IKEA Entertainment Center Ideas: Upgrade Your Living Room on a Budget

We all go through that “IKEA phase” in life, and honestly, why would we ever leave? With the plethora of IKEA hacks available and the constant stream of innovative IKEA furniture pieces, achieving a sophisticated and stylish look without breaking the bank has never been easier. If you’re looking for IKEA entertainment center ideas to transform an IKEA sideboard, cabinet, buffet, or even a simple TV unit into a stunning centerpiece in your living room, you’ve come to the right place! The possibilities for hacking and customizing IKEA furniture are virtually endless, allowing you to create a truly unique and personalized space.

Faux Built-in Entertainment Centers: A Budget-Friendly Upgrade

One of the most popular IKEA entertainment center trends is creating a faux built-in look. This involves combining a console or a set of cabinets with shelving to create the illusion of a custom-built unit. This approach offers a fantastic way to maximize storage space while adding a touch of elegance to your living room.

Take inspiration from Hey There, Home, where they cleverly used IKEA kitchen cabinets to create a bright and airy living room unit. The strategic placement of shelves on either side adds open storage and showcases a vibrant blue accent wall. The beauty of this hack is its adaptability – you can tailor the shelving levels, colors, and even add a pop of color to the background wall to perfectly match your personal style.

Creating a faux built-in entertainment center from IKEA components is an affordable and highly customizable way to elevate your living room. It allows you to create a focal point that is both stylish and functional, perfectly tailored to your specific needs and aesthetic preferences.

More Ideas for Built-in IKEA Entertainment Centers

Bless’er House demonstrates the transformative power of IKEA BILLY bookcases when used to create a built-in entertainment center. By adding carefully selected wood trim around the bookshelves, they achieve a professional, custom-installed look that belies their humble IKEA origins. This hack highlights how simple additions can drastically elevate the appearance of IKEA furniture.

It seems BILLY bookcases are a favorite among DIY enthusiasts for creating built-ins. Amanda Katherine created her entire system for just $300! This proves that creating a custom entertainment center doesn’t have to break the bank. It just requires some creativity and willingness to put in the work.

IKEA also offers a BESTA planner, which allows you to design your IKEA entertainment center before you even make a purchase. This tool streamlines the process, making it easier than ever to create a custom entertainment center that perfectly fits your space and style. The Social Home documented her journey of updating her home with a new BESTA entertainment center and minimalist accents, showing the versatility and aesthetic appeal of the BESTA system.

The BESTA built-ins created by A Kailo Chic Life truly pop with the addition of a striking blue ceiling! This design choice demonstrates the power of color in transforming a space and adding personality. The designer’s Instagram feed (rearranges her decor) offers endless inspiration for seasonal updates and styling tips.

Sources for Creating Your Faux Built-in IKEA Entertainment System:

• BESTA planner
• BESTA individual storage pieces
• BILLY bookcases and shelving
• LACK shelving and TV stand solutions

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Upgrade Simple, Stylish TV Stands

If you’re working with a smaller space, a large entertainment center might not be feasible. In such cases, upgrading a simple TV stand can be a fantastic alternative. Even minor changes like a new paint color, updated drawer pulls, or a fresh top can significantly enhance the look of a plain piece of furniture.

The stylish TV stand upgrade showcased by A Beautiful Mess is perfect for mid-century modern enthusiasts. It highlights how simple additions like pretty drawer pulls and gold paint can completely transform an otherwise basic IKEA BESTA unit. Laura’s gold makeover resulted in a chic and sophisticated piece of furniture that looks far more expensive than it actually is.

IKEA TV stands offer a perfect blend of style, functionality, and affordability, making them ideal for both small and large spaces. Their minimalist designs provide a blank canvas for customization, allowing you to create a piece that truly reflects your personal taste.

Achieve a rustic-meets-modern aesthetic with this entertainment center idea from the Curbly archives. The addition of a wood panel adhered to the top of the unit makes a significant difference, instantly adding warmth and texture to the design. This simple upgrade demonstrates how easily you can transform an IKEA piece to match your desired style.

