It's no secret that IKEA offers an affordable, off-the-shelf alternative to a custom kitchen. With the flexibility to mix and match finishes and styles, the Swedish store is a go-to source for renovators, but it's also ubiquitous. Fortunately, there are lots of ways to personalize an IKEA kitchen, and we need look no further than the Apartment Therapy house tour archives for ideas.
- Roy and Jen's Akurum kitchen cabinets and Lansa handles are from IKEA, but the table (built from a restaurant supply store base and a butcher block top) and the wraparound shelving give the kitchen a custom feel.
- Andreas' home is a beautiful mix of high (Florence Knoll, Arne Jacobsen) and low (IKEA) pieces. He used IKEA wall cabinets in both the kitchen and the living room - click here for the full tour.
- Jason Weinbeck's home is full of Mid-Century style, but the kitchen is IKEA. It looks to us like Jason chose the Solar finish, a rich beech with a visible grain that perfectly complements the floors and marble countertops.
- School house light fixtures, marble counters, and subway tile contrast beautifully with the modern cabinets in Sybylla's kitchen. We're not sure, but the cabinets look like IKEA's Akurum in white gloss finish with Varde hardware.
- We love the laid-back vintage style of Anna's kitchen, which she renovated on a budget. Notice the sturdy and inexpensive Grundtal shelving above the sink.
- Meredith chose IKEA's Akurum cabinets in a beige matte finish for her small galley kitchen. The color looks great against the sage green walls and Crossville "Chopsticks" tile backsplash.
- Stephanie and Bob's kitchen is bright and cheerful. The high-gloss blue finish on the cabinets goes perfectly with the shell barstools and painted orange runner.
- When Form Design Firm remodeled their space, they used solid beech cabinets from IKEA. To add a little bit of custom style, they replaced the standard glass in the doors with frosted.
- Jacob and Laurie redid their kitchen all by themselves with IKEA cabinets, cork flooring, Bosch appliances, discounted tile from Maestro Mosaics, and marble countertops.
- Steve's North End kitchen is a nice mix of off-the-shelf IKEA against the backdrop of a silver and white tile pattern, which he designed himself.
Photos: Steve Wilson, Andreas Larsson, Jason Weinbeck, Ronee Saroff, Jill Slater, Gregory Han, Evan Thomas, Kyle Freeman
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We are going there next weekend... It's like going on vacation!
Wishing the last kitchen had that brick exposed all the way down to the backsplash. sigh.
I have always wondered... Just how durable are Ikea's cabinets? I have two different Ikea dressers, one that I would not buy again and the other that I would, so I worry that the quality of the cabinets would fall under the "would not buy again" category, and if I redo a kitchen or bath, I don't want to feel like it would have to be done again in a year or two.
Ikea kitchen cabinets are surprisingly well built. Compared it to the construction of cabinets from lowe's or Home Depot, they are built similarly. The Higher end ikea cabinetry has solid wood drawers with recessed panels and is constructed like most cabinets today.
I think your problem is with ikea FURNITURE. In general, their furniture is not designed to "move well". Most damage to furniture happens when it is being moved. Since ikea pieces are simply veneered damage to a corner can really ruin a piece. But in the case of kitchen cabinets, they are never moved once put into place. The manufactured finish of the kitchen cabinets are designed to stand up to the normal wear and tear of daily use. I think ikea has a 10yr warranty on their kitchens. So I hazard to guess they will last at least twice that long if not more.
#3's cabinets are Nexus Yellow/Brown, which I totally covet. They will be mine. Oh yes, they will be mine.
Ikea kitchen cabinets are known for being above par.
I installed ikea kitchen cabinets in my kitchen and am very happy with them. Sturdy. Clean lines.
Comicgeek has it exactly right.
And I love that first kitchen--I would kill for all those bookshelves.
we put in our ikea kitchen over the summer, and have been very happy with it, we received great customer service (schaumburg, IL store), had zero problems with the delivery, and love the quality and look of the kitchen! my dad (carpenter) put them in for us and was a little skeptical at first but raved about the cabinets once they were done, he was really impressed by the quality, ease of install, and price.
both my cousin and my aunt have ikea kitchen cabinets and both of them cook A LOT. their kitchens have held up very well over the last 5 years. we put one in our kitchen but sold the house soon after, so i have no personal long term experience, other than to say that it was super easy to put together and put up on the walls. i laugh that some able bodied people actually hire someone to do it for them.
LOVE that first kitchen!! it's totally inspiring...if the counters were marble, it'd be my dream beginner kitchen.
http://mylittleapartment.blogspot.com/
We moved into a house with an Ikea kitchen newly installed. The cabinets are the white Akurum (sp?) ones. It looked great for about 1 year. Now, the finish is starting to splinter and peel due to regular wear and tear. We are regular users of our kitchen, but are not excessively rough with it. We have been very unhappy with it, but do understand that other finishes are more durable than the one we have. On the positive side, it has been very easy and cost effective to replace worn doors and drawer fronts. But, it seems ridiculous to have to replace them so soon.
I LOVE number 7. It's fun and refreshing. I used to have a modern German tea set that would've matched it perfectly. I do wonder if I'd like it as much if I saw photographs of the kitchen from different angles. I suspect I wouldn't.
Sue - They have a 25 year warranty so take those cabinets in to the store and swap them out if you can.
We have the Nexus Yellow Brown. Installed it 2 1/2 years ago and they look the same as the day we installed them. I'm really pleased at the look and functionality.
I find the pro-IKEA posts on AT such as this one very dismaying.
