieved what she was going for!
Love these hacked pieces! The link for the casters was “page not found”. Do you by any chance have the name, brand, etc.?
Thank you, Hope
The link is working for me now, but they are EVERBILT Heavy Duty Swivel Casters (from Home Depot, but it’s the Canadian site so maybe that is why you get an error?)
I am in love with the galvanized countertop!! Was that a DIY project, or did you purchase it as is? I’m building an island for my own kitchen and the countertop is still is flux. This is perfect solution!!
We are building a bar and have purchased the galvanized tin for the top as well. How did you wrap your corners and lip?
How did you stain it that color ?
How much over hang is the front counter top,please?
My son and husband are almost done constructing this bar.
Thanks for the idea!!
Where did the stools come from??
I love this! This would be perfect for a backyard for those who can enjoy warm weather for more than a few months!
This is awesome! I love how the metal counter top and stained gray base go with your floors and house paint color. Do you know the color and brand of paint on your house walls? Love this look! Great job!
Michelle
Love it! I would like that galvanized look for my kitchen counters… how hard is it to care for?
I wanted to show you the bar my husband built after seeing yours. It was definitely not a beginner project, but we love how it turned out. We’re waiting for the metal top to be finished and plan to stain it like yours. Thank you so might for posting. You are an inspiration!
Hi Julie! We would love to see — you can submit your photos here: https://www.remodelaholic.com/share-brag-post/