The brand-new Ikea 2013 catalog landed in my mailbox recently, which led to a blissful hour during B’s nap with a hot cup of coffee, dogearing pages and enjoying that new catalog smell. While I have a few basic items on my Ikea shopping list, such as a cart-full of Ribba frames in various sizes and a toddler bed for Bixby, it was this year’s Ikea PS collection that really stopped me in my tracks. Specifically, the three pieces shown below are making my heart beat faster, and if you haven’t yet laid eyes on them, I think you are in for a treat!
I admit my general rule with Ikea shopping has been to avoid the furniture. I’ve had mixed results with keeping Ikea furniture more than a few years – some items have held up remarkably well (hello, Expedit, I’m looking at you!) while others have been, ahem, less durable. Generally these days I stick to the picture frames, which can’t be beat, kitchen stuff, flower pots, lighting, and rugs. But the PS collections tend to be made of a more solid construction, so I wouldn’t think twice about scooping up any of the items shown here. Like that adorable glass-front bookcase above, which would make any old thing look like an intentional display. It comes white, but I love how it was customized above by painting just the front inside the frames a pale duck-egg blue. By the way, this photo and the one below come from PS At Home, a special website from Ikea dedicated to sharing photos of the collection at use in real homes. Genius!
Next up, and probably my favorite Ikea pick to date, is this chest and add-on unit. You can actually affix the smaller section of drawers in two different ways, giving the piece a completely different shape depending on how you use it. As soon as I saw this, with its many little drawers and cupboard, and nice unfinished wood surface, my creative wheels started turning…there are just so many ways you could paint and customize this piece! For starters:
- You could paint the top and sides white or cream, and then do an ombre effect on the drawer fronts in shades of aqua.
- Or, paint it all one color and then stencil numbers onto the drawer fronts.
- Or paint the whole thing gray, but swap out the knobs for something pretty & shiny from Anthro, and line the interior of the drawers and cupboards with wallpaper scraps.
And of course it looks great plain, too. What would you do with it?
Finally, this dining table is such a smart design. It has a sleek, high-end look but costs under $200, and the drop-leaves make it super practical for those living in small apartments. Wood + white gets me every time! All of the PS collection is available now in Europe, but we likely won’t see it here in stores in the States until August (at least) or, more likely September or October. Phooey!
So…what is on your Ikea shopping list? Do you have a strategy when it comes to Ikea shopping? I’d love to hear!
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The chest with the changeable drawers reminds me of Asian herb cabinets. I might try to copy that look. Maybe even paint some chinese characters on it. I have been happy with my Ikea purchases.