I appreciate that IKEA is a source for well-designed and inexpensive kitchens. Heck, we installed IKEA kitchen cabinets in our first house back in '92, so I totally get it.
But since '92, I've become much more aware of a serious issues with IKEA. IKEA has great PR, and this gung-ho uncritical post just feeds into that great PR... I think most people aren't aware of the issues, and I think it behooves AT to temper such enthusiastic support with mention of some of the other considerations that ought to be weighed in the decision to buy IKEA products. Issues such as corporate ethics, treatment of contractor employees, deforestation...
Sure, if people decide that those issues are not significant enough for them to forego IKEA products, so be it; but I think that those issues should always be a caveat in a discussion about IKEA. It is after all, the largest furniture company in the world, responsible for using more trees than any other single corporate entity on the planet, and thus corporate ethics and corporate leadership is very important.
a really easy was to disguise that the your kitchen is IKEA is to change out the hardware. that's my number #1 give away when i see the cheapy handles and knobs.
ms chatelaine...
Among the largest furniture retailers in the world we have WalMart, JCPenney, Costco and Target (you can look 'em up if you want). Compared to those, Ikea actually HAS a green initiative that even eco-investigators have given credit to (i.e. they actually make an effort to use woods only sourced from sustainable foresting). They are one of the few corporations making an inspiring effort. Some corporate bigwigs got it right, there.
Yup, i'll support Ikea over most other stores with the purchase of some cabinetry.
foog -- it is obvious you have not looked into IKEA very deeply -- for example, their "sustainable foresting" methods do not withstand scrutiny; they are little more sophisticated window-dressing and PR. I encourage you to do so before making your mind up.
mschatelaine--
Where do you suggest people shop as a more socially and eco-responsible alternative, at this price point?
FAR more expensive solutions come from companies that don't pass the same scrutiny.
Also, since Ikea cabinets are known for better quality and longevity (especially the "boxes," which is really what you are paying for with cabinetry) than their furniture, this is one of their automatically more "friendly" products, since they are built to last past a trend cycle.
And from what I read here, Ikea has lovers and haters on a regular basis. And even if this or any future post is all about the love, I'm sure the haters will step up and have their voices heard, as you had the opportunity here.
ms chatelaine and foog,
I think it is funny when people do a major remodel and call it green.
Green is reusing what you have.
Purchasing or tossing out the old is not Green.
Apartment Therapy is just a resource.
Why make it political?
alrats,
green is a color.
all other definitions are merely shades of opinion.
:) happy friday
vote!
We gutted and rebuilt our kitchen using only ikea products and we are in love. The two 4-legged kids we have are constantly behaving badly by putting their paws on the cabinets and scratching at the counter top - and everything still looks great! Clorox wipe for the paw prints and my cabinets are clean. The butcher block counter top is amazing, used some type of oil to seal it and it's gorgeous! We created our own stone backsplash with hickory floors and it turned out to be a dream!
I actually love them all. How can I can get my Ikea kitchen (for which I did 99 percent of the installation myself) featured on AT?
Thank you for acknowledging Ikea for their good quality and style for the price! I find all these anti-Ikea people to be very annoying, if you don't like it, don't buy it but let other people enjoy it!
the link to photo #5 doesn't appear to match up - and its my favorite! would like to see the house tour that belongs to this kitchen. please help! thanks.
Danica123, I'm right there with you.
Some of these are great chiefly 1, 4, 5, and 6. The others seem a little generic to me but to each his own. When I redo my kitchen, I'm IKEAing it. Thanks for the post, I need as many ideas as I can get.
Hm, non of these even come close to the custom IKEA kitchen I have at my place. I wish they would include one that has all built-in appliances.
P.S. I do have to say that everything else the make is a disaster.
While green can be using what you have--there are always salvage places that will take your old stuff, if it's usable, and sell it to someone else.
I wish people who love their IKEA kitchens would mention what line they put in. I'm bookmarking for the future, altho this month is the kitchen sale--maybe next year.
Foog,
Green is my favorite color!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Your comment is clever.
Here is my kitchen: http://grassrootsmodern.com/2008/10/23/affordable-modern-kitchen-entry-brooklyn-co-op/#more-1523
After about a year and a half, the cabinets have help up very well.
Our landlords installed an Ikea kitchen in the house less than a year ago. I'm pretty sure they put in the cheapest one they could. They put in a dark greyish blue. My biggest complaint is the cabinets hold grease like it's nobody's business, so they always looks dirty.
This is great and I'm only now catching it on the 2010 Kitchen remodel round-up!
As an FYI, we used the same cabinets as seen in this photo (#3, jason's midcentury)... it is NOT the Solar beech, though close! It's actually the Ikea NEXUS YELLOW/BROWN :) The last we were at Ikea, they were going on clearance so I believe they've been phased out :(
The secret to a great IKEA kitchen is to enlist the help of an expert in the design and ordering of the cabinets. Most other non-IKEA cabinet sources provide design services. IKEA does not and it can be a disservice to imply that anyone can design a kitchen layout. You can buy a set of plastic bowls at IKEA without help, but to spend thousands of dollars on materials for a project that involves tearing your home apart, plumbing, electrical, utility lines, etc., it is wise to get some expert assistance from the start. I learned this from over 450 IKEA kitchen projects (my husband is a contractor). I am happy to pass on what I learned in my blog.
I have looked at IKEA's website for the kitchen wall cabinets with glass doors pictured in photos 2 and 10 and not found them. Would appreciate it very much if you could identify the style of cabinet for me shown in those photos with the stainless steel frames and matte glass fronts. Thanks.