How to Upgrade a Bookcase with Wrapping Paper {IKEA Gersby Hack}

Last November I shared my Office Space Makeover with you. I’m happy to report that I am 100% in love with this space, and since I’m working from home now, the timing of that makeover could not have been better!

Part of that makeover involved me adding bookcases to flank the window on the west side of the room. We needed some additional storage in there and thought bookcases seemed like the right choice. Smart people seem to have a lot of bookcases in their homes. Before these, we had one . . . in my son’s room. So yeah, read between the lines . . . we needed some bookcases.

Anyway, I found the perfect size bookcases at IKEA for $25 a pop. The IKEA Gersby bookcase is almost too good to be true! Now I’m not going to pretend like these are pretty bookcases. They are not. There is nothing interesting about them, the screws are exposed on the sides, and the bookcase backing is cardboard that has big seams running down it.

But again, they’re $25. That’s crazy town pricing so I had to keep them and upgrade them a little bit by doing the easiest IKEA hack ever – adding wrapping paper to the backing to hide those seems and bring up the style on the Gersby bookcases. If you have plain jane bookcases in need of some style (Gersby or not), this idea will be perfect for you!

Supplies Needed to Upgrade the Gersby Bookcase

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Spotted wrapping paper (make sure the wrapping paper you choose is thick, and wide enough and long enough to cover the entire backing of the bookcase)
Spray adhesive
Rotary cutter
Self-healing mat
Dropcloth

How to Upgrade a Bookcase with Wrapping Paper

These instructions assume you’re adding the wrapping paper to the bookcase during the assembly process. If you’ve already assembled your bookcase, search on Pinterest for tutorials that deal with after the fact upgrades. There are great ways to do that with paper that’s been mounted to poster board.

Anyway . . . moving right along. Protect your workspace and lay the bookcase backing down. Once it’s as flat as you can get it, spray the first third of it with spray adhesive.

Starting at the top, carefully place the unrolled end of the wrapping paper onto the bookcase backing. Then slowly roll it down the first third of the bookcase backing where you’ve applied the spray adhesive.

If you go slowly you will minimize any bubbling or wrinkling. Also, the thicker the wrapping paper, the easier this will be.

Once you’ve reached the end of the first spray adhesive application, gently lift the wrapping paper roll and spray the next part of the bookcase backing. Gently roll the paper down the bookcase backing. Repeat this process until you get to the end of the bookcase backing.

Once you’ve covered the entire bookcase backing, flip the backing over. Use the rotary cutter on the self-healing mat to remove the excess paper from all sides of the backing. You could try to do this with scissors, but I think it would be pretty difficult, and I’d be worried about pulling the paper up from the backing. The rotary cutter makes removing the excess paper really easy!

Once all the excess paper has been removed, you can attach the bookcase backing to the assembled bookcase per IKEA’s instructions. Add your bookcase essentials and enjoy your pretty new bookcase!