Ideas

Impromptu gathering at your place? Relax. Start with an open door, keep glasses topped up, and enjoy the spontaneity…

Build the excitement the night before a celebration with a box full of all the essentials for a cosy sleepover. This new tradition has become a popular way to kick start the festivities and treat everyone to a special night in.

 Find the perfect present for the person who knows exactly what they like with our gift guide.

This season, why not take the stress out of hosting by getting everyone involved? A group of friends show us how they like to do it in their communal home…

‘Velvet catches the light in a way that can make a flat surface come alive,’ says designer Ola Wihlborg. Here are some of the reasons to love velvet right now…

Give your gift wrapping a life beyond Christmas – by making it part of your gift.

Design your space to encourage togetherness and play. See how this family uses an open-plan layout, cosy textiles and colour to create a shareable space that suits all their needs.

Build your children’s confidence in the kitchen with this fun, festive baking idea that lets them take charge – and enjoy the taste of their labour!

Per and Hannah live with their three children in a house, while grandpa lives in a small house in their garden. Welcome to their home, where cosiness rules, childhood is celebrated, and young imaginations can run free.

There’s nothing like lighting candles to get the mood just right. Try these tips to help you create a feeling of calm and cosiness.

Greeting a guest can be done in many ways. Here are three living rooms that each have their special way – and style – to offer a heart-warming, welcoming atmosphere.

Decorate your Christmas tree with style, using these three trends from Marie Tenglund, Interior Designer at IKEA UK and Ireland.

Create an inviting atmosphere in your home this winter with these stylish seasonal table settings

Use these tips to bring the festive feeling home with a perfectly decorated Christmas tree from Marie Tenglund, Interior Designer at IKEA UK and Ireland.

Three quick but impactful ideas that set the scene for a special occasion.

Thanks to LEDs, lighting chains are more versatile than ever. Here are handy tips on how to make them a holiday hit in your home.

Marrit and Jelmer have spent nearly four years renovating their house room by room. Along the way, they’ve had a daughter, Mia, and found new passions. For them, home is an ongoing journey – and one worth celebrating.

Florist Łukasz Marcinkowski shows us how to create three easy, naturally beautiful winter displays at home.

In Tromsø, Norway, the residents don’t see the sun for two months during the winter. Yet they seem to know the secret to happiness. Find out how you too can fight the winter blues.

Why not make a talking point of your home with eclectic and light-hearted decorations? Take your pick from this edit of fanciful buys…  

Winter is always a good time to think about lighting and the feel-good difference it can make to life indoors. To get you inspired, here’s our pick of ideas from homes we’ve visited.

When you’ve unboxed your new buy, don’t bin the cardboard! With a little imagination, paint and fabric, you can turn it into a showstopping puppet theatre. Watch the video to see how easy it is!

‘Our style is a mix of eclecticism and urban features, with a bit of a Berlin feeling,’ says Radek of the 19th century apartment he shares with his partner, Łukasz. Step inside…

This winter, keep the dark at bay and create a homey feel with simple lighting solutions – from rechargeable bulbs to swapping your lampshades.

The details make your home. Here we’ve used the same room in two settings, letting small, easy changes create two completely different styles. See how you can do it, step by step.

IKEA Foundation puts every child’s right to play at the heart of its Good Cause campaign, Let’s Play for Change. November 20 is Universal Children’s Day. See how partnering with six leading organisations is making a difference worldwide.

Meet the Hammarlins. Dad Lasse, Mum Mia-Marie and kids Uno and Ira. They bought their country cottage five years ago as a ‘doer-upper’ and like many other families, life just happened and the ‘doer-upper’ is still being done up. The last room on the list is the living room. And that’s where we come in. Find out how we create a living room for all the family.

In a small bedroom, sometimes you have to think outside of the closet. If a wardrobe simply won’t fit, you can get around the problem with a bed that can store a wardrobe’s worth of clothes.

