Home Decor One Room Challenge

Turning IKEA Pax Wardrobes into a Custom Built-In Closet – ORC Week 4

by housewifehospitality

One Room Challenge: Week Four

For week four of The One Room Challenge® I’m sharing how I transformed our basic IKEA Pax wardrobes from mediocre MDF to beautiful, custom-looking pine built-ins – all in just a few surprisingly easy steps.

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Catch up on my previous ORC posts here:

Designing an Elegant Walk In Closet – ORC – Week 1
Adding Jib Doors to an Existing Wall – ORC Week 2
Tips & Tricks for a Flawless IKEA PAX Closet Build – ORC Week 3

Why the IKEA Pax System

If you’re dreaming of a custom closet without the custom price tag, the IKEA Pax system is a great choice. By now, you should already have your layout planned and your components should be ready to assemble.

Closet Layout

Our closet includes three main wardrobe sections, each with slightly different framing methods depending on the doors and drawers.

Left Wall (His Side)

Two side-by-side 29″ PAX units with doors.

  • We used 9″ Forsand doors on the outer sides.
  • Two 19″ Aheim mirrored doors in the center.

Since the doors are full overlay, no additional trim was needed. They just need baseboards and a header for a seamless built-in look.

Right Wall (My Shoe Tower)

One 29″ shallow-depth PAX unit, which perfectly fit along a corner and faces one of my husband’s wardrobes. This section won’t extend to the ceiling; instead, it will resemble a matching bookcase to improve airflow and lighting.

The shoe tower is wrapped in 1x2s, which slightly overhang the cabinet for:

  • A nice visual design element
  • Adjustable shelves (I’m leaving a small gap for flexibility)
  • Easy access to the leveling feet underneath

Back Wall (The Focal Point)

The centerpiece is a 39″ unit with double hanging and mirrored 19″ doors. On either side, I added spacers so the outer cabinets could be wrapped with 1x2s, giving the appearance of inset drawers and doors.

  • The side units (one 19″, one 29″) each have three lower drawers, a hanging bar, and a shelf.
  • The larger one also includes a section for full-length hanging items.

Materials & Tools

Materials:

Tools:

Step by Step Build

Step 1 – Build the Base

Trim back the carpet where needed and build wooden bases from 2x4s directly on the subfloor. Secure the frames to the studs for stability.

Step 2 – Decide what to Paint

If your wardrobes have doors (like “his” side), you can skip painting the interiors to allow for making future reconfiguring easier.
For “her” side, I will be painting the interiors except around the drawers.

Step 3 – Install the Wardrobes & Finalize Spacing

Assemble and install all wardrobes, drawers, and accessories first.

On the back wall, I centered the cabinets beneath the desired location for the new light fixture for symmetry.

To achieve the inset look, I added ¾” wood spacers between the center and outer units. This makes the face frame flush with the cabinet fronts, and allows space for the doors and drawers to function properly.

Secure the side by side wardrobes together using IKEA’s included hardware. For the wardrobes that have a filler piece between them – you can secure those together using the included thread piece, along with these longer screws.

Install interiors in nonpainted wardrobes & anything that will be in a fixed location – such as built in drawers. Hold off on installing interior pieces such as shelves, hanging bars and trays in the wardrobes you plan to paint the interiors of.

Step 4 – Install the doors.

Follow Ikea’s assembly instructions.

Step 5 – Add baseboards

I used 1x6s. To create a perfect gap for the doors to swing freely, I used a paint stick as a spacer beneath the doors while nailing the baseboard in place.

Step 6 – Extend to the Ceiling

Build a box frame from 2x4s matching the cabinet dimensions and secure it to the studs.
For the back wall, I built two narrower frames to make lifting easier and to give myself attachment points for the side trim. I also connected the boxes to the spacers for added support.

Use your paint stick as a spacer again above the doors, then attach a 1×12 board to bridge the gap to the ceiling using a nail gun.

Step 7 – Add the Face Frame

Start with the vertical pieces (stiles) and work from the outside in.

One side fit perfectly flush; the other needed trimming due to uneven walls. A quick pencil mark and circular saw cut fixed that. Once installed, everything looked level and seamless.

Then install the baseboard between the sides, again using a paint stick as your spacer.

Next, cut and install your vertical 1x2s between each cabinet, followed by your horizontal pieces (rails). Keep the rails around the drawers tight and the shelf rails slightly thinner for easy fitting.

Step 8 – Create the Drawer Fronts

Dry fit your rails, then calculate your drawer fronts:

Note: I purposefully did not secure the rails into place at this time. I cut my drawer fronts offsite & wanted to have a little bit of wiggle room pending their final size. I’m very glad I did this as when installing the drawer fronts it was actually much much easier to install the top drawer front with no rail or shelf in place.

Height: Total drawer space – 2 paint sticks ÷ 3
Width: Drawer width – 1 paint stick

I used 1x12s trimmed down to about 18″ wide × 9⅞” high.

Install from bottom to top:

  1. Predrill holes in the MDF near the outer corners.
  2. Use playing cards to center and space the fronts evenly.
  3. Apply double-sided tape to the drawer box, clamp, and secure with 1¼” screws using an impact driver.

Repeat for each drawer, then nail in your top rail.

Step 9 – Add Drawer Pulls

Find and mark the center of each drawer.
Use a laser level to ensure all handles align perfectly before drilling.

Links

View all featured items used in my closet renovation in one streamlined thumbnail gallery, with clear descriptions for each here.

Results

This was the step I was most intimidated by, but it turned out to be much easier and far less frustrating than assembling the Pax itself!

I’m thrilled with how polished and custom this closet looks.

I couldn’t be happier with how nice this closet is turning out. Next up on the list is crown moulding, paint, wallpaper lining for the back & then finally getting to fill and organize my closet with my entire wardrobe.