My Top 10 Ikea Finds

My obsession with Ikea began when I was a preteen. Whenever the new catalogue arrived, I would study each page and dream about transforming the house I shared with my Dad and brother. We lived two hours from the nearest Ikea and I remember my first trip there around the age of 13.  My Dad let me choose some cute accessories, towels, and a CD storage tower! I have been shopping at Ikea for 30 years and have just rounded up my top 10 Ikea finds. Many of these items I have in my home and have had the chance to test over the years. A few are items I have examined in-store (on more than one occasion!) and they are currently on my wish list. I have purchased and tested many other Ikea products that didn’t make the cut; the ones listed here are truly worthy!

This post is the first of my Décor Sources for Canadians Series. It isn’t easy finding fabulous décor sources in Canada, and I want to help bring beauty to our Canadian homes. However, everything presented here is valid for the US and other countries that are blessed with Ikea stores. Just a note that this post is not sponsored; all of my reviews here are unbiased and in the interest of sharing my love of affordable and accessible decor. With that said, if you are on a budget, then Ikea cannot be ignored. My top ten Ikea finds begins with storage solutions, moves onto soft furnishings, and concludes with décor accessories.

My top ten Ikea finds

Number 1- Hemnes Dresser

The Hemnes dressers have clean lines, are made of solid wood, and come in some beautiful classic colours. I prefer their dressers that are stained because they are solid wood and you can see the lovely grain of the wood through the stain. However, Ikea also sells a fibreboard/laminate version if you prefer a glossier finish with no wood grain. I love how the Hemnes line is as equally at home in a modern farmhouse as it is in a clean-lined modern home or updated traditional home. Definitely worthy of being on my top 10 Ikea finds list!

We have three Hemnes dressers in our home and they have held up really well over a solid decade of use. They are made of pine, which is softer than hardwoods that are sometimes used for furniture, so they do dent and get scratched if they are abused. We have the black-brown stain and the white stain, but there are other finishes available.  There are also several dresser sizes to choose from. The latest Hemnes dressers have an improved drawer design which prevents the drawer base from popping out (if you have an older model, you’ll know what I mean! A little wood glue in the seam will fix that though). In my opinion, the only downside to this product is the long assembly time of 2-3 hours if you’re on your own. But I’m all about putting in a little hard work to get fabulous décor on a budget.

In my son’s room, I upgraded his Ikea dresser with some modern brass globe pulls from Restoration Hardware. I love how they make the dresser look more glam and higher end.

The details:

• $269.00 CAD
• White stain, 6-drawer chest
• 42.5”W, 51 5/8”H, 19 5/8”D

Number 2- Hemnes Glass-Door Cabinet

OK, I’ll warn you now that my first three favourites are from the Hemnes line. Above all, this line is so affordable and versatile, and is great quality. This cabinet has classic styling with lovely glass inserts and clean lines that fit many décor styles. It’s perfect for storing books and collectables above and less tidy items in the drawers. Note that my cabinet is an older model and has 4 drawers (2 large and 2 small) instead of the 3 drawers offered in the current model.

A great feature of the Hemnes cabinets is that they can be joined together with other Hemnes cabinets, shelves, and TV units to form a larger wall unit. Additionally, they look beautiful as stand-alone pieces and they’re available in a myriad of configurations as well as several colours.

The only drawbacks I can think of are the long assembly time of 2-3 hours and the fairly thin glass on the doors seems a bit fragile, but we haven’t had an issue with them. The unit is not deep, which means it fits well into most spaces, but the storage potential is only slightly limited by this.

The details:

• $395.00 CAD
• White stain, 3-drawer chest
• 35 3/8”W, 77.5”H, 14 5/8”D

Number 3- Hemnes Nightstand

These petite nightstands are perfect if you have a Queen-sized bed or smaller and need something that will fit in a compact space. They have the same clean lines as the other Hemnes pieces and have a drawer and a lower shelf that’s perfect for books and magazines or a pretty basket.

I did an Ikea hack on my Hemnes nightstands (don’t you love those?)- they were previously black, so I painted them white with cabinet paint and added some cute distressed brass pulls from Lee Valley Tools to give them a one-of-a-kind look.  I love customizing Ikea pieces this way. If you like the shiplap in this photo, click here to see how I added shiplap to our master bedroom.

The details:

• $69.99 CAD
• White stain
• 18 1/8”W, 27.5”H, 13 3/4”D

Number 4- Kallax Shelf Unit

This clean-lined shelf unit is extremely versatile and could be used in a mudroom, playroom, home office, family room or bedroom. It’s ideal for a space with lots of toys that you’d like to keep out of sight since it’s designed to store baskets. I love that you can purchase perfectly-sized baskets from Ikea or from other retailers and Ikea also sells door fronts and drawers that fit into the unit.

The Kallax unit is made of durable particleboard and fibreboard- ours has held up perfectly for 7 years. It comes in 4 finishes and does require assembly. I found the assembly to be very quick, less than 20 minutes. However, I wasn’t a fan of was the exposed screws on the top, so I painted them white.

Several units can be joined together to create a wall unit or you can combine them with a solid surface to create a desk. In contrast to the Hemnes line, this piece is more modern, so it’s more suitable for modern or perhaps transitional décor.

