20+ Incredible Pax Ikea Hacks That Look Custom

Your closet. Think of all the functions it accomplishes. It stores your clothing, shoes, handbags, accessories, jewelry, (sometimes your toiletries) and more every day. It’s where you set the tone for the start of your day and where you end your day by getting ready for bed at night. You know what will make your special spot even better? These Pax Ikea Hacks!

Ikea has a line of storage systems call the Pax that is amazing in its simplicity and lends itself well to “hacking”.

Not familiar with the term “hack”?

It simply means to modify or upgrade a simple piece of furniture to make it more unique and custom-looking.

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20+ Incredible Pax Ikea Hacks You’ll Want in Your Home

The Pax system is also one of the most versatile and affordable (not to mention, highly-rated) closet systems you can find. But on its own, it can look rather dull.

To overcome this, many people hack their Pax systems in order to make them look tailor-made for the space they live in.

If you’re already an IKEA die-hard (or even if you haven’t yet caught the bug), then grab this free list of 25 IKEA must-have items for a stylish home on a budget! These are my favorite IKEA products as many of them can be used in amazing, outside-the-box ways, too.

1. DIY Dressing Room with Secondhand Pax | Heathered Nest

The reason I love Pax hacks so much is we tackled one ourselves, and I gotta say, I am smitten with the results. And just because we are extra-penny-pinching, we bought our Pax secondhand and saved THOUSANDS on our DIY dressing room project. What do you think?

mirrored secondhand IKEA Pax wardrobes become DIY dressing room with blue and white accents

2. Custom Closet | Erin Kestenbaum

Create a high-end, custom look that’s perfect for any style home to your system by adding crown molding, baseboards, shoe molding, recessed lights, new hardware, and some paint.

This Pax Ikea Hack looks truly custom, and I love the way the pulls pop against the blue color.

dark green painted IKEA Pax system for beautiful closet with black and white stripe ceiling

3. Add Trim | Crazy Wonderful

The whole point of hacking Ikea systems is to make them look custom and seamless. Adding trim to the bottom and in between these units gives a very seamless, custom appearance to this Ikea Pax system.

Oh my, I love those glass-paneled doors!

neutral walk in closet with IKEA pax units, seagrass baskets and glass doors

4. Go Big on Shelving | The Pink Dream

Depending on your space and what you need to store in your Ikea Pax system, you can add shelves, drawers, and hanging rods to your heart’s content.

This Pax hack utilizes 9 (!!) shelves to create a place to store and display trinkets & jewelry, books, and more.

little girls nursery closet with white and pink accents and IKEA Pax system

Don’t forget to grab your top 25 IKEA products list – click here or enter your email by clicking the picture below. I’ll send your guide right away!

5. Full Built-in Closet | Practically Spoiled

This Pax Ikea hack in stunning and oh so practical (not to mention affordable). Drawers, hangers, and shelves, oh my!

Plus it’s all decked out in jewel knobs. What more could a girl ask for? Turn your drab walk-in closet into an organized dream of a closet by using the Ikea Pax system.

walk in closet with purple wall and IKEA Pax units throughout

6. Cut it to Size | Ikea Hackers

When your ceilings aren’t tall enough for your Pax units, cut them to size. That’s exactly what these hackers did with their Ikea Pax system to create a full wall gorgeous wardrobe.

Thanks to hacking Ikea Pax wardrobe units, this entire system looks custom – and less wallet-friendly than it was.

Large room with floor to ceiling IKEA Pax units for maximizing storage space

7. Angled Ceiling Built-ins | Design Sixty-Nine

Wow. This Ikea Pax hack is impressive, to say the least. The angle and the cuts that it took to build this system under the angled ceiling in the bedroom looks professionally made for that space.

Do you see the price tag on this hack? Check it out!

gray painted bedroom with sloped ceiling, small fireplace and IKEA Pax units used to create storage along fireplace wall

8. The Understatement Hack | Making Spaces

Some Ikea hacks make a big statement. Others make more of an understatement, like this Pax Ikea hack. This nude-looking system employs narrow, flat doors with simple, understated black knobs for an ultra-clean, unique appearance.

Pax unit used as a bedroom wardrobe with a wood, mid-century modern appearance in a blue bedroom

9. Prime Boot Storage | Happy Life Wife

Got boots? The shelves on this Pax system hack are perfect for storing all your beautiful pairs of boots with plenty of space left for hanging your clothes as well as drawer space for your personal items.

IKEA Pax without doors in a walk in master bedroom closet

10. Royal Wardrobe | Sparkle Shiny Love

The Ikea Pax hack in this example helps to create a very royal-feeling closet space. Between the tall wardrobe units, crown molding at the top, and elegant, long door pulls, can’t you just picture the Queen using this beautiful closet?

glam dressing room with Pax closets around the perimeter of the space with white doors and small white chandelier

11. German-Style Door Panels | Jenna Sue Design

Love German-style homes? Pax Ikea hacks like this one gives the wardrobe a very German-house-meets-farmhouse feel. But oh how pretty and interesting!

