Top 10 Best Decorating Staples from IKEA

These decorating staples from IKEA make a great foundation for creating a beautifully layered home! (And did I mention that they’re affordable too?!)

It’s no secret that I kind of have a thing for IKEA. Their stuff is affordable, cute, and incredibly well thought out, and over the years I seem to have collected IKEA pieces in just about every room of our house!

There are several things that IKEA does especially well, and one of those is to create great decorating staples that are easy to layer, build upon, and work into many different types of spaces. Since I already made a list of my favorite organizing items from IKEA, I thought it might be helpful to make a list of my favorite decorating staples as well!

These are all items that we own and use often, and have been a huge help in creating the cozy, welcoming spaces we envisioned in our house.

Top 10 Best Decorating Staples from IKEA

This post contains affiliate links. For more information, see my disclosures here.

10. Throw Blankets (GURLI, INGABRITTA)

I am cold all the time, so even in the summer, I am always curled up under a blanket! I keep throws draped over our couches and peeking out of baskets in any room where I spend a significant amount of time.

GURLI blanket beside a chair in my office nook

I have a few of IKEA’s GURLI blankets, and this cute blush INGABRITTA throw is on my list to snag the next time I’m at the store.

9. KRAGSTA Side Tables

We have moved these cute white nesting tables all around our house, and I’m tempted to get a second set! They are nice and neutral and come in two sizes, so whether we need a surface next to an armchair or need to tuck one away in a corner, the KRAGSTA side tables work beautifully.

Can you spot the KRAGSTA side table in the background? 🙂

8. HEMNES Dresser

The HEMNES dresser is one of my more recent IKEA acquisitions, and I’m already loving it!

the inside of the HEMNES dresser drawer with IKEA SKUBB boxes to help keep my shorts organized

There is so much storage space, and the drawers come already prepped with cute liners. It is one of the more extensive pieces to put together because it has a bunch of parts, but we loved the look of it so much that we put one in our bedroom and one in our guest room as well.

7. RANARP and BAROMETER Lamps

I searched far and wide for wall lamp for our boys’ shared room, and of course the RANARP lamps ended up being perfect.

I also ended up using white RANARP table lamps for the side tables in our bedroom…

…and to complete my IKEA lamp obsession, I snagged the brass BAROMETER lamp for my office, and it is perfect for my little reading corner.

6. LOHALS and OSTED Natural Fiber Rugs

I love neutral rugs because they can work well in many different spaces… which is especially wonderful if you change your decor around a lot like I do! (Oops!) The LOHALS and OSTED rugs are great base pieces, and they would work well for layering as well.

the LOHALS rug at work in our sunroom (and the KRAGSTA side table too!)

the OSTED rug in our dining room

5. FEJKA Plants

I have admitted time and time again that I have a black thumb, so I am grateful that the FEJKA plants allow me to bring in some “life” to our spaces without having to worry about maintenance! I seem to grab a few of these babies every time I’m at IKEA because I just can’t get enough. 🙂

4. RITVA Curtains

I used white RITVA curtains in almost every room in our last house, and I already have them in our living room, sunroom, and master bedroom in our current house tool! I love that they give the room a light and airy feel and have a bit of texture to them as well. (They also make great light diffusers when I’m trying to photograph different rooms in our house!)

3. RIBBA and VIRSERUM Frames

I use frames everywhere in our house, from the walls to the surfaces to floating shelves. Frames at the craft store seem to get pricey pretty quick, so I love that IKEA has a bunch of basic inexpensive options. I tend to find myself gravitating toward the RIBBA and VIRSERUM series most often.

RIBBA frame in our command center gallery wall

VIRSERUM frames on IKEA MOSSLANDA picture ledges

2. MOSSLANDA Picture Ledges/ LACK Floating Shelves

And speaking of floating shelves… Shelves are probably my most favorite way to fill a wall because I can switch out the decor easily for each season. I use the MOSSLANDA picture ledges in my office nook (above) and a LACK floating shelf on my stenciled office wall.

LACK floating shelf above an IKEA BESTA unit in my office

1. EKTORP Sofas and Chairs

Finally, my most favorite decor staple at IKEA is their EKTORP line of sofas and chairs! I love that I can have multiple covers for each one so I can easily change up the look of my space. They are durable and kid friendly too– I can throw the covers in the wash if they get spilled on or smudged.

We have an EKTORP sofa, love seat, and chair in our living room…

…and I have the smaller JENNYLUND chair in my office as well.

BONUS: SEKTION Kitchen

Before I head out, I wanted to mention one more IKEA decor item that we loved and that made a huge difference in our home: the SEKTION kitchen! I wouldn’t necessarily call IKEA kitchens a “staple,” but if you’re looking to do a kitchen renovation on a budget, I highly recommend them.

We completely gutted the kitchen in our former townhouse and installed an IKEA kitchen ourselves (and by “ourselves,” I mean that Donnie did nearly all of it because he is amazing 😉 ), and it truly helped us make use of every single inch in our small space.

You can read about the installation process here, see a full reveal in this post, and find out the things I miss about not having an IKEA kitchen anymore in this post.

I know this list doesn’t touch on all of the awesome decor staples that IKEA carries, so let me know what you would add in the comments below!

Have a wonderful day!

This post contains affiliate links. For more information, see my disclosures here.