We’ve rounded up one hundred IKEA hacks that prove you can have champagne tastes on a beer budget. Each of these hacks illustrates the power of transformation – basic warehouse pieces are cleverly altered in beautiful ways that make them feel custom. This round up has me feeling like Aladdin on a magic carpet ride – so come along with me! I can open your eyes, take you wonder by wonder, over, sideways and under on a magic IKEA hack ride. All hacks are listed in alphabetical order by their original IKEA birth name.
Note: we tried to find all of these and make sure they’re still available on IKEA.com. Some models have been discontinued, but you can usually find a similar item to substitute.
While many Americans think that summer starts on Memorial Day, it officially begins on summer solstice, usually June 21 in the Northern hemisphere. The longest day of the year seems like the ideal excuse for a party, so here are some ideas for a backyard celebration of midsummer. And if you don’t get around to throwing a summer solstice party, there’s no expiration date on these outdoor party ideas!
For these summer solstice party ideas, I wanted to spotlight some of the things that are better in summer than any other part of the year. So I’m sticking with a theme of seasonal produce and flowers, accented with white lights and candles. You can keep it simple, or you can go all out with DIY projects if you’ve got the urge.
The Food
Grilled pizzas are a great way to showcase summer produce, and it would be fun to let people pick their own toppings.
This beautiful heirloom tomato and grilled vegetable salad is perfect for those tricky party guests who don’t eat meat, dairy, or gluten (and if you plate it this nicely, it might entice everyone else into eating more veggies.)
A summer solstice party wouldn’t be complete without berries. This summer berry cake is a showstopper.
If you want to go the cocktail route, making up batches of drinks saves you the trouble of bartending during the party. Strawberry rhubarb sangria, made with sparkling wine, sounds light and refreshing.
DIY floral ice buckets are a gorgeous way to keep your wine cool, and double as decor. Make as many as your freezer can handle, and scatter them throughout your yard, or use them as table centerpieces. For a much simpler variation, freeze fresh herbs and edible flowers into ice cubes for drinks.
Strings of white cafe lights are perfect for that evening fairy-light ambiance.
Go all out with a handmade floral chandelier. Bonus points if you grow your own flowers. If you’re not feeling quite so ambitious, just pile your tables with vases overflowing with flowers from the store.
The Entertainment
Whether you turn it into a drinking game or not, giant Jenga is nearly always a hit at outdoor parties, and is the only entertainment you’ll need at your summer solstice party. With some 2×4’s, a saw, and some sandpaper, you can easily make your own giant Jenga set. You can always buy a set if you’re not inclined to make one.
Scandi home style goes from strength to strength, appealing to our appreciation of clean lines, airy living spaces, and our need for daily practicality. This collection of inspirational Scandinavian home designs explore six different ways of personalising the aesthetic. We start with a cream and serene elegant apartment where indoor plants meet natural wooden elements. We follow up with a colour spliced Scandi interior, which employs pink and teal accents to lift and personalise neoclassical surroundings. Beige, grey and teal decor colours home number three, whilst design four resides in the minimalist monochrome domain. We finish up with a classic Scandi style black and white contrast, and a book lover’s home with a quiet mezzanine workspace.
Cream and white decor melds softly with warm wooden elements to style this elegantly serene apartment. Indoor plants add beautiful touches of nature to uplift the mellow surroundings. A round glass vase adds a spray of botanics next to a reading chair to create an attractive vignette.
Line art adds visual interest to the blank, creamy white walls, without colourful distraction. A stark black frame gives the piece definition upon the light backdrop.
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The small sofa features a smoothly curved silhouette that makes the lounge area appear welcoming and comfortable. A living room rug complements the sofa upholstery with a matching cream weave.
A fiddle leaf fig plant lushly fills the corner of the room, providing a shapely accompaniment to the sofa and effectively drawing the eye upward to meet artwork upon the neighbouring wall.
Scandi bookshelves introduce warm wood tone onto the white living room wall.
Decorative objects adorn the open shelving, while less ornamental belongings are tucked into integrated cabinets.
Pink and teal decor accents joyfully lift and personalise this neoclassical apartment interior. Gold accessories add luxe lustre, in the shape of a sputnik chandelier and a chic floor lamp.
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Indoor plants flourish against classic wainscotting. Decorative moulding crowns the ceiling line.
Black and white wall art is hung at regular intervals around the perimeter of the room to create a crisp modern gallery between the neoclassical touches.
