This Small-Space Friendly Desk Is So Chic, You’d Never Know It Was from IKEA
When I moved into my first apartment in New York City, I was convinced my bedroom was too small for even the tiniest of desks. My boyfriend, who has since become my husband, set out to prove me wrong and make my dreams of being a writer with a proper desk come true.
He measured my bedroom and all of the furniture to make a crude scale model of my space in Photoshop. That way he could rearrange the furniture in my small apartment infinitely to find a configuration that would allow for a desk.
From this experiment, two things became immediately clear. First, I was going to marry this man. And second, a desk could fit but only if it was less than two feet deep and no wider than 32 inches. I searched high and low for a desk matching these dimensions, to no avail. Eventually my now-husband found a carpenter who made one for me for an incredibly affordable price, but it took a lot of time.
Given this, you can understand how this entire experience went through my mind the moment I laid eyes on IKEA’s brand-new TONSTAD desk. This piece would have been the perfect fit for my room all those years ago. Better still, it’s so incredibly chic, it would have transformed my college bedroom into a totally grown-up space.
The TONSTAD desk is deceptively simple. It’s just shy of 30 inches wide and 24 inches deep, with a spacious drawer and Parsons-style silhouette, only with rounded legs instead of square ones. However, it’s the restraint in design that truly makes me love this piece. It’s the perfect canvas to create a sophisticated workspace that is uniquely your own. The almost-hidden drawer blends into the piece so well that you might not even notice it at first, and its soft-closing function only adds to its elegance.
The desk comes in three finishes: off-white, oak veneer, and a darker brown stained oak veneer. All of these shades blend effortlessly with the majority of home decor color schemes, from boho color palettes to mid-century ones, and it’s easy to find a chair to match.
If I were selecting a chair to pair it with, I’d go with either this one from West Elm, which I am using as my desk chair currently, or this one from Castlery. But, I digress … the possibilities are endless. Equally impressive is the fact that the TONSTAD desk should be relatively easy to assemble. It’s just $200, but it feels like a much more expensive piece than its price would suggest.
If I were styling that same bedroom today, the TONSTAD desk would be one of the first pieces I’d buy. Whether you’re in your first apartment, buying a new house, or styling a strangely shaped corner of your home, the TONSTAD desk packs a lot of punch for a little desk — and it will never go out of style.