This chic IKEA KALLAX bar hack proves why cane furniture is making a style comeback

The 70s interiors revival continues to manifest itself. The latest symptom is the growing love of cane furniture as we’ve been seeing cane rattan panelling on anything from headboards to dresser drawers and coffee tables. 

Because of this furniture trend’s prominence, many YouTubers and Instagrammers took to their accounts to DIY their way into the trendy aesthetic, inspiring the rest of us to do the same. 

Adding cane webbing to pieces of furniture has become one of the most popular IKEA hacks in the last year, instantly updating the simplest of pieces and giving any room a lighter, more relaxed feel. 

And that is exactly what Jenn Liu of @jnn.liu.liu has done in her Instagram reel. She took her IKEA KALLAX shelving unit and transformed it into an elegant bar with cane doors. Here’s how she went about it.

Cane furniture trend

Cane rattan panelling on furniture has definitely experienced a rise in popularity but it’s always been a favoured choice, especially since the 70s. 

‘I think it’s always been popular because it’s so strong, sustainable and lightweight, plus it stands the test of time,’ says Sue Jones, co-founder of OKA. 'As it’s so durable, rattan has been used as a material for thousands of years but it’s only come to be adored in English homes relatively recently.'

'Rattan furniture was popular in the Victorian era, but it was in the 1960s and 70s that rattan (and wickerwork generally) had a renaissance, becoming a staple for more bohemian-style interiors.’ 

‘The hand-woven texture of cane rattan instantly makes a room feel relaxed,' continues Sue. 'It doesn’t matter if you’re working with contemporary interiors or a more traditional space, rattan has a place in most homes, making it incredibly versatile to style.'

What you'll need

• A drill, like this Dewalt 20V MAX XR Cordless Lithium-Ion Compact Hammer Drill at Amazon
• Four wooden legs, like these Height Sofa Legs at Amazon
• Cane webbing, like this AIEX 14inch Width Cane Webbing Roll at Amazon
• A staple gun, like this AECCN Staple Gun with Remover at Amazon 
• Four hidden hinges, like these Jiaxitek 4-Inch 90 Degree Hidden Hinges at Amazon
• Two door knobs, like these HAOCHEN Circular Truncated Cone Shape Knobs at Amazon

IKEA hack with cane webbing

While there is the option of investing in a cane-panelled piece of furniture (and there are many in stores right now), the DIY route tends to be much more affordable. And you get a fun project out of it too. 

Jenn’s Instagram specialises in DIY and furniture flips, as does her YouTube channel where you can find this IKEA KALLAX hack in a step-by-step in-depth guide. 

In her video, Jenn explains that the shelving unit works well as a bar but she wants to improve the aesthetic of it, as everything was previously on show and wasn’t very visually pleasing. 

She starts by adding legs to her KALLAX, which is crucial to both levelling it up with her mini fridge and making the piece look more expensive by lifting it up off the floor, similar to the IKEA KALLAX coffee bar hack. 

Next, she crafted the door frames to cover up her bar collection, which she then filled with cane webbing by stapling it on with a staple gun. She even gives tips on treating the webbing to a 15-minute warm water soak to soften it up and exactly how you should go about stapling it.

She then goes on to attaching the doors with hidden hinges and adds handles to the doors. And voila!