12 Fun TikTok DIYs to Try Over Holiday Break

AD It Yourself12 Fun TikTok DIYs to Try Over Holiday BreakProject ideas brighter than the holiday lights

By Katherine McLaughlin

December 17, 2021

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A table spread of holiday-themed DIY crafts.Photo: Retales Botijero via Getty Images

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Some say the holidays are for relaxing and catching up with loved ones, but in our household they’re for having fun with DIYing and renovating. If you’ve got a few hours to spare away from your day-to-day responsibilities this season, it might just be the perfect time to finally tackle all of those home improvement projects that have been at the top of your wish list. By now we should all know that nobody does DIY revamping quite like the creators on TikTok—so we turned to the platform for inspiration on what projects to take on during your downtime.

It’s not just time-lapses and quick cuts that make these projects seem doable, it really is possible to get the home you’ve always wanted with a little planning and elbow grease. If you’re not exactly sure where to begin, we’ve curated 12 great DIY projects from TikTok for your personal consideration. Make your own magic this season, and start the new year with a new space.

KitchenBrighten your cabinets

“I tend to come up with ideas like this and instantly act on them, so I put no planning into it,” TikTok user @tbeepboop says of her cabinet refresh. Using paints that she already had lying around her house, she painted the inside edges of her cabinets for a fun pop of color every time they’re opened. For the cleanest lines possible, place tape around the edges, then add a layer of paint that matches your cabinets or clear caulk to fill in any air bubbles for a base layer. “When you do your accent strip of color on top, you’ll have the most amazingly crisp lines,” @tbeepboop says.

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Install a new backsplash

No mortar? No problem with this simple backsplash DIY. Though Riley Campbell had been delaying tiling her kitchen for months, she found it to be a pretty painless project after using Mussel Bound adhesive tile mats in place of mortar. “I started the backsplash Saturday afternoon, and it was grouted and complete by Sunday afternoon,” she says. After cleaning the wall and adding the Mussel Bound backing, she cut the tile with a manual tile cutter, then attached the tile to the backing. The final steps included grouting and cleaning the tile for a breezy project with stunning results. “I put it off for so long and by the time I actually did it, it was so much easier than I expected,” Campbell says.

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DIY your marble counters

If you follow Jess Maple’s lead, you won’t need a big budget to change the old kitchen counters that you’ve always hated. She used the Giani Marble Paint Kit, which she promises includes easy-to-follow instructions, to create beautiful faux marble countertops. It’s a full weekend project, but Maple insists that the “results are phenomenal.” As she notes, “These types of projects are a great solution to having the aesthetic without the price.”

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Remake your fridge

A pioneer in painted fridges, Brenna Quandt couldn’t find many tutorials online when she decided to make over her refrigerator, which she says, “Usually isn’t a good sign.” Still, about eight hours later, she had what looked like a brand-new appliance. Quandt started by sanding the entire surface with 60-grit sandpaper and an orbital sander, and then applying self-etching primer. She finished by lightly sanding the surface again with 400-grit sandpaper before applying two thin layers of white epoxy paint with a foam roller. “It’s held up perfectly so far; not a scratch and so easy to clean too,” she says.

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BedroomLive the luxe life with a new headboard

Don’t ever let someone tell you that pool noodles are just for swimming. Instead, trust Sourya Venumbaka, the creator of Sové Home, who used the floating devices to craft a beautiful headboard for her Philadelphia home. After cutting the noodles to size and attaching them to a headboard with a spray adhesive, she covered them with elegant velvet fabric for a stunning transformation. “Get more fabric than you think you need,” Venumbaka says. “And spend some time pulling the fabric tight when stapling it over the top to avoid peaks.”

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Add personality with an accent wall

Mary Tee, who focuses on budget-friendly DIYs on her blog Diamond in the Rough, designed this accent wall in her Toronto home for $100. Looking for a way to add dimension and character to the wall, she used MDF boards cut to size, then she attached the boards to the wall with a nail gun and glue. “I’ve even seen people do it with double-sided Velcro for renter-friendly stuff,” Tee tells AD. Also, hardware stores will often cut lumber for you, saving an extra step. “I recommend doing a light sand between every single coat of paint,” she says, as this will give you a clean, professional finish.

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Living RoomRevamp your chandelier

Erin Jones, the creator behind Everything Eryn, made more than 100 tassels by hand to create this boho chandelier. Even though she says “it was pretty tedious,” it may be the perfect excuse to spend the weekend curled up on the couch knotting tassels to the tune of your favorite holiday movie. After finishing the tassels, Jones used metal floral hoops, decorative chains, and a light pendant cord with an attached puck light to make it functional. “It is definitely worth it in the end,” she says. “Don’t give up, the outcome is absolutely beautiful!”

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Reupholster your furniture

Love the feel of your favorite chair but ready for a new style? Consider reupholstering your furniture like Cindi Yang did—it’s actually easier than you may think. Yang scored these free swivel chairs locally before heading to the fabric store to pick out a new fabric. “​​If your chairs are going to get a fair amount of use, make sure you get a heavier-duty fabric that can take all the wear,” the content creator says. When completing the project, it can help to save and label the original fabric as you’re removing it. This way, you can trace and cut the exact same shapes from the new fabric.

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Add some bookshelves

During nap times and weekend sessions when her partner could watch their kids, Tamara Smith worked on converting three IKEA Billy shelves into a built-in bookcase. “The first thing I did was remove my baseboard,” Smith says. Then, she got to work building a level base out of 2 x 4s that she screwed directly into the floor. Instead of using the shelf holes that are part of the IKEA furniture, Smith attached the shelves with a nail gun to the back and side of the bookshelf. “It felt a lot sturdier once I did that,” she explains, noting she filled in the pre-made holes later. “I screwed my shelves into the base and added support pieces between the shelves that were screwed into studs.” Smith then cut hardboard into the arches and used MDF boards as trim between the seams before adding baseboards to the bottom. She finished by sanding, caulking, priming, and painting. “I think this could be a renter-friendly project if the hardboard arch was cut and attached directly to the shelf,” she says.

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BathroomChange up your hardware

There’s honestly nothing better than an inexpensive and simple DIY that makes an immediate impact in your space. Take this hardware refresh from Shayla Hamm as evidence. “This is a super simple project that you can do to any of the hardware in your house if you don’t want to pay for brand new,” she says. But if you’re focusing on bathroom fixtures like Hamm, don’t forget to turn off your water before starting. “I followed this same process for my door handles, and they have held up amazingly,” she says.

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Make over your bathroom vanity

Part of an entire DIY bathroom remodel, Ashely Dixon’s bathroom vanity project is a simple way to make over bathroom furniture you may already have. “We like to start with existing cabinets either from Home Depot or IKEA when possible,” she says. First, she sanded and primed a white laminate cabinet before painting it a deep green and adding gold hardware. She says, “Paint and molding make a world of difference,” as she proves on her video.

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All overBrighten your light fixtures

While you’re stringing holiday lights around your home this winter, take a second look at the fixtures that are in your house all year long. “Typically [from] start to finish it takes me about 10–20 minutes to do a fixture replacement,” Sophie Marie says. It’s easily a day project, and it’s a fun way to add flair to every room. Not as complicated as it looks, it mostly comes down to removing the old fixture and mount, then screwing in new ones. “How the fixture attaches to the mount differs between light styles, but the instructions that come with it will make it easy to understand,” Marie says. You’ll want to make note of the way the wires are connected in the original so you can replicate it for the new fixture, and always make sure to shut off the electricity before you begin.

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