What do you do when you’ve taken out your old kitchen but haven’t put in your new one yet? You could live on take away dinners and wash dishes in the bathroom... Or you could get a trolley. Not just to go in your new kitchen. But to be your kitchen for a few weeks, too. In our opinion, trolleys are pretty much good for anything. Like storage. But, a limited amount of storage. So don’t try and sneak in that extra potato peeler and spatula. Save space for important things, like food. (Remember, this isn’t your forever kitchen, just your for-two-weeks kitchen).

Make your storage smarter and easier to use with these simple ideas. At Annika’s house in Sweden, organised living results in a relaxing, restful space – and means being able to find things when she needs them!

When done right, a mix of patterns looks amazing. But when it goes wrong, well, it ends up looking like one big mess. Thankfully, there are a few simple steps you can follow to get the balance right. Here’s our guide to mixing patterns like a pro.  See all cushions and cushion covers

A traditional farmhouse transformed into a home for modern family life. Open-plan rooms and simple, fuss-free style have made a house that was passed down from Annika’s parents into a place where her whole family can relax together.

We’ve rounded up our favourite ideas for adding rustic style to your home. From curved edges and lovingly aged surfaces, to loose covers, cushions for extra comfort and timeless pieces made from solid wood and wrought iron – here are five ideas to help you get the style. And our mini photo galleries will show you how to make the look work for every room

Long and narrow? Odd shaped room? Don’t let lack of floorspace dampen your culinary dreams. Try these tips from us on how to build a great kitchen, no matter the shape or size.

See how you can keep your summer feelings warm all year round. We dedicated a living-room corner to celebrating the season.

‘With more of us living in cities, not everyone has their own outside space or time to tend to a garden,’ says stylist Carl Braganza. ‘Indoor options like these three bring the same benefits with less effort.’

First baby on the way? We know babies can be overwhelming even before they come. Sleeping, feeding, changing, bathing and playing will become your everyday. Here’s our essential guide for what you need to welcome your baby with calm confidence.

This is for the people that get dressed in the dark and put clothes on back to front. That tip-toe into a dark bedroom and stub their toes on the bed legs. And Monday to Friday only manage to spend time together when sleeping. Don’t let different work schedules dictate your home life. Make your bedroom ‘me’ and ‘us’ friendly.  

When your living room is used for socialising, working and relaxing, you can easily feel overwhelmed by too much stuff. But with some smart planning you can create a calming impression. Let us show you how! 

Watch this video for step-by-step instructions on how to make a cushion cover. Textiles are an easy and affordable way to change how a room looks and feels. We met Julia, who likes sewing cushion covers at home to give her living room a new look.

The kitchen might be the busiest room in your house, but it needn’t be the most chaotic. We’ve chosen some of our favourite organisation and storage ideas from kitchens around the world to help make your mealtimes easier and more enjoyable.

When your dream home is a ramshackle farm that estate agents refuse to show to you, it takes determination, creativity, and a lot of can-do spirit to turn an unloved building into a happy home…

What makes a dream kitchen truly personal? Check out how interior stylist Hans Blomquist gives his dream kitchen a modern rustic look that shows who he is and what he loves. If you missed them, check out part 1: planning, part 2: installation and part 3: function.

Begin your day in a calm and positive frame of mind with these simple self-care ideas. ‘Everyday rituals like yoga and baking help me to feel much more grounded and centred,’ says Eva.

This season, we have identified four key trends that will dominate the interiors space. Although all these trends have a very signature look, you don’t need to make big changes to stay up-to-date with the latest trends. Simply making some small additions to your home, can seasonally refresh your space and bring these trends to life.

 ‘Using your walls is an easy way to show off who you are and what you love,’ says IKEA decoration range communicator Anna Ohlin. ‘You can create a collage out of anything, from family photos to patterns you like – and add to it or change it whenever you like, to reflect the true you.’  

Want an easy idea for hanging a row of stuff on your walls? Check out this video with our stylist Emma who explains her take on how to get a straight line, every time.

We took a peek (and some coffee and biscuits) inside Stina’s Swedish apartment and found a home where old lives harmoniously with new. Come and take a look.