I know that I probably shouldn’t admit to this as an interior designer, but actually there’s a part of me that absolutely adores ikea. I remember as a kid I would get so excited when the new ikea catalogue came out. I’d spend hours flicking through the pages, bookmarking my dream rooms and circling products to add to my wish-list. Yes, I was probably quite a strange child.
As an adult I’m drawn to their lovely range of textiles and their great lighting options.
It’s also really affordable and can often be the perfect solution for small London spaces. The drawback to ikea is that you can end up with things looking very same-y. There are some simple solutions to this. You can obviously get down and dirty with your own two hands and get into some DIY upholstery. You can also get out your paintbrushes and give your furniture a fresh lick of paint.
Something as simple as changing the knobs/handles can really alter the entire look and feel of a piece. There’s definitely a wealth of inspiration you can get from having a cursory online search. I’ve seen some fab ikea hacks involving a bit of gold leaf, or spray paint – I’m such a sucker for something a bit metallic.
If you’re a little less into your DIY, I’ve come across two really great companies which can help you to customise your ikea purchases. The first company is called superfront. They’re based in Sweden and can customise the fronts, sides, tops, legs and handles of your chosen ikea pieces.
Can I just say, wow – they really do know how to make your ikea furniture look very upmarket and chic. The colour options are spot on. You even have the option of upgrading to marble tops!
The second company is prettypegs who are also based in Sweden. They have an absolutely stunning range of different legs for your ikea furniture. The site is really easy to use, you can simply search by your furniture type (bed, table…) and the range of options will appear.
Whether you’re more hands on or hands off there are so many great ways you can customise and get creative with your ikea pieces. There’s no reason to write off or relegate ikea to the back of your interior design options with these gorgeous updates.
Feeling inspired and wanting some more interior tips? Work with one of our Homewings designers!