DIY Ikea Trofast Hack: Quick and Easy Way to Create a Functional Kids’ Room Desk!

Looking for a budget-friendly way to create an aesthetic DIY built-in workspace for your kids’ room? This easy IKEA Trofast hack is the perfect solution!

The must-have IKEA Trofast storage system is a favorite among parents because of its low cost and versatility for toy organization.

AND the best part is you can easily transform it into a DIY kid’s desk with this simple DIY!

In this step-by-step guide, we’ll show you how we created a Trofast desk hack that’s perfect for building Legos or doing arts and crafts.

This project is quick, easy, and requires minimal tools, making it ideal for beginners!

We shared LINKS to all our room decor sources at the end of this blog post!

Why this IKEA Trofast Hack is Perfect for a Kids’ Room

If you’re wondering whether a Trofast table hack is worth trying, here are a few reasons why we love it and recommend it for any kids’ room design:

1. Closed Hidden Storage

Kids’ rooms can quickly become cluttered with toys, books, and craft supplies.

In our toddler’s room, we originally had a Montessori open-shelf system for toys, which worked well when he was younger.

However, as he got older, he accumulated MANY more Hot Wheels, Lego Duplo, Magna-Tiles, etc. Needless to say, the mess was getting completely out of hand!

We decided to switch from open-shelf toy organization to closed and hidden storage using the Ikea Trofast units.

With the addition of a countertop, this IKEA Trofast hack allows you to create a compact, space-saving desk that also doubles as storage.

2. Budget-Friendly

The Pine Ikea Trofast Unit costs around $121 (including bins), making it a low-cost way to instantly create storage and organization in a kids’ room.

Years ago, we bought the White Ikea Trofast Unit for our living room toy organization, which is slightly cheaper at $80 (including bins).

3. Complements Any Design Style

No matter what design style you may like, the neutral wood or white look of the Trofast units easily complements any existing decor you may have!

You can buy the colored Trofast bins (green, orange, or red) to create a colorful and playful look or keep things neutral and minimalist (white or grey bins).

We chose a combination of white and grey bins for a custom look.

4. Customizability

One of the biggest benefits of the IKEA Trofast system is how customizable and adaptable it is.

There are so many Trofast line configurations to choose from, and you can get a lot of ideas while browsing the Ikea website.

As your child grows, you can adjust the storage bin sizes based on what they need to store or eliminate bins altogether for the wall-mounted units to display decor with an open-shelf look.

Keep reading for a step-by-step tutorial on how to build your own DIY Trofast desk (the easy way)!

What You’ll Need for this IKEA Trofast Desk Hack

Here are the materials and tools you’ll need to complete this project.

I’ve also linked a few helpful products that will make the process even easier!

Materials List:

Ikea TROFAST Units
Ikea EKBACKEN Countertop – 98″
Screws – for securing the top
Painters Tape – ensure a clean cut
LED Lighting – optional, but elevates the look!

Tools You’ll Need:

Track Saw (alternative: circular saw with rip cut jig)
Drill
Screwdriver
3/32” Drill Bit
Wood Clamps – hold countertop in place while screwing in
Combination Square – optional, but helpful to measure the overhang
Measuring Tape – this one is the BEST!
Level

Once you have all your materials ready, it’s time to build!

Step-by-Step Guide: Easy Trofast Desk Hack

Step 1: Measure and Plan Your Desk Layout

Start by deciding where you’ll place the desk in your child’s room. Measure the available space and determine how long you want the desktop to be.

Ideally, you’ll want to place your Trofast desk along a focal wall where it will make the most visual impact for your room design!

Where to Buy the Countertop

When planning out our toddler’s room, we found that the Ikea 98” EKBACKEN countertop was a perfect fit for the space.

By purchasing this Ikea countertop, we could skip the hassle of going to get a piece of wood from Home Depot and having to sand and paint/stain the wood top.

The Ikea countertop makes this DIY project SUPER easy because all you have to do is cut the countertop depth to fit the Trofast units.

The 98″ length that the countertop comes in provides ample room for a Trofast unit on each side while leaving enough open space in the middle for a single desk area.

We chose the Light gray concrete laminate finish since we loved the texture that the modern concrete look added to the room.

We ordered this countertop for $19 home delivery since it’s so long and probably wouldn’t fit in our SUV!

