Using IKEA cabinets to get the most bang for your remodeling buck is hardly a secret. But Apartment Therapy reader Ian has a special tip for making those basic cabinets look especially good on an especially small budget. He shared his new kitchen project at last week's Apartment Therapy Design Evening. For those of you who weren't able to make it, here are all the details.
The key is not to use the standard doors and drawer faces that IKEA supplies, but instead swap them for any other panels you might like. I only used the cabinet frames and the hardware required for the drawers and the adjustable legs for the base cabinets — the total amount spent at Ikea was less than $400. The material used for the faces is from Italy, the same material used by B&B Italia and Poliform. There are many suppliers now that import that material into this country. It's possible now to get 4'x8' sheets for less than $100, and you can do an entire kitchen with two or three sheets; the trick is finding some local wood shop to apply the edge tape and drill the doors for you.
Thanks for the hint, Ian! The kitchen looks great! You can see more of Ian's projects on his website, INC Interiors.
(Images: reader Ian)
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Recipe: Ham, Cheddar & Chive Egg Bakes
Beautiful job!
:O!!!!
Lovely!
Odd that the stove opens up to the livingroom..I'm wondering how that works for him while cooking...spills, steam, etc.
Regardless, I'm very impressed on how well this looks. I like the streamline look. Nice job.
You know, it is helpful if at least one "after" shot is taken from the exact same point-of-view as at least one "before" shot.
There is? Shot number 2 is the same angle/point of view.
Nice cabinets, sleek look. Hope he doesn't do a lot of frying. Where's the hood and the fan and the backsplash ? Not very practical at all, especially when the upholstered furniture starts soaking up the old food smells. Hmmn.
Wow - what, exactly, are the panels called and could you suggest some suppliers? Many thanks.
Wow - what, exactly, are the panels called and could you suggest some suppliers? Many thanks.
Regarding the location of the stove, I can't tell from the photos how the ventellation system is set up in this kitchen, but it is not necessary to have a hood above a stove. I lived in a house once with a similar stove placement, and there was a small vent running along the top of the stove along the counter that sucked all the odors away. It worked really well, and was only about 2-3 inches high. I can't tell if there is such a system in this kitchen, but regardless, it's possible. As for spatters, just use a spatter guard if you prefer this layout.
I can't speak for him, but my sister's stove is in her island. There's a button she pushes and up pops a vent/backsplash from the back of the stove. Her's is about 16 years old though, but i'm sure they still make them.
The cabinets look really nice but the rest of it is kind of plain, and doesn't really work with the high end look they were going for. The layout seems cramped, the triangle-based plan most kitchens should have is a little strained, and it looks like one of the wall cabinets partially blocks a window. And the counters might look more expensive in person, but in the photos it looks like white formica. And the countertop near the stove has a very obvious seam.
I'd be interested in the material used for the cabinet faces, and I wonder how much the labor was considering I doubt consumers can buy this without trade contacts.
The microwave seems odd to me? How would you get something out from there without spilling?
I doubt the stove was properly vented even before the remodel. Looks like maybe there was a microwave above before? Although these can be installed ducted most often they are not and provide little help in recirculating mode.
I agree the counters look like Formica. What's wrong with that? I guess it is not considered "high end" but personally I like the practicality of laminate counters. Personally, I prefer that the edges match the countertop but this looks OK.
love the cabinets, but I think the countertops look sort of cheap in comparison.
still, a HUGE improvement!
The material I used was from Cleaf.
The additional sites are of suppliers from the New York area that import material from Tafisa in Canada that is very similar to the Italian. The latest material supplied by Tafisa are called “Urbania” and “Alto”
http://www.cleaf.it/eng/index.asp
http://www.baersupply.com/baer/wg-index.jsp
http://atlanticplywood.com/
http://honerkamp.com/
Hope this helps
Ian
I am pretty partial to white kitchens so believe me when I saw damn I love the grain in those cabinets. Really gorgeous!
@angelinethebaker - A lot of people, like me, have bad memories of formica in terrible 70s and 80s kitchens. My kitchen used to have formica and I counted the days until I could rip it up. It was ugly and never looked clean. And formica is associated with being cheap and not very high end, which isn't always the case. But it can't shake its reputation.
While it looks lovely, those big handles that stick out beyond the counter top look dangerous. I would undoubted gouge my belly every time I try to cook.
looks similar to the new IKEA door SOFIELUND
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30203751/
Love it. Look at how much storage he added. I had seen this done with the Ikea bases and custom wood panels somewhere else and was considering it for our future kitchen remodel. Thanks for sharing. Also, I am curious about the stove ventilation. We want to move our stove to the island, but I really don't want a giant hood blocking the flow.
http://diligentdesigner.blogspot.com/
very nice work. as many folks have discovered, the success of an IKEA kitchen install is the assembly, planning and detail execution — and some custom bits. a lot of what has been done here would be difficult if following IKEA's stock plans, but possible with a little ingenuity.
it's too bad IKEA has discontinued some of their best lines, including the nexus line that was veneered with oak (yellow-brown, brown and brown-black). with the brown color, you could get a very similar look to the above, but alas... as of late, their new lines haven't been wood at all, but fake foil veneer (like the SOFIELUND).
a good source for custom doors for IKEA cabinet is http://semihandmadedoors.com/ ... they do much of what was achieved in the above.
worth noting, too, is that much of the hinges and drawer boxes are made by blum which is the same innards you'll find in much more expensive "euro" cabinet lines.
again, great job.
