The high street might be dying, but the opening of Ikea’s new flagship store on Oxford Street this week has brought renewed excitement among many British shoppers.
Ikea opened its first branch in the UK in 1987 and changed our homes forever.
Here, interior designers and experts reveal the products they love to buy when they visit.
For Micaela Sharp, best known for appearing on TV shows like Interior Design Masters, Changing Rooms and The Woodland Workshop, the key to Ikea shopping is to keep your personality firmly in mind while shopping.
“I love the Kallax bookshelf (£40) because it’s really versatile”, says Sharp.
“They also sell a frame for it where you can put it on its side and have it as a bench. A built-in bench for a dining table is so space-saving, and then you’ve got the shelves underneath so you can use it for books or shoes or whatever you’ve got.
Ikea’s Kallax bookshelf (Photo: Ikea)“I tend to paint it so that it’s not white and then add a cushion or something on top.”
Sharp, author of Modern Upholstery, also advises upcycling Ikea products with upholstered headboards or fixing fabrics to standard wardrobes, transforming them into unique pieces.
Micaela Sharp appeals to her upholstery and upcycling skills to make run-of-the mill products more unique (Photo: Micaela Sharp)“Obviously, I love fabric, so if I can get fabric on something, I will. I really like doing that with the PAX wardrobe sets (from £204). It has an inlay panel, so I pop that panel out and then put fabric in there. Instead of having a glass panel or a wooden panel, you can pleat the fabric, staple it onto the back of the door or thread it through a rod and attach the rod to the back of the door, which adds a lot of texture.”
She says people often make the mistake of buying things in white from Ikea. Then they get home, and they realise everything’s kind of neutral and end up with too much blank space in the room.” Wherever possible, she says, choose coloured items or paint them yourself.
Sharp also looks for limited-edition collaborations with designers, such as last year’s Kontsfull collection of vases made with Ilse Crawford.
‘I got my kitchen from Ikea’
Kevin McCloud, renowned designer and host of Grand Designs, is also a fan of Ikea. Last year, he installed an Ikea kitchen in his home in Hereford, incorporating local, independent craftsmanship and designs to make it more bespoke.
“If you’re building something which you could buy from a catalogue as a custom-built product, why are you doing this?” he says. “If all you’re doing is trying to impress people, there are many cheaper ways you can do that.”
He is a fan of Ikea’s Lixhult series, too.
“I’ve got this”, he tells me, pointing at the Lixhult cabinet (from £40) in his home.
Presenter Kevin McCloud has bought cabinets and a fitted kitchen from Ikea – then enhanced it with a local independent designer (Photo: Stephanie Lee)“I’m on record on television as having built this cupboard in four and a half minutes. We all know the history of flatpak being littered with the carcasses of badly written instructions. I think, luckily, we’re well past that, which is a great thing.”
One of Ikea’s model kitchensAccording to McCloud, who is hosting Grand Designs Live, the best way to ensure the items you purchase stand the test of time is to avoid trying too hard to be in vogue.
“You can apply taste, you can apply fashion, but really, they’re too temporal or superficial to matter. What really matters is whether or not something is well designed and whether it’s well made.”
He also has advice for those partial to impulse Ikea shopping. “I’m a fan of dawn-raid shopping. Go with a mission. Do not go to browse. Ever.”
For kitchen basics, Angela Trofymova, head of testing at the Good Housekeeping Institute, is a big fan of the £3 Ikea peeler, which she says is “super affordable and works like a dream.”
She also recommends the £3 DIMPA storage bag, asserting that the “transparent, jumbo-sized bag saves the day. It can store everything from bedding to a folded Brompton bike, keeping everything neatly organised and easily accessible with double zips and dust-free. You can fill it to the brim with stuff – it’s sturdy and waterproof. A great storage solution!”
Ikea’s DIMPA Storage bagMeanwhile, Blossom Boothroyd, homes manager at the Good Housekeeping Institute, is a fan of the £5 ASPEKT knife sharpener: “It keeps my kitchen knives sharp and ready for tackling any cooking preparations with minimal effort.”
Read Next
square LIFESTYLERead More
She adds that as you shop, rather than simply taking down product codes, “take pictures – Ikea has a sea of furniture, so it’s easy to forget what they look like. It’s also good to look at Ikea’s design and planning tools online for inspiration of how it will look and if it fits in your space, too. This is really handy if you’re redesigning a bedroom or kitchen.”
Boothroyd says the MOSSLANDA picture ledge, which costs between £4 and £12 depending on the size, is the perfect example of a product that does more than what it says on the box.
She says it’s “great for filling big empty spaces with your favourite pictures and trinkets and for keeping your shelves and workspace. [It] can be used to hold your hats and bags too!”
‘I go for a high-low mix for my tableware’
Red magazine editor-in-chief Sarah Tomczak is a big fan of Ikea’s inexpensive table linen, which she elevates by mixing with vintage and more expensive pieces.
“When it comes to accessories, I love the table linen, which you can bulk buy and is ideal for garden entertaining”, she says, referring to Ikea’s £4 VIPPSTARR tablecloth and £1 napkins.
Ikea’s VIPPSTARR Tablecloth“They’re particularly good for outdoor dining because you can get them at a really good price, stock up, and they don’t have to feel too precious.”
Sarah Tomczak blends Ikea products with more expensive items and vintage pieces (Photo: Sarah Tomczak)Tomczak is also a fan of the £15 STRIMMIG dinner plates: “Ikea is brilliant for basics, so I’ve bought neutral ‘everyday’ dinner plates too, and layer these with more ornate crockery for a high-low mix. Their Scandi pared-back designs and colour palette don’t date quickly.
Ikea’s STRIMMIG Plate“As with anything, it’s kind of the high-low mix. So, while I would get their table linens, I would then buy more expensive crockery that I would have on the table. But they’re really good for a really nice colour palette. I think their colours feel more expensive than lots of other high-end brands.”
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( The IKEA products the interiors experts buy )
Also on site :
- Kacey Musgraves Makes Bold Statement About 'Returning to Country Music'
- James B. Milliken, University of Texas chancellor, named University of California president
- Aldi's Stylish $19 Cast Aluminum Pan is Back in Stock and Guaranteed to Sell Out Fast