This IKEA cabinet is the secret to a luxury look on a budget
Do you dream, like I do, of a home library that looks perfect as if you live in a hotel? Then we know something fun. You know that PAX-hack with the bookcases that you build in? Yes? It looks very nice, but it’s not always really chic. I’ve come across a much better example that is luxurious, without any extra work involved. Grab your blue big shopper and get ready for a lunch with meatballs, because for this cabinet we’re going straight to IKEA.
Chic hotel cabinet on a budget
If there’s something on my Pinterest board, it’s a dark wooden cabinet. One with elegantly finished details and a dark pattern that gives any living room an old money vibe.
But okay. If you try to score such a cabinet at the thrift store, you’d better find a very large four-leaf clover. You don’t see these often and if they are there, you just miss out. Even before you can ask how much that beauty is, you hear the sugary sweet: “Oh, that was just sold to that lovely couple.” Well. For a moment you feel just like Gabrielle Solis from Desperate Housewives, who has been told that she has no money left to shop for designer clothes. So, such a cabinet is not for everyone, but you can get the same look at IKEA. Now, it’s not that you can get a whole cabinet for €50, but for less than €500 you can get quite far. You can’t say that if you want to have a cabinet custom-made by an expensive company.
@mandy.paulino Dit #IkeaHack deserved a second post tbh! ✨#billybookcase #ikeadiy #HomeDecor #HomeDIY
What you can make with the billy / oxberg cabinets
Fortunately for you, the Swedish furniture chain has released a lot of different cabinets. This way, you are not obliged to buy five of the same cabinets, but you can go in any direction you want.
1. The standard model is always good (€129.99 each)
https://www.ikea.com/nl/nl/p/billy-oxberg-boekenkast-met-deuren-bruin-walnootpatroon-s49483365/
With this brown walnut-colored cabinet, you can do a lot. You can place a few next to each other for a harmonious look, like Mandy Paulino did above. Place the cabinets in a corner that can be well filled and before you know it, you have a wall cabinet that steals the show. Get wireless lamps for a chicer look and you’re already done.
2. Combine standard with other components
Do you want to go for a completely different look? Then you can combine different cabinets from the BILLY/OXBERG collection. For example, try combining two or three lower cabinets in the same walnut color with two standard models. By placing the two higher cabinets on both sides, you create a harmonious whole that gives the feeling of being in a hotel lobby. Fill it with all sorts of small items, books, and hang the space between the cabinets full of paintings. Or you choose one large painting, of course. Not everyone is a fan of a gallery wall.
This is how you style this cabinet
To really make this cabinet glamorous, you need more than just pushing three cabinets together. That feeling really lies in the styling. These don’t have to be designer items at all: just those pieces that catch your eye just enough. Think of photos, books, small art pieces, vases – you can get as creative as you want. Or well, yes. If you want that Emily Gilmore-fancy style, then it’s not the intention to combine a pink vase with colored books and lamps, an orange vase, and ten stuffed animals. Remember these tips and you’ll always be good.
1. Vary
It’s not nice to put the same thing on every shelf. Not even if you have three figures from your vacation in Athens. By placing the same types of things everywhere, you actually create a messy look. By keeping the same groups together on one shelf, you keep it calm. But don’t panic: it’s not that you only have one shelf for your figures. Place your souvenirs on the middle shelf. Make the compartment below it completely different with a vase, (fake) plants, and a candle. You can then fill the shelf below with a figure and something else. This way, you get a playful whole that still feels harmonious.
2. Color palettes work best
A cabinet like this is usually placed in your living room or bedroom. You don’t want to feel overwhelmed or dizzy when you look at it. It should radiate calm. Right? Exactly, and you’re not going to achieve that calm if you fill the cabinet with all the colors of the rainbow. Of course, there is room for color, but you can do that best strategically. For example, choose a color palette.
Go for earth tones or a palette that has more pink and brown than blue. Choose especially what fits you and the rest of the room. By sticking to this theme, you ensure that everything matches and the cabinet doesn’t give a watercolor explosion feeling.
3. Lights make it chic
If there’s one thing you see in every Pinterest photo, it’s lights in the cabinet. Not big ones that you place on the table, but lights that are hidden and give just enough light. By letting a little bit of broken white light shine over the items in the cabinet, you put them in the spotlight. This is really what elevates a cabinet from ordinary to super cool in a few simple steps. And no: you don’t have to do much for that. Nowadays, you can buy enough self-adhesive lights for that. You can even get that at IKEA when you’re there for that cabinet.
So are you still looking for just that one touch to refresh your room? Then this luxury wall cabinet is something for you. Fill it with your prized possessions and you’ll have a new eye-catcher that every guest will look at a little longer than you thought. And it doesn’t have to cost you thousands of euros.