It looks good. I'm not a fan of IKEA kitchen cabinets because the frames are made of particleboard, but I understand they have a generous warranty so maybe its not so bad.
Ian- can you please tell me specifically which wood surface you used? and how much it cost to fabricate it? We have an air bag press at home (to make skateboards) and perhaps we could use that to press the sheets onto our existing arched maple cabinets..(yech!) Any opinion on if that would work? We would still need to get the molding, though.
I love this site. I was inspired by many paint colors I found on here and then seen this post regarding cabinets. I am not sure how a skateboard press would work but it sounds like a great idea.I am thinking of using cabinets/doors from www.27estore.com
Not a fan of the cabinet handles.
Really beautiful! And I just love reading about people who found less expensive ways to do things.
Thanks for providing the further info in one of your comments, too!
Looks great!
My stove looks out on to the living area too. I like that I can look out the window/chat to guests when cooking. Most of the vent hoods just recirculate the air anyway s0 are nothing but a trap for rancid oil.
If your stove is close enough to the windows you aren't required to have a hood.
Also, what is everyone cooking that oil and food would splash off the stove in to the living area?
Funny, a carpenter friend was just telling me about a kitchen he installed where they did this. Such a smart idea. Well done!
I really like the wood-and-white look, but I think the handles let it down. They look both too small and wrongly placed (at the top rather than in the centre of the drawers). Otherwise it is a great improvement, warm but clean (which is what I think all kitchens should be, but it's difficult to pull off).
I love before-and-afters, and this is exactly why. Great job!
The kitchen re model is just amazing. Well done. Visit
A beautiful and inventive solution. If the stove problem that everyone keeps warning you about actually *becomes* a problem, I can tell you have the creativity and resources to resolve that as well.
Thanks for sharing!
You can do your kitchen cabinets in a lot of different ways beyond the traditional Wooden Cabinets. Wooden cabinets are susceptible to decay and rot after a few years. And popular with ants & termites too!
Nowadays acrylic & polyglass material can be also be used for cabinets. Check out these options for cabinets by a Singapore contractor -
Design Cabinet Doors
i like the before...
just kidding!
one thing I am over is stainless steel, especially home version stainless steel, kinda flaccid in my opinion...on the other h and, true industrial appliances are hot!
i agree that the oven location is a bit awkward. I would only do this if the counter was wide enough so guests could sit on the opposite side and really hang out and watch tapenyaki style!
the layout of the before is far superior, both for traffic flow by losing a door & for the danger posed by someone from the L/R reaching through the passthrough and burning an arm over a gas stove or in the K by bumping into all those handles sticking out. centering the stove in the U is sensible. a better solution is a modified galley kitchen, perhaps swinging the sink @ to the window wall even if it cannot be extended all the way to the window.
Looks a like an entirely new place! Congrats!
CAUTION! I remodeled my kitchen three years ago and used IKEA cabinets. I was reluctant to do so because so much of the IKEA stuff I'd gotten didn't hold up. But various friends persuaded me that it was actually well made and my contractor, who was skeptial, was convinced.
Three years later, the doors are not holding up. I don't mean the hinges. I mean the veneer is peeling off. in several places on different cabinets.
Three years people, three years. I am really sick. DON'T DO IT. I have to get new cabinet doors and I'm so angry.
IKEA is swedish for crap
hahughes that's no good! My Ikea cupboards are 4 years old & are still looking & working like new. & definitely no peeling...Hopefully Ikea will consider replacements for you.
Love it. The kitchen makeovers are inspirational. I'm a fan of IKEA kitchen cabinets because it designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture that is easy to customize and cost-effective.
If you do any serious cooking, you will need ventilation. Preferably overhead, but downdraft is better than nothing. I have a commercial kitchen hood (www.halton.com) with 300 l/s extraction with a rooftop fan and I think it still could be better.
You did a beautiful job! I have been working on IKEA kitchens, design and installation, for eight years, about 500 projects. The majority of homeowners who choose IKEA's high quality, affordable cabinets for their kitchen remodels do go with IKEA doors to keep the materials costs down. Although it is true that IKEA frames and hardware are very high value, we've created hundreds of amazing kitchens using their stock doors. The secret is to design the kitchen well.
I have many resources for custom doors, if anyone is interested. But a really well drafted layout is the key for most IKEA kitchen projects.
http://www.modernfamilykitchens.com