A Simple IKEA KALLAX Kitchen Island

I needed a little more workspace and storage in the kitchen, so I made a simple kitchen island from IKEA KALLAX shelving units and a tabletop I already had.

It was less of a complicated furniture build and more of a practical combination of parts that happened to fit together well.

The KALLAX provided the structure and storage.

Its cubbies made it useful for holding kitchen items, while the tabletop created a larger, flat work surface. The tabletop came from an old IKEA table that I already had, but there is nothing especially important about that particular top. Any tabletop that fits the footprint, is reasonably rigid, and is appropriate for the intended use would work.

I attached the tabletop to the KALLAX with Command Strips.

This was not intended to make the two pieces structurally permanent. The strips mainly kept the tabletop from shifting during ordinary use, while still allowing the project to remain easy to change or disassemble/move later.

For a heavier top, a work surface that will see a lot of side force, or an island that children may climb on, I would use a more substantial mechanical attachment instead. But for this lightweight setup, the strips were sufficient.

Raising the Height

A KALLAX on its own sits too low to feel like a kitchen work surface.

To raise it, I added IKEA CAPITA legs underneath (screw mounted). The legs brought the overall height close to the surrounding countertop height, which made the island feel surprisingly natural to use for preparation, serving, or setting things down.

The Missing Feature: Power

The one thing it does not have is electrical power.

A built-in outlet would be useful for a mixer, blender, charger, or other small appliance. Because the island is freestanding, adding a wired outlet would require either routing a cable across the floor or modifying the island and running power to it properly.

One possible workaround would be a portable power station with standard 120 V outlets. It could sit inside one of the cubbies and be recharged occasionally.

I did not add one. For now, the island is simply a useful extra work surface and storage unit, without power.