For the creative among us, wandering the aisles at IKEA ignites a torrent of DIY ideas: The spice rack can be reimagined as a shelf to store skincare products, a white stool can be transformed into a nightstand, and a bookshelf can be repurposed as a shoe rack.
According to Wawa, homeowner behind the Instagram handle (@wawalittlehome), even if you're not DIY-inclined, there are still a few smart ways to transform an IKEA finds. With the right height and width adjustment and careful positioning, cookie-cutter style furniture can be turned into your own one-of-a-kind pieces.
Wawa started her Instagram account with the sole on the purpose of sharing her home decoration photos and organisational tips and ideas with her 19.4k followers. Since then, she has been approached by numerous home and living brands for her home to be featured in TV commercials as well as being a guest star in RTM TV series, Project Ruang and Rumah Viral.
From storage racks to kitchen organizers, virtually every facet of Wawa’s home is Scandinavian-level chic. It's clear that Wawa has an eye for design, although she unabashedly admits that her interest in interior design and decoration came only after she and her family moved into their 4-bedroom double-storey home in Bandar Saujana Putra.
Her home renovation journey consists of a lot of trial and error. “When I first moved in, I bought a huge bright red L-shape seven-seat sofa for my living room. The huge sofa, paired with a black curtain made the living room look visually and physically cramped,” she admits.
“Over time, I did a lot of research on home decoration for ideas and how to creatively utilise a particular item, like the pull-out bed from IKEA, for example (below). I will bookmark interesting ideas and mix and match them with my own ideas,” she adds.
Besides the living room, the lower level of her home consists of a remodelled open layout kitchen designed with practicality in mind.
“When I extended the kitchen, there was a lot of empty space in the middle of the kitchen area so I decided to include an island for easy access during meal preparation,” she says.
“Inside this kitchen island cabinet, I placed snacks and biscuits on the bottom shelf so my kids won’t have a hard time trying to get the snacks on their own. I also placed the children’s cups and cutleries on the lowest level shelf inside the kitchen cabinet so that my kids can reach them without adult’s help,” she explains.
The upper level consists of three bedrooms. Her daughter’s room was done mostly with a palette of greys and whites, with a pop of pink for most of the decorative pieces. The bed frame and art cart are both from IKEA.
“I like pink, but I don’t want to paint the entire room pink as it would overwhelm the space. So I painted the wall grey, furnished the room with white furniture and decorated the room with pink decorative items,” she says.
When it comes to her favourite space to decorate at home, it's the master bedroom, hands down. Wawa found the monochrome nature artworks hung above the bed frame from Etsy, while the picture frames are from IKEA. The custom wardrobe is from Intech Kitchen.
“This room is actually very small but to make it bigger, I installed a floor to ceiling mirror wardrobe to give the illusion of a bigger space,” she explains.
“I also incorporate plenty of clever solutions to maximize the space in this master bedroom. For instance, I own a lot of shawls, so I came up with this boutique-like pull-out rack to store all my shawl in one place. It’s very convenient especially when I need to get ready in the morning,” she adds.
Wawa shares her best tips on how to get the Scandinavian inspired look in your own home:
Qanvast: Where did you seek your design inspiration from?
Wawa: Pinterest, Instagram and Google
Qanvast: Where is the best place to purchase Scandinavian home decoration items?
Wawa: IKEA, Kaison, Mr DIY, Daiso, S&J, Spotlight and IG shops
Qanvast: Do you have any advice for homeowners who would like to renovate and decorate their own home?
Wawa: Don’t rush. When I first purchased the home, I was eager to start renovating and to furnish the entire home just to fill up the empty space. Hence I end up with a lot of impulse buys such as a bright red seven-seat L-shape sofa that made my living room area look small. Today, I will visualize the space and plan it well before making any renovation decision.
Qanvast: What is your number one rule when designing and decorating your home?
Wawa: Practicality is key. Before I plan my design process, I need to know what I intend to allocate in that area (for example; washing machine) and then I decide how to structure the design by adding custom shelving around the area and then working my ways towards the less practical details like how to decorate the space.
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