This EXPEDIT unit received a unique makeover with stained paint sticks! Amy Krist’s creative TV stand idea (shown here as a sideboard) provides ample storage space while adding a touch of personalized flair. This project highlights the potential for unexpected materials to transform IKEA furniture into unique and eye-catching pieces.

Get a West Elm-inspired look for an IKEA price! Place of my Taste created this reclaimed wood buffet, which could also be used as a TV stand. The use of reclaimed wood adds character and a touch of rustic charm, creating a stylish and budget-friendly alternative to high-end furniture.

For those who love color, this color-blocked storage unit by Sugar & Cloth is a must-see! Painting each door of an IKEA unit a different color that complements your decor creates a fun statement piece that can be used as a TV stand. This project showcases the power of color in transforming a simple piece of furniture into a vibrant and personalized accent.

Combine three units to create an extra-long IKEA entertainment center that provides ample storage space! This DIY project by Honeybear Lane demonstrates how paint and a new wood top can give a whole new look! The extended length allows for greater flexibility in terms of storage and display, making it perfect for larger living rooms.

A floating sideboard, such as this one by Petite Modern Life, can be mounted beneath your TV for extra storage! The levitating effect keeps the room feeling open. This is a great option for smaller spaces where maximizing floor space is crucial.

Sources for Stand-Alone TV Stands:

These IKEA TV stands are the perfect solution for small spaces as well as large spaces when you want a simple piece of furniture. Hack them in various ways (or even leave them as-is) for stylish home decor updates.

• BYAS TV unit
• BESTA TV stand
• FJALLBO media unit
• MOSTORP TV stand

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Incorporating an IKEA Entertainment Center Around a Fireplace

Many IKEA entertainment center designs don’t explicitly account for a fireplace. If you want to mount your TV above your fireplace but are unsure how to integrate storage and shelving, the following ideas will provide instant inspiration for decorating around your fireplace.

Rebecca of Infarrantly Creative documented her extensive living room renovation, which involved installing IKEA faux built-ins and rebuilding her fireplace to create a cohesive entertainment center across the entire wall. Her detailed series on the renovation highlights the effort involved, but the end result – a seamless and natural-looking entertainment center – is well worth it!

Retiling a fireplace with marbled tile makes a significant impact. With BESTA units built-in on either side of the updated fireplace, you’d never suspect that this entertainment center was created using IKEA components.

If you’re working with an existing fireplace and want to avoid a major renovation, consider this idea!

Utilize BILLY bookcase built-ins and carefully measure the space to box around your existing fireplace. This solution from HeartHavenHome creates a cohesive and functional entertainment area without requiring major structural changes.

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Hiding TV Wires in an Entertainment Center: Solutions for Renters and Homeowners

If you’re a renter, you may not have the option of concealing TV wires inside your wall, but that doesn’t mean you have to tolerate unsightly wires. If you CAN run wires inside the wall, Katie of HeartHavenHome shares how she hid the TV wires in molding above her TV.

For a more elaborate solution, consider hiding TV wires inside trim work that surrounds your TV. This method, demonstrated in this tutorial from Sawdust Girl, also provides a stylish new backdrop for your television.

Renter-Friendly Ways to Hide TV Wires

Go ahead and mount that TV! You can conceal TV wires using an IKEA cord cover that can be painted to match your wall. Simply slip the cord cover over the wires to minimize their visibility.

When in doubt, you can also hide TV wires by strategically placing decorative items in front of them! Small changes, such as stacking books, can distract from the wires. The creators from Me & Mr. Jones even demonstrates how to create a decorative cable box cover.

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Whether you’re a renter or homeowner, you can create a custom IKEA TV stand or entertainment center that seamlessly complements your home decor. Taking the time to conceal wires and build extensive cabinetry can yield impressive results, but even a simple TV stand update can make a significant impact.

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