Recently, I sold the small white desk in my office for a larger, industrial-chic Restoration Hardware desk. I was so excited to find this desk on my neighborhood buy/sell/trade page! For a while now I’d been dreaming of more surface space to work with and this desk was just what I was looking for. But what I gained in surface space, I lost in drawer space. Unfortunately, this new desk has zero drawers. Womp womp.
Of course, losing my desk drawer meant I need to come up with a solution for all the crap my old drawer contained. I wanted something useful and efficient, but also true to my design aesthetic in my office. What I really wanted was vintage card catalog drawers. So I went hunting for some at a few antique stores. What I discovered was that old card catalog drawers are ridiculously expensive! $800 for a tiny set of three drawers?! Did the King of England keep his grandmother’s recipes in these drawers? What the actual heck justifies that price?
Anyway, I clearly was getting nowhere on my hunt for beautiful but practical (and affordable) drawer storage. One day while wandering through the aisles of IKEA, however, I happened upon this cheap, plain, not-so-pretty set of small drawers. I stood there and stared at it for a while formulating a plan for how I could transform these nondescript little cubbies into a card catalog. Then I tossed them in my bag, paid the nice lady, and hightailed it home to put my plan into action.
Y’all. These drawers turned out so much better than I even thought they would! And they are just what I needed to corral all my office drawer crap! Hooray! Here’s how I transformed these simple IKEA drawers into a knock-off vintage card catalog.
IKEA Hack: Vintage Card Catalog Drawers
This post contains affiliate links. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. You can read my full disclosure policy here.
Supplies:
- IKEA Moppe Mini Storage Chest
- Minwax wood stain
- sponge brush
- rag
- vintage drawer pulls
- drill
Instructions:
- Remove all the drawers from the chest and set each piece on a dropcloth.
- Using a sponge brush, stain all sides of the chest and each drawer. I used a combination of Minwax Classic Gray stain and Minwax Provincial stain.
- Use the rag to wipe off the excess stain after you finish each piece.
- Let the wood pieces dry completely, preferably overnight.
- Now it’s time to attach the drawer pulls. What used to be the front of the drawers (with the little notch cut out) will now be the back. I used a tape measure to find the center of each drawer. Screw each pull into place using your drill.
- Put all the drawers back in the chest, fill ’em up, and admire your handiwork!
Not bad, eh? Of course, I still need to add some labels in the pulls, but I’m still figuring out what the inside of my drawers will contain.
Doesn’t it resemble a vintage card catalog? I’m in love with this project. It’s easy and super cheap and it give me the vintage drawer look I was hoping for all along!
Love this. I too love card catalogs but…. you did a great job.
I love this !!! I just bought one too – that little lamp I love it, can you share where you got it?
I think I got it at TJ Maxx or Home Goods a couple years ago. But it may have been Hobby Lobby. 😂
It’s really good hack.!