10 Beautiful IKEA Kitchens That Are Totally Achievable in Real Life

IKEA cabinets usually tend to go one of two ways: They can either end up looking cheap and too, well, IKEA-y, or they go the opposite way and look too fancy, like nothing an average person could actually pull off. Of course, there is a middle ground — and this post was created to prove just that.

Sure, some of these kitchens were put together by professional designers, but others were designed by average people with flat-out good taste. Here are 10 IKEA kitchens that you could totally pull off in your own space.

White cabinets, white countertops, and a white tile backsplash all the way up to the ceiling — it sounds sterile until you see the warm contrast with the wood floors and shelves, plus the stark black handles. This kitchen belongs to Kelsey, from My Simply Simple, and she designed it using IKEA’s online kitchen planner.

See more: The Heart of the Home from My Simply Simple

With gray-blue base cabinets and bright-white uppers, this kitchen — from Gemma at The Sweetest Digs — feels crisp and airy. She added luxe gold hardware and painted the trim around the window to match the cabinets for a custom look.

See more: A Gray and White IKEA Kitchen Transformation from The Sweetest Digs

Although it’s a similar style cabinet to the first kitchen listed, here the black base cabinets and butcher-block countertop gives this kitchen a totally different feel. Rachel from Maison de Pax shared this one on her site.

See more: Modern Farmhouse Kitchen from Maison de Pax

Simple white cabinets with Shaker-inspired details give this Bay Area kitchen, which was designed using the IKEA in-store services, an upscale look.

See more: An IKEA Kitchen in the SF Bay Area from House*Tweaking

I tried not to include IKEA kitchens with cabinet fronts from Semihandmade — a company that makes just door/drawer fronts for IKEA cabinets — because their kitchens are so gorgeous that it feels like cheating. But I couldn’t resist showing off our Editor-in-Chief’s kitchen one more time.

See more: Faith’s Kitchen Renovation: The Big Reveal, the Final Result!

Glossy cabinet fronts, high-contrast handles, and a gray-brown floor — plus that amazing herringbone marble tile — makes this kitchen look sleek and modern.

See more: Erin McLaughlin’s Kitchen Makeover from Style at Home

A couple of DIY tricks — including leather drawer handles and copper pipe shelves — plus thoughtful details (opting in for the $15-per-panel black baseboard) are how Kristan Cunningham and Scott Jarrell, the owners of LA design firm Hammer and Spear, turned a standard IKEA kitchen package into an industrial, artsy space.

See more of their work: Hammer and Spear

Here’s another project that tweaks the IKEA model a bit: This homeowner used European cabinet-front maker Superfront to customize their IKEA cabinets with teal on the bottom, mint on top, and stunning minimalist brass pulls.

See more: Du vil ikke kjenne igjen dette kjøkkenet Klikk

Gray base cabinets, white tops, subway tile, and thick wooden shelving complement the exposed beams in this farmhouse kitchen that Emily shared on her Jones Design Company site.

See more: Such a Breathtaking Before and After (A Farmhouse Kitchen) on Jones Design Company

Similar color, totally different feel. Streamlined gray cabinet fronts, virtually invisible pulls, and vertically-tiled backsplash makes this small kitchen look airy and spacious.

See more: My IKEA kitchen makeover – the transformation from Cate St. Hill