Mass-produced staples look good in IKEA as you walk through the store, room after room, decor after decor. But finding apartment decor ideas that actually work in your own home is a different story. It’s pretty difficult to replicate that same feeling once you’re back in your own space.
And if you do, you realize that once you step in, your apartment no longer looks like a home, but like a showroom. While it’s stylish and elegant, it lacks personality, so you never feel like you’re actually at home.
As a general rule of thumb, you can stop your apartment from looking like an Ikea catalog by mixing a variety of elements. Apart from mass-produced Ikea furniture, you can also add custom pieces, as well as vintage items.
Of course, you can go further and even swap out hardware for Ikea furniture or add some layered textures, let alone the effects of ambient lighting and different forms of art.
This being said, let’s take a look at a few ideas and concepts that can make your Ikea home look like a real home.
How do you make “flat and smooth” modern furniture feel cozy?
In today’s furniture trends, everything seems to be flat and smooth. It’s a modern style. Manufacturers no longer produce vintage furniture, yet you can still find some unique models here and there. But if they’re new (and not actually vintage), chances are they’ll still be flat and smooth.
One of the easiest apartment decor ideas here is to soften that flat IKEA look by layering different textiles. Focus on the tactile difference. It has to be rich, whether you look at it or touch it.
Your options here are unlimited. You can add a Middle Eastern rug, for example. You can get a high-pile wool somewhere in a room, which isn’t just welcoming and inviting, but also warm. Velvet curtains can also help in the process. Besides, throw in a variety of pillows, and you’ll notice a difference straight away.
Why does my room look like a showroom even though it’s clean and organized?
No one wants a messy house. This kind of deliberate perfection is actually one of the most common interior design mistakes people make without realizing it. But at the same time, exquisite organization can also make your apartment look like an Ikea catalog. When you walk around Ikea, you realize that everything is perfect. This deliberate perfection is easy to reach, but it lacks soul.
When a square pot is perfectly aligned on a table or the chairs are tucked in at perfect angles and at the right distance from one another, the place looks like no one lives there.
From this point of view, it might be a good idea to focus on a deliberate imperfection instead. Break the perfect lines, parallelism and angles with random decorations. You can also move things around to break symmetry.
Sure, there are a few unwritten rules in terms of arranging furniture. But if you find your home to be lifeless, you can forget about these rules and reorganize furniture in a different manner.
Why is “the big light” ruining your apartment’s cozy potential?
When it comes to apartment decor ideas that make a real difference, lighting is often overlooked. A big ceiling light is classic. When it comes to your apartment, it feels cold. It has a clinical glow. So, how about curating your lighting with some ambient elements? Get a few floor lamps here and there. Wall sconces also work well in certain places, such as above a reading nook or in the hallway.
Focus on warm-toned bulbs, rather than white light. No matter what kind of décor you go for, warm light makes the area more personal.
Besides, to achieve that perfect ambient lighting effect, forget about perfection and place lights at different heights. If you go for floor lamps, get different models in different sizes. Wall sconces can also be placed in specific areas only, rather than in a perfectly straight line.
The idea is to come up with a layered atmosphere.
What is the single piece of furniture that screams ‘IKEA’ the loudest?
Classics are mass-produced, so everyone’s seen them. If you’re not sure what piece of furniture screams Ikea the loudest, simply avoid the classics. A small coffee table with a metallic frame and a glass top sitting on a rug is classic, for example.
If you don’t want the room to look like Ikea, forget about it. Forget about its simplicity. Get a bulky coffee table if you truly need one. It won’t look cheap, but it won’t give the room away either.
Now, you don’t need to replace everything, but just the focal elements. Talking about coffee tables, you can get something bulky if you have the space, but you can also shop around for a vintage unit.
How do I stop my furniture from looking like a set of ‘spindly toothpicks’?
IKEA brings in the floating element. It might’ve been cool a decade ago, these days it instantly dates a room and gives away its big-box origins. From sofas and TV stands to chairs and legs, everything is about thin legs. You can remove the legs if you want, but you can also invest in furniture that looks different.
Having these things sitting directly on the floor will add visual weight. You can, of course, mix different elements as well. It’s all about balance here.
Where do you actually put your ‘stuff’ in a minimalist IKEA room?
IKEA looks good, but it’s based on minimalism, meaning it’s not very practical. You can’t keep your stuff around. Your laptop, a few books, some practical items, a bowl of fruit and so on. You’ll need storage in your apartment.
No matter what kind of design you prefer, you’ll need some functionality, so shop for stylish storage elements. And no, you don’t need all those traditional woven baskets or plastic bins to store items.
Wall art decor ideas that add personality without the generic IKEA look
Last, but not least, ditch the Ikea art because it’s a classic cliché. Instead, shop at local vintage stores. Look at the local marketplace or attend a few garage sales. Geometric shapes? No! New York skyline? No! Lake with a mountain in the background? Don’t even think about it.
The idea is to find unique art that matches the style. And if you can’t find anything, you may as well frame your own art or perhaps some personal photos of your family.
Bottom line, these apartment decor ideas prove that no matter how good IKEA looks, it doesn’t have personality on its own. The rooms you can explore in a local store are nice and stylish, but you’ll have to infuse personality into your décor, regardless of the style you adopt.