Everyone loves IKEA—including interior designers.
In fact, ask any interior designer and they’re bound to name several IKEA staples that they can’t live without, whether in their own homes or in their clients’.
With so many products being introduced in IKEA, it can be difficult to determine which are the ones you may need for your home. Some options are more trend-focused than the other, and its “shelf life” may not be as long as the more classic designs.
We’ve narrowed down the five IKEA staples that interior designers use in every home, so you can take a leaf out of their books:
1. The IKEA Besta cabinet
New York-based interior designer Tali Roth has a strong inclination towards the IKEA Besta cabinet, which she tends to use in nearly every home she designs, including her own.
Not only does this customisable cabinet look good on its own, but it also works well when combined with several units of the cabinet, with legs, without legs, or floating.
“I love the Besta as a product when I need more than one piece to connect together,” says Roth in an interview with MyDomaine. The key to making the IKEA Besta look more high-end than it is, she says, is to style it with art and accessories to make it blend into its environment.
2. The IKEA Ribba gallery frames
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If you’ve spent a fair bit investing in some unique art pieces, you’ve probably used up most of your designing budget. Now you’re probably thinking: What happens to the frames then?
You turn to IKEA.
For HouseEdit designer Elaine Regan, the IKEA Ribba frames are inexpensive, yet look good enough to complement the artworks. “We love a gallery wall here at HouseEdit and we always try to invest the budget in the artwork while using affordable IKEA frames,” she told thejournal.ie in an interview.
It helps that these frames are fuss-free and minimalist-looking.
Should you get the deep frames, they’re perfect to showcase three-dimensional objects other than paintings.
3. The IKEA Billy bookcase
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Who isn’t familiar with the IKEA Billy bookshelf?
Most homes already have this basic bookshelf, and they don’t need an interior designer to tell them that, but thanks to its clean lines and versatility, it’s no surprise that the Billy bookcase series is an IKEA staple for most interior designers.
“If you have a creative carpenter, they can use these to create built-in storage solutions that look bespoke to your space, minus the hefty bespoke budget,” Elaine Verdon of Leo & Cici told thejournal.ie.
“They can also be given a brand new look and feel by painting them a colour to suit your design. Once you prime them first, you can then paint them with an eggshell or satin finish—they look really sleek.”
4. The IKEA Lack wall shelves
There’s very little to dislike about the IKEA Lack wall shelves.
They’re extremely customisable, look gorgeous on just about any wall, and the floating element gives it a clean, streamlined look.
It is perhaps thanks to this extreme flexibility to adapt to any home’s interior that the IKEA Lack wall shelves are a staple for many interior designers.
“They can be used singly or in multiples and can be fitted at any level on a wall. They act as the perfect invisible backdrop to place picture frames, photos and all those precious things we love to display around the home,” mentions Patricia Duignan of Little Grey Design in an interview with thejournal.ie.
5. The IKEA Farlov sofa
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For sofas that don’t break the bank, it’s always worth turning towards IKEA for some ideas.
For Joyce Downing Pickens of JDP Interiors, she mentions in a Hunker interview the IKEA Farlov as her go-to sofa.
“This sofa has clean traditional lines and feels like a high-end custom sofa. It’s a great blank canvas to paint on. Just add some fun pillows and a throw!”
And once you find that the fabric of the IKEA Farlov gets worn out after several years, you can always give it a fresh, new look with a custom slipcover that’s made with your fabric of choice.