I love that Ikea offers more delivery options now for a low price (but it probably depends on where you live – we live in Illinois, and it shipped very quickly).

The countertop came with 2 pieces of edge banding in case you need to cut the length to size.

We didn’t end up needing it since we didn’t modify the length (we only cut the depth).

While the countertop is mainly made of particleboard, the laminate top will provide a very durable surface for any kids’ activities.

Step 2: Assemble the IKEA Trofast Units

First, you’ll want to build the IKEA Trofast units following the included Ikea instructions.

The assembly process was straightforward and took us around 20 minutes per unit.

The assembly process is a combination of inserting wooden dowels to align the panels, then screwing them together.

When assembling Ikea furniture, we hate using their provided hex key. Instead, we always use an installation driver to significantly speed up the assembly process.

If you’ll be doing many home projects and lots of furniture assembly, we recommend getting one since it’s been one of our most-used tools!

Just be sure to tighten the hardware securely without overtightening!

Step 3: Cut the Countertop

To determine the ideal countertop depth, we measured the top of the Trofast unit and added a slight overhang at both the front and back.

This provided a balanced look, bringing our final countertop depth to 17 3/4 inches.

To cut the Ikea countertop, we used a track saw to ensure a precise and straight edge.

If you don’t have a track saw, a circular saw with a rip cut jig works as a great alternative. We used to cut materials this way successfully before eventually buying a track saw for more projects.

Cutting an IKEA countertop with a track saw

We also find that cutting on an insulation board on the ground is very effective!

To achieve the cleanest cut possible, we recommend applying painter’s tape along the cut line to help minimize splintering.

Our mistake: we made our cut in a rush and accidentally had our track facing the wrong way, which resulted in a little chipping along our cut line.

The good thing is that the texture and busy look of the concrete top is very forgiving and helps to hide any imperfections.

To be safe, just take the extra step to use painters’ tape along the cut line to ensure a clean cut!

Back of cut IKEA countertop — *How the countertop looks after cutting the back*

You won’t be able to see the unfinished back of the cut countertop since it will face the wall.

As mentioned before, the Ikea countertop does come with two edge pieces in case you need to cut the length of it.

Step 4: Attach the Countertop

With the countertop cut to the correct size, we positioned it on top of one Trofast unit and secured it in place using wood clamps to prevent any shifting during installation.

We used 2 clamps, one on each end, to align the entire Trofast unit under the counter.

This helps to ensure that the entire unit remains straight when drilling pilot holes and driving in screws.

Using a combination square helped to make sure that all countertop overhangs were equal and that the top was properly aligned to the Trofast units.

To attach the countertop, we first drilled pilot holes using a 3/32” drill bit.

Then, we fastened it with #8 x 1 1/4” wood screws, using a total of 9 screws per Trofast unit for a sturdy and stable desk.

Step 5: Add LED Lighting (Optional)

For an unexpected and elevated look, we added LED strip lights behind the countertop (we bought these LED lights, but here’s also a similar Amazon option).

The LED lighting instantly takes the room design to the next level and creates a warm ambient glow, especially when hanging out in the room at night.

This finishing touch ended up being our favorite part of the project, and we highly recommend taking the extra step!

Step 6: Organize and Decorate!

For extra storage and decoration, consider installing the wall-mounted Trofast units or hanging the Ikea SKADIS pegboard above the desk.

These affordable Ikea products maximize vertical wall space for books, supplies, or decorative items while keeping the desktop clear.

We bought one pack of these super affordable Amazon wall vinyl stickers to decorate the empty wall space surrounding the Trofast units.

This was an extremely cost-effective way to fill the wall space while keeping a modern and neutral design.

To complete the desk area, we used an extra chair we had on hand from this cute Mid-century modern toddler table set that we use in our downstairs living area.

The unique concrete-look Ikea countertop was the perfect choice for our toddler’s room and contrasted nicely against the wood look of the Trofast units.

Here’s a close-up of the concrete look of the Ikea EKBACKEN Countertop:

I love the versatility of the SKADIS pegboard, which can be easily customized with hooks, shelves, and baskets to store crayons or other arts and crafts.

I decorated it with these bible verse wall art prints from my Etsy Shop, but our toddler also loves changing up his pegboard weekly to display all the art he makes at daycare!