Simple Ikea play kitchen hack

Growing up, I always wanted a play kitchen of my own. So when my mom bought my daughter, Zarah, one for Christmas to say I was excited to take on this project is an understatement. I had been eyeing this kitchen for a while because one, it’s budget-friendly and secondly it is very simplistic, allowing your imagination to run wild with its design. Plus it comes with risers, allowing it to grow with your child. There are tons of these kitchen hacks on Pinterest, so I had plenty of resources to choose from. After researching, I chose white, natural birch, black, pink, and rose gold for my color scheme. This color scheme is cute, easily gender-neutral, and can appeal to kids of various ages. I knew I didn’t want to do a lot of painting so choosing white and natural birch would require the least amount of work since those are the base colors. Less paint also means decreased opportunity of chipping due to wear and tear.

Supplies and purchases:

• Ikea play kitchen
• Rose gold spray paint
• Plastic primer
• 2 Flat white spray paint
• Clear gloss spray paint
• Painters tape
• Craft glue and tape
• Microwave decal
• 3 Rose gold drawer pulls
• Decorative wrapping paper for backsplash
• Poster board for backsplash
• Custom kitchen towel
• Ikea faux plant
• Copper play pot set
• Ikea play vegetable basket
• Ikea play fruit basket
• Ikea play cinnamon roll set

Wood pieces

Through my research, I read it was easier to paint before assembly. First I started with pieces that needed to be painted white, which was everything that wasn’t already white EXCEPT for what would be the countertop (about seven pieces). The white paint I used included a primer so I just wiped down the pieces and made sure they were clean in dry for paint prep. I painted all sides of each piece except the bottom with two coats of white paint. I allowed each coat to dry for a couple of hours and did not flip the pieces to do the other side until they had dried for 24 hours.

Plastic pieces

I covered the cooktop with paper and carefully placed painters tape around the perimeter of the black surface. This is important because the border would be painted gold and you don’t want the paint to get on the black portion. All the plastic pieces (including the risers that will be saved for when she gets taller)  were first sprayed with the plastic primer and left to dry for a day. I also used about two coats of rose gold paint on all sides and used the same drying protocol as with the wood. Lastly, I used the clear gloss paint as a top coat over the rose gold to prevent chipping. After that coat dried for 24 hours it was time for assembly.

Assembly

Now I must admit I had help with assembly. It was Christmas time and we had family over so my husband and his cousins assembled the top half. I took it from there and completed the bottom and put it together. It was pretty straight forward. I used the screws from the original handles for the rose gold handles I ordered.

Embellishments

I measured the dimensions of the backsplash and cut my poster board and wrapping paper accordingly—the paper was simply adhered to the poster with craft glue. In my case, I knew the kitchen would be up against a wall and I wanted the freedom to change the backsplash easily. So I applied it in an alternative way using gift wrapping tape to stick it on the back. Which has held up thus far.

I requested a  specific color for the custom towel. I was happy with the final production but wish I would have got a smaller size.

For the faux plant, I wanted to incorporate more pink, so I just found some pink craft paint from Michaels and painted the vase with a foam brush.

Ikea has a variety of play foods and accessories so I started off with the basics and will build up her collection over time. The thing I love about their food accessories are that they are soft and washable. This comes in handy when your toddler is still in the “tasting everything” stage.

I’m so glad I found the copper play cookware set. It’s super cute and actually includes tools similar to what’s in a real kitchen. She just loves her kettle. Tea is big in our home.

And there you have it! Can’t wait to see how it holds up. Now that was something I was unable to find when researching. I will be sure to post an update.

Happy Hacking!

God Bless