8 Beautiful Stained-Glass DIYs That Will Make Your IKEA Furniture Look One Of A Kind

Everyone loves IKEA furniture. And that's exactly the problem ... everyone, and we mean everyone, has IKEA furniture in their house. We won't judge you if you're tired of seeing your pieces of furniture in all of your friends' homes. But instead of throwing out your furniture and buying expensive, vintage, or designer stuff, why not use a bit of DIY magic to upgrade what you already have? Stained-glass DIYs add a little bit of drama to your basic IKEA furniture and make it look truly one of a kind.

Savvy DIYers who love IKEA hacks have found many ways to customize their basic furniture, including the clever use of stained glass. Now, we're not talking about actual stained glass as you'd see in a church. Chances are, you're probably not keen on cutting glass and using lead in your DIYs, which are part of making traditional stained glass. But don't worry, there are techniques to make faux stained glass that are much more affordable and achievable. 

Gallery Glass window acrylic craft paint gives the illusion of stained glass while Gallery Glass clear stained glass paint adds texture without adding color. And you don't have to be an artist to get the design right. Use a stencil or template to trace a pattern onto the glass. The great thing about using acrylic paint is that if you get tired of your design, you can remove the paint by scraping it with a razor. While many of these hacks use paint, there are some other approaches, too. For example, Goodkiky stained glass window film can cover glass panels, adding unique and intricate patterns to an otherwise boring piece of furniture. 

The BAGGEBO is a cabinet with glass doors that's made of white metal. To transform it with stained glass, remove the door from its hinges and lay it flat on a table, with the inside of the door facing upward. Then, use glass paints to create designs on the door, keeping in mind that the visible side is underneath. This means you'll need to layer backward — start with dark outlines so that they remain sharp and fill in with color.  

The IKEA ÅKERBÄR greenhouse is perfect for a stained-glass DIY. It comes in white, black, and blue, but you can also spray paint its metal frame to customize it. The glass panels are removable, so you can lay them flat on a table while you use glass paints or window film to DIY faux stained-glass panels. Once dry, slide the panels back in place, and you have a stunning personalized greenhouse. This can go indoors or outdoors to grow plants in the greenhouse or to store items.

IKEA's BORRBY tea light lantern is perfect for stained-glass DIYs. By painting the glass panels with translucent window paint, you can DIY moody tea light lanterns. Precision is key with these DIYs, especially when working on smaller glass panels. To make a clear design or pattern, print a guide onto paper or display it on a tablet and place it underneath the glass. Then, trace your design using that guide, let it dry, and place it back into the lantern.

Not all stained-glass DIYs have to be so literal. Sometimes, you can use stained-glass items to give a basic piece of furniture a new twist. IKEA's FADO table lamp can be completely transformed by swapping a basic light bulb with a stained-glass one, like the CybaaLuxzus stained glass light bulb. Colorful lightning is on trend for 2026 and this lamp is stunning because of how simple it is: a white globe that reflects the light and color of whatever light bulb you place inside. 

If you don't have a stained-glass light bulb, you can also transform any IKEA lamp made of frosted glass. The GRÖNÖ table lamp is a simple rectangle with flat sides, so you can tape drawing guides to the inside of the lamp, allowing you to create intricate and detailed patterns. While many of the other DIYs work best when painting on the inside of the glass, this one is a bit easier when applying paint to the lamp's exterior. From the inside, the frosted glass could hide many of the details. 

IKEA has plenty of wardrobes and dressers that come with a glass or mirror door, including the TYSSEDAL. Stained-glass DIYs are a great way to make these pieces look more unique and bring some color to an otherwise plain piece of furniture. This is also a great way to repurpose a HEMNES cabinet into a bedroom wardrobe, by making the glass door more opaque and obscuring what's inside. 

Stained-glass DIYs are a wonderful way to transform very simple and minimalist items into attention-catchers. The EKET wall cabinet with glass door, for example, is a basic wooden cube that can be attached directly to the wall. Using stained glass film or paints, you can create intricate and colorful designs to conceal any clutter hiding inside. Adding LED lights inside those cabinets allow the glow to shine through and highlight the stained-glass design.

Stained-glass DIYs are a great way to give new life to old picture frames. IKEA has no shortage of picture frames, from the YLLEVAD for $1.50 to the RÖDALM for $55. If you don't plan to reuse the frame, you could try hot glue to create the outline of the shapes. Then, cover the glue with black or metallic paint, and fill in the shapes with regular glass paint. The hot glue will give the illusion of real stained glass.