Whether you’re renovating your kitchen or designing one for your new home, a budget is something you surely would have considered. And when it comes to high-quality furnishings that don’t break the bank, it can be tricky to find the right options. So how then do you get the best of both worlds without compromising on what you want? This is when it could be a good time to try designing an IKEA kitchen. By mixing our simple design principles with functional products from IKEA, you’re sure to get a cost-effective IKEA kitchen design that lasts. 

Let’s get into a few basic concepts to keep in mind before you plan your kitchen:

Have an Open-Concept Kitchen? Looks Like You Could Use an IKEA Kitchen Island!

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Use a kitchen island to anchor your open kitchen

Open-concept homes are known to have a spacious and airy vibe. But sometimes, this openness can lead to a lack of boundaries between certain areas in your home. And when this happens, it can make all common areas look like one big room. To prevent this, you can add your own kitchen boundary with a simple IKEA kitchen island to anchor the space. 

This clearly demarcates the space between your open kitchen and other living areas while also giving you added counter space. What’s more, an IKEA kitchen island can also double as a makeshift workstation, dining table or storage unit. Given the amount of utility you receive from such a simple addition, a kitchen island is sure to be a great investment to your design. 

Pro Tip: Before you design your kitchen, always be sure to measure your entire space. This helps you understand the amount of space you have to work with, as well as the accessories you can accommodate. 

If you want to get this look, you can go for a combination of Metod wall cabinets paired with Bodarp cover panels for your IKEA kitchen cabinets.

Embrace the Golden Triangle Rule for a More Efficient Workflow

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If you want to create a homely vibe in your kitchen, go for framed cabinet doors

A concept that goes by many names, the golden triangle is a simple design theory that implies your kitchen work zones must form a triangle. To simplify this further, this rule is specific to the placement of your refrigerator, stove and sink. So while you plan your kitchen layout, ensure that these three zones are placed to form a triangle. 

In this IKEA-inspired home by Livspace, the IKEA kitchen follows an L-shaped layout. And as you might have guessed, it does not entirely follow the golden triangle rule. So what do you do if your kitchen layout doesn’t allow for this? The answer lies with an IKEA kitchen island, of course! You can add a simple island to act as a parallel counter to facilitate a work area. With this, you can still follow the rule while maintaining a layout other than the typical galley kitchen. 

Pro Tip: Though this rule helps you improve your workflow, it is not necessary to have it in every kitchen design. So if you want an L-shaped IKEA kitchen design, you most certainly can still make the best use of it without this rule. And if you’d like to get a similar look in your kitchen, check out IKEA’s Metod/Maximera base cabinets for inspiration.

Separate Your Wet and Dry Areas to Prevent Cluttering Your Workspace

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Task lights help ensure you have full visibility of the counter during meal prep

Just as the golden triangle rule improves workflow, using separate wet and dry zones in your kitchen design can also lead to greater efficiency. This ensures that cleaning and prepping of produce does not interfere with other areas while cooking. Without demarcating these areas, you might find yourself with a cluttered kitchen counter and no counter space to work with. 

Besides accounting for these zones, also be sure to plan the placement of other appliances in your IKEA kitchen design. For example, place your oven closer to your stove or your dishwasher next to your sink. This helps you keep related appliances in close proximity to each other  and improves the overall efficiency of your IKEA kitchen. 

Pro Tip: Always plan your kitchen based on how it can be used optimally rather than only focusing on its general appearance. While the overall look might be important, functionality in your design will reap more benefits in the long run. 

The Colour Palettes You Choose Can Dictate the Effect of Space

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A galley kitchen is a great way to incorporate the golden triangle rule in your kitchen design
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Use minimal colour palettes for a subtle modern look

Of course no IKEA kitchen is complete without some signature IKEA kitchen cabinets. While the kitchen cabinet design you choose can further amplify the aesthetics of your kitchen, the colour palettes they carry can also amp things up. In simple colour theory, darker colours are known to make spaces appear smaller than they actually are. So while darker-coloured palettes might be good to use in spacious kitchens, they might not be ideal in compact spaces. 

However, the added advantage of darker hues, if you’re going for a modern kitchen look, is that they look more sleek. You do run the risk of making the space seem small, though. So, if you don’t want to risk making your kitchen look more compact, try muted colours or light neutral shades instead.

What’s more, IKEA kitchen cabinets come in a wide variety of colours that are well suited to minimal and modern kitchen designs. In this case, simple Bodbyn glass door upper cabinets are a great way to complete the look. So whatever your preferred style is, there’s an IKEA kitchen cabinet that can match it! 

Pro Tip: Darker-coloured kitchen cabinets run the risk of overpowering your space if not balanced with complementary colours and lighting. So if you’re going for a darker palette, make sure you balance it well and bring in a good source of light to maintain brightness. 

Also read: How You Can Get a Chic 3-room Condo Interior Design With IKEA Furniture

Use Vertical Wall Space to Make More Room for Storage

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White cabinets can illuminate your kitchen as they are more reflective of light

No matter the size of your kitchen, storage is always good to have. But in some cases, bringing in a lot of storage units can make your IKEA kitchen look a bit clunky and cluttered. So if you’d like to keep your floor space open and airy, it’s better to go vertical instead when it comes to storage options. Just like this home, you too, can make this happen with upper cabinets and tall units wherever you have open space. 

Pro Tip: If you’re looking for wooden kitchen cabinets but want to source them sustainably, IKEA kitchen cabinets are a good choice to consider. To create a similar look, consider using Enhet drawer fronts paired with Eneryda handles from IKEA.

Extend Your Kitchen Counter for Additional Seating and Counter Space

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To highlight your breakfast counter, use simple pendant lights above this area

A little extra seating space never hurt anybody. Even more so when you have a large family or regularly need to entertain guests. So what do you do when you need to boost seating space but don’t want to go in for a bigger dining table? Just extend your kitchen countertop! While you can go in for a counter-only extension to create a breakfast counter, you can also extend your base cabinets with it. 

By doing so, you create a multifunctional area that can be used to seat people, store things and even prep meals. This helps you get the most out of your IKEA kitchen while also offering maximum functionality. 

Pro Tip: Opt for a mix of open and closed storage solutions while designing your kitchen. This helps create easy-to-access storage areas for things you need on a frequent basis. Similarly, you can also use open shelves or cabinets as display units based on your needs. 

Also, if you use a kitchen island like the Vadholma, you get the benefit of open storage space from the utensil rack. This can be especially useful for easy-to-grab pots and pans while cooking instead of combing through your cabinets for them. 

While there’s no fixed way on how you should design your IKEA kitchen, we hope these simple tips were informative. As long as you keep design function in mind, you’re sure to arrive at the kitchen of your dreams with the help of these products! 

Also read: 9 Easy & Smart Tricks by Experts to Make Your Small Kitchen Look Spacious

How Can Livspace Help You?

Want stunning interiors? Livspace can help you! All you have to do is book an online consultation. If you prefer meeting in person, you can also find Livspace designers at the IKEA Damansara store. Hurry up and get quality home interiors from the best in the industry!