Plus, the black door pulls really pop against the monochromatic white doors.

IKEA Pax wardrobe flanking a bed to create a nook feel for the bed and increase storage space in the room

12. Mirror Doors | Ikea Hackers

With mirror panel doors and lighting inside the shelf areas, no one would ever mistake this customized full wall unit for Ikea pieces. This hacker hand-painted the already white units white in order to give it that hand-built feel.

IKEA Pax used spanning a full wall with a combination of open shelving and curio style lighting, some shaker doors and others with mirrors to create dimension and texture with a higher end look

13. Full Closet Makeover | Stylish Revamp

Doesn’t it feel good to rip out the old and start all over again with a clean slate? By tearing out the old, tired shelves this full-closet system could be built directly against the wall to make it look entirely custom-made.

walk in closet with wood floors and IKEA Pax units without doors on every side

Don’t forget to grab your top 25 IKEA products list! click here or enter your email by clicking the picture below. I’ll send your guide right away!

14. Maximize Storage | Natalie Paramore

This Ikea Pax hack adds a ton of storage to a master room that had a small closet and was lacking storage. I love storage, and this hack even includes storage for accessories, shoes and laundry bins.

Custom drawer fronts, paint and trim make this hack look like it was handmade for the space.

before and after of a space where IKEA Pax units were used to create a full wall of storage and an entertainment system

15. Murphy Bed Hack | Huskverna

This is one of the most creative Pax Ikea hacks I’ve seen. Take a Pax system and turn it into a Murphy bed for small spaces – or rooms that double in function such as a guest room/office combo.

Check out these Ikea desk hacks to go with your Murphy bed!

DIY Murphy Bed created with an IKEA Pax unit

16. Create a Custom Dressing Room | Classic Glam Living

If you are fortunate to have space and ability to dedicate a larger space as a dressing room, use this Pax Ikea hack to organize your area while also glamming it up. I love the ability for “his” and “hers” areas.

his and hers closet created with IKEA Pax

17. Create Built-in Shelves | Jadore Le Decor

Give one Pax unit the hack treatment to turn it into 2 separate built-in bookshelves. Add some crown molding and a sturdy backing to finish the project.

Easy peasy!

Pax open shelving + drawer bases flanking a bed

18. Wardrobe Organization | Remodelaholic

Ikea products excel at providing storage solutions for anyone short on space. This Pax Ikea hack functions as both a closet and a dresser for two kids in a shared bedroom.

Now that’s efficiency.

Pax providing lots of additional storage in a shared kids' bedroom

19. Take it Floor to Ceiling | And Christina

When you don’t have storage space, create it by pairing Pax units together, even across the corner of a bedroom.

Then add cubbies above and crown molding at the top. Paint it all one solid color to give it that finished, tailor-made feel.

Pax wrapping a corner to maximixe storage space

20. The Ultimate “Everything” Wardrobe | Love Style Mindfulness

Even with a large wardrobe collection, your Pax units can handle it.

Combine units with different elements: shelves, hanger sections, drawers, and vanity trays to hold everything you could need in one nice compact space.

The most inexpensive Pax units are the shorter variety without doors. Affordable and lots of storage room.

21. Multi-Purpose Storage | Shirley and Chris

A shortage of storage space requires creative storage solutions just like this one. Combine multiple units around a window for both high and low storage.

A setup like this one can hold many different types of items: books, house cleaning, coats, and much more.

Who says Pax units are only for bedroom closets?

lots of storage and open cubbies in a multi-purpose room like a playroom, home office or homeschool room can be created using the Pax system

22. Clever Closet Solution | Christina Dueholm

Oh Ikea Pax, how I love thee – let me count the ways. A closet with a difficult-to-work-with floor plan is no match for the Ikea Pax system…just one of the many reasons I love it.

Even with a long, narrow floor plan and a window, you can combine units to maximize storage and functionality.

23. Create a Closet | The Sweetest Digs

When you need to create a closet where there isn’t one or need to add some big storage, using Ikea Pax units are perfect.

This Ikea Pax Hack brings two units together, adds doors with fun door pulls, trim and paint to blend into the wall and create that custom illusion.

white closet made in a corner where extra storage was needed with a Pax unit with white shaker doors

With these creative ideas for the Ikea Pax system, I don’t think there are any homes that can’t use at least one of them. If you love Ikea hacks, you’ll also love these Kallax hacks that will blow your mind!

And if you’re on the hunt for even more IKEA ideas, be sure to check out these ideas, too!

Pin this post for later! And if you make one, leave a comment (or better yet, a photo) on the pin! That helps others know whether they want to try this project, too!

Don’t leave empty-handed! Grab your free copy of our “25 Best IKEA Buys For A Stylish Home On A Budget” list! It’s the next best thing to an IKEA cinnamon roll (and if you haven’t tried one of those, you are missing one of life’s biggest joys)!