Grand double doors give entry into the kitchen diner, where Scandi style kitchen units lay a stark black line against a fresh white wall.
Simple white wall tiles build the kitchen backsplash. A Smeg fridge-freezer ties in with the retro styling.
A modern record player is given a luxurious home on a white marble-topped sideboard.
Beige, grey and teal accents colour this Scandi style living space, amongst striking pieces of art.
A unique floor lamp brightly illuminates the detail in the modern art piece behind a teal upholstered sofa.
The round coffee table that sits out in front of the sofa is a classic Scandi tray-top style.
The lounge area flows openly into an airy dining room and a narrow kitchen design.
In the dining area, clear perspex dining chairs achieve a more spacious feel in allowing the line of sight to pass straight through.
A small, simple Scandinavian stool is utilised as a side table on which to display flowers in the kitchen.
The stool/table is teamed up with a piece of modern wall art to make a pleasing focal point upon a structural support wall.
Our fourth Scandi home design is a minimalist, monochrome canvas with geometric motifs. A grey and white geo rug adds a burst of pattern to an otherwise understated living room.
A black and white typographic print draws the eye to a small dining area in the open plan living space.
The small dining table is attractively decorated with a modern ceramic vase and black metal candlestick centrepiece.
A flash of greenery completes the table display.
Tall windows fill the apartment with natural light, which filters back into a one wall kitchen installation.
White marble countertops and white kitchen cabinets help the narrow space to feel more open.
Our penultimate apartment shows classic Scandi styling in black and white high-contrast and simple lines.
A geometric rug threads pattern across the lounge.
Storage baskets add a flash of natural rattan underneath a streamlined wood and black metal coffee table.
Out in the entryway, wood laminate flooring is swapped out for intricately patterned tiles. A racetrack-shaped mirror is paired with an entryway stool to make up a practical dressing area by the door.
Decorative shelves edge a set of bookcases to expand their presence.
A wooden library ladder accesses the highest shelves.
The lounge space sweeps around into the open plan kitchen diner.
A one wall kitchen is installed underneath a quiet mezzanine workspace.
A built-in bookcase ends the kitchen run with a decorative touch.
The luxurious Scandinavian bathroom design features a classically styled freestanding bathtub, which is elevated to be perfectly illuminated within a huge, steel cased window frame.
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Nestled in New York City’s Tribeca neighborhood, 180 the Store is a shopper’s paradise for stylish apparel, jewelry, homewares, and much more. Run by owner Denise Williamson, there’s something to discover around every corner of this brick-and-mortar. Williamson’s curation is stellar, and that’s where the Danish brand FRAMA comes in.
FRAMA is a 10-year-old multidisciplinary brand that specializes in home and bath products — and 180 the Store is the exclusive importer of FRAMA goods stateside.
If you’re at all into AESOP personal care products, then you’re probably going to want to know more about FRAMA. The look, feel, and even scent of the brand’s hand wash, body wash, lotion, and haircare products remind me of classic AESOP. These products come packaged in beautiful bottles, making them a great housewarming gift for that person who loves luxe lotion. Simply add some ribbon or a bow, and you’re golden!
FRAMA also makes furniture, which is ultra ideal for those whose styles lean minimalist, mid-century modern, or Scandi. They also make home and entertaining pieces, including glassware, candles, and kitchen supplies, and offer lots of lighting solutions. Whether you need a new table lamp or are in the market for an overheard fixture, FRAMA likely will have something that’ll strike your fancy.
I, for one, am eager to begin working a few of FRAMA’s items into my home, and I’m not alone. Maxwell Ryan, founder and CEO of Apartment Therapy, is also a fan. “My particular favorite is their ‘shelf library’ system that is a stunningly beautiful adjustable shelving system that comes in wood, brass, and stainless steel,” Ryan says. “It’s a showstopper.”
Though FRAMA pieces are an investment, their authentic, timeless nature makes them worth the splurge if you can swing it. “You’re getting the best of Danish design, and these items are collectibles for life,” Ryan says.
Annie Burdick is a writer and editor living in Portland, Oregon. She has written for numerous websites, magazines, and anthologies on wildly varied topics. She is also the author of two nonfiction books, Unconscious Bias and Bring the Wild into Your Garden, both being published in 2021 by an imprint of Hachette UK. She spends most of her spare time reading, playing with her dogs, and seeking out new adventures in the Pacific Northwest.