The details:

• $59.99 CAD
• White finish
• 30 3/8”W, 30 3/8”H, 15 3/8”D

Number 5- Froslov Sofa

I chose only one sofa in my review here, but there are 3 other sofas I really like. First, the Ektorp is a comfortable and classic sofa that is slightly overstuffed and great for farmhouse or shabby chic décor.  Second, the Stocksund is a traditional roll-arm sofa that is comfortable and would suit an English farmhouse-style or traditional-style home. Third, the Farlov is a newer sofa with a modern feel, but I found it to be too deep for my liking and it didn’t offer quite enough seating for our family room.

I chose the Froslov because it suits the updated traditional style I’m trying to achieve in my family room, the size is perfect for our space, and it is extremely comfortable. Additionally, I had my husband try it out in store and he had no complaints. Believe me, he would have complained if there were any issues with comfort!

This sofa is brand new and may not yet be available in all stores. It comes in two colours- a light neutral beige and a mid-tone grey. Additionally, the seat backs are tufted which adds a nice detail and the arms are sloped, low and fairly narrow, which facilitates more seating on the sofa relative to its size.

Perhaps because it’s so new, Ikea hasn’t listed a matching loveseat or chairs. I think the chair equivalent of this sofa would be swoon worthy! One possible negative is that the sofa is not slipcovered and Bemz and Comfort Works, companies which design and sell slipcovers for Ikea sofas, haven’t designed a slipcover for this sofa yet.

Update:

This is one of my favourites from my top ten Ikea finds and we recently added it to our family room. To see my complete review, click here.

The details:

• $999.99 CAD
• Nordvalla beige fabric
• 89 3/8”W, 38  5/8”D

We’re halfway through my top ten Ikea finds. Have you seen anything that would work in your home yet? If not, keep reading, and I’m sure there will be something that catches your eye.

Number 6- Farlov Chair

I love the modern lines of this chair and the squishy, sink-into-it comfort it offers. It is a large chair, perfect for reading or watching TV. It comes with the choice of 4 slipcovers- the two velvet ones are lovely but come in only charcoal grey or yellow, which are beautiful colours but won’t suit everyone’s décor. Unfortunately, the white and beige slipcovers are made of a coarse-weave fabric that seems to attract dirt. If I were to purchase this chair, I would choose a velvet fabric cover and purchase a separate slipcover from Bemz or Comfort Works in a white Panama cotton or natural linen fabric. Then I could use the velvet one for winter or when I want a dash of bold colour.

The details:

• $499.00 CAD
• Flodafors White fabric
• 36 5/8”W, 39 3/8”D

Number 7- Gronlid Chair

It was a toss-up between the Gronlid chair and the Stocksund chair for a spot on my list, but I love the classic styling and more compact size of the Gronlid. The slipcover options are also pretty impressive and affordable. It’s a brand new item to Ikea’s line-up of soft furnishings. The chair is quite comfortable, though not as luxurious as the Farlov. I adore the rich-toned velvet slipcovers but would choose the Inserus White slipcover (100% cotton) for a clean fresh look. Additionally, this chair is so affordable at only $299.99 CAD plus $49.99 for the slipcover.

The details:

• $349.00 CAD with slipcover
• Inserus White fabric
• 34 1/4”W, 33 1/8”D

Number 8- Askholmen Outdoor Chair

I had to include this in my top 10 Ikea finds as the Askholmen is the perfect wood folding chair at such an affordable price. I can envision a row of these on either side of a long table for a candlelit alfresco dinner. They are also equally suitable as a pair of chairs on either side of a cute bistro patio table. I actually use these indoors- I’ve used one as a side table in my son’s room, another in our bathroom as a pretty surface to place a basket of towels on, and in our front hall as a makeshift bench. To achieve that look I placed two of the chairs side-by-side. People often ask where I got my cute bench from!

The Askholmen chairs are made of solid acacia wood and stained in a pretty grey-brown finish. I love that they fold and can be easily stored in a closet or storage room when not in use.

The details:

• $30.00 CAD
• Grey-brown finish
• 14 1/8”W, 19 1/8”D, 34 1/4”H

Number 9- Ikea Rugs

I chose two here, the Hillested and the Hoptrup. Both are neutral in colour, have an interesting pattern, and suit many styles of decor. These rugs are durable and made of polypropylene. I have purchased several Ikea rugs in the past and have always been happy with the durability and value they offered.

The details:

• $279.00 CAD each
• 6’7” by 9’10”

Number 10- Ikea Pillows

The listing of my top 10 Ikea finds wouldn’t be complete without some pillows. Many of you know of my pillow obsession, and Ikea pillows are my secret to creating pillowscapes on a budget. Most are under $10 and mix and match beautifully with more expensive, designer pillows. There are so many to choose from, but my favourites are the solid colours in cotton or velvet. All of their pillows that I have purchased have zippers for easy removal and washing. They are durable, fairly thick, wash up well, and don’t pill.

My newest obsession is the ISPIGG cushion cover in blue/natural. I recently purchased them – click here to see them in my spring home tour and in my sofa review post.

I also highly recommend their feather inserts which are only $8.00 CAD for a 20” by 20” size. They have a few other sizes too.

The details:

• $5.99 CAD (for real!!)
• Blue/natural
• 20” by 20”

I hope you enjoyed hearing about my top 10 Ikea finds. If you weren’t already an Ikea shopper, I hope I’ve encouraged you to give them a try.