IKEA Kitchen: One Year Later (Regrets, Quality + Costs)

Have you ever wondered how an IKEA kitchen holds up after a year of daily use? Having added a secondary kitchen to our home due to space constraints, I share the realities of living with it - covering everything from durability and design to a transparent breakdown of the costs involved. Expect honest insights on what worked, what didn't, and key takeaways that could help you in your kitchen renovation journey.
TIMESTAMPS
0:00 intro
0:36 installation + costs
2:29 the good
4:45 the bad
7:12 conclusion
ABOUT ME
Hey! :) I'm BaiXu, a Cambridge University graduate and architect based in Munich. I make videos, design spaces and share them online.
On this channel, I share information about architecture, design, home renovation and vlogs about my creator life in Germany.
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[@baixu]

Have you ever wondered how an IKEA kitchen holds up after a year of daily use? Having added a secondary kitchen to our home due to space constraints, I share the realities of living with it - covering everything from durability and design to a transparent breakdown of the costs involved. Expect honest insights on what worked, what didn't, and key takeaways that could help you in your kitchen renovation journey. TIMESTAMPS 0:00 intro 0:36 installation + costs 2:29 the good 4:45 the bad 7:12 conclusion

[@bettyboo1930]

I love your kitchen style. I’ve had my ikea kitchen since 2008, still looking good and going strong. Highly recommend an ikea kitchen to anyone thinking about getting one.

[@GregoryPiccini]

Love it! I know IKEA sells a deco strip for the bottom of cabinets/ to hide lights. Have you thought about installing one on your picture ledge to camouflage the light?

[@medickaisu]

Great job on your kitchen. I agree 100% with the drawers. All my lowers and the kitchen island are drawers and they are terrific. Great idea about the toe push bins. I will see if I can retrofit that. Using countertop for backsplash is all the rage on this side of the pond. I did choose a tile backsplash, but only because I broke the bank with quartz countertops and custom cabinets. I do love my kitchen and am grateful because I do know of people that spend a fortune and still get questionable quality. I believe my kitchen will outlive me and look great for decades. That was my goal.

[@travisstorms9951]

You owned the cons with grace. Great job on the kitchen!

[@baixu]

Thank you! 😊

[@mrsbryant]

We have got an ikea kitchen 6 years ago and will do it again now that we’re moving. I’ve noticed the beautiful doors of your cabinets. Would you recommend it for an open kitchen where the floor is a dark grey stone color? I can’t decide if we should take the black doors, the white counterparts or the askersund doors from ikea. The room has also the same walls with low ceilings as in your video but large windows facing south on the opposite side of the kitchen. I want it to feel warm and cozy but still elegant with depth and a focal point.

[@accordionbabe]

Great ideas! Thank you for all the useful details. Brilliant.

[@MirunaVasi]

Love your kitchen! Still changes thsi corner so much, and adds life to the space :) Keep it up!

[@baixu]

Thanks so much! 😊

[@jazzyanky]

Very practical. Appreciate your inputs. Keep up the good work

[@fineartlifestyling]

Lovely project, looks chic and elegant. I just wanted to add that IKEA does make a backsplash that matches the EKBACKEN counter, it is much cheaper than using the countertop material and is thinner so you have more space on your counter. So you can look into using the backsplash instead to save even more. It is called LYSEKIL wall panel.

[@baixu]

Thank you for the information!!!

[@jazzylich]

it looks so good! 😍

[@cimishams8008]

Your kitchen looks beautiful! What hardware did you use for the drawers?

[@baixu]

Thank you! 😊 I searched for brass pulls just from Amazon! I got those: amzn.to/3Q0r5CV

[@cimishams8008]

@@baixu thank you!

[@euneeci7950]

Your kitchen looks lovely. What did you use to secure the countertop material as a backsplash? Thanks

[@baixu]

An all purpose mounting adhesive! It’s the same one we used to secure our trims to the wall, you can find it at all DIY shops.

[@euneeci7950]

@@baixu thank you. X

[@silviacervenakova6769]

You can just add the push opener additionally :)

[@baixu]

that's very true! Thankfully this mistake can be easily corrected 😊

[@onepotmakesplenty]

I think a lot of people use the worktop as splashback these days...

[@liryque9029]

Hello, is it possible to get the doors handles reference please, and it is the lerhyttan rigth ?

[@baixu]

Hello! I got my handles from Amazon, link here: amzn.to/3ygRtT0 I chose the option of 220 mm total length, 160 mm hole centres. Hope this helps!

[@fredrezfield1629]

did you shop around? was ikea the most affordable?

[@baixu]

Yes we did! We went to the kitchen sections in Segmuller and Mömax (both German retailers) and found them more pricey. The biggest problem was that the other stores all had a long lead time of 3+ months for the kitchen cupboards, and IKEA had almost everything in stock so we didn’t have to wait!

[@fredrezfield1629]

@@baixu and the material? is melamine? have you seen any changes over the years? are they durable?