IKEA Furniture & Storage Ideas for Your Scrapbook Room
Nov 01, 2023
Are you craving a well-organized space just for your scrapbooking hobby? Imagine having a room or space dedicated solely to your creative passion! This post will walk you through some of the best ideas on how to create the perfect IKEA scrapbook space, including dealing with small spaces.
Introduction
Ready to turn your craft corner into both a sanctuary for creativity and masterful organization? Join me as we dive deep into my top tips for unbeatable IKEA scrapbook organization!
Picture this: A space dedicated solely for your scrapbooking where everything is in its rightful place and finding what you need becomes second nature. Sounds heavenly, doesn't it?
Scrapbooking is a creative expression. Just like any art form, it needs an inspiring and relaxing zone where you can let your imagination run free. Whether you're new to the scrapbook scene or quite seasoned, having everything in its place makes it much more fun.
Although IKEA is primarily a home furnishings store - you know, living room, kitchen, dining room, bedrooms - it's got oodles of options that help build that dream corner for all your scrapbooking escapades!
Over the years as a scrapbook blogger, I've been taking notes and have quite a list of ideas here for you.
What I Love About IKEA
How do I love IKEA?? Oh, let me count the ways! I love love love IKEA for so many reasons. Here are just a few:
1. From furniture styles to storage fixes, IKEA promises practical answers that are pleasing to the eyes too. Their style is modern (but not too modern), clean, practical, and up-to-date.
2. Their pricing is affordable. It's not the absolute cheapest out there - but that means it's better quality, too. I doubt these will be heirloom pieces you pass down to your kids or anything, lol. But in my experience, they're well-made and sturdy enough to serve well for years in today's modern home.
3. Because the furniture and storage styles are so clean and fresh, it's really easy to accessorize them. IKEA does carry decor items too although I find myself getting more of that from places like Target, World Market, and HomeGoods.
That said, I have 5 IKEA throw pillows on my sofa rn :) Read all the way to the bottom and you'll see my other scrapbook room decor recommendations by IKEA as well.
Question: What if I don't have an IKEA near me? Here's another post with the answer!
I may receive commissions for purchases made through my site.
How To Get Started Making Your Scrapbook Space with IKEA
First off, clear out the chaos from the room. This gives you a nice clean canvas to start fresh on.
Now let's move onto sketching up your layout plan - deciding where you'll have your work surface and storage area located is key here; keep workflow consideration at front-of-mind as well. After all who wants their creative juices interrupted with frequent dashes across the room just for supplies?
Ready to pick out your furnishings? Don't forget, comfort and practicality should be our guiding lights. You'll be clocking in quite a few hours here, so let's go for furniture that brings on the cozy and organized vibes.
Choosing Your Scrapbooking Workspace at IKEA
First things first, let's consider your workspace! This is where all the magic happens. Make sure you've got enough room to lay out those photos, papers, washi tape, tools, and other bits 'n bobs for scrapbooking.
With an array of tables plus desks at IKEA – you should be able to find something fitting for your scrapbooking desktop.
Your personal stamping ... erm, stomping ground (ha) could be as compact as a quiet nook in your living area or grand enough to occupy an entire room of its own
Maybe you just have the corner of the guest room for your creative space. You may have a lot of space or a little but I'm going to give you great ideas for both!
IKEA Desk Tops + Drawers
One thing I want to point out before you get too far looking at desks and tables are these: DESK TOPS.
IKEA has a ton of colors and sizes of desktops, which might really come in handy for your scrapbook space. They're more flexible than a full-on desk or table in that you can lie them across the top of two storage pieces, which a scrapbooker needs the most they can get, right?
You could also affix them to a choice of legs if you don't want/need storage in your main work area/desk. Either way, it's nice to know IKEA has a range of desktops and tabletops!
One item a lot of scrappers attach desk/tabletops to are Alex drawers
Or attach a tabletop to a Kallax shelf - best of both worlds - workspace attached to great storage!
IKEA Desks
Alex desks - This Anthracite desktop has a really cool grid design and I love the use of a cupboard for storage vs the drawers. This just LOOKS like a crafting table!
Check out this post I found for a ton of IKEA desk and workspace ideas using countertops. 👀
Bekant adjustable desks seem like a wonderful idea for scrapbooking, as you and I both know how sedentary scrapbooking can get.
"Changing positions from sitting to standing is good for you, and the crank handle allows you to work your arms while adjusting the height. Moving your body makes you both feel and work better." - IKEA
IKEA Tables for Scrapbooking
You may never think to consider this item, as it's not a desk or desktop per se. But how about the IKEA Malm Dressing Table? The spacious MALM dressing table doubling up as a crafting station with drawers for all those tools and materials you love. It has a glass tabletop which can be fun to work on while scrapbooking.
When considering options like these, my tip is just to stay mindful of the desktop depth, as you'll be working on larger items (if you're a 12x12 scrapper) and will need plenty of room. But if your allowable space is pretty tight, don't discount the IKEA Malm dressing table.
If your space allows it, let's look at some options with larger workspaces and even more storage!
Here's the table I originally got for my scrapbook space/home office - it's a BIG-UN! I give you: The IKEA Ekedalen dining table ...
Alas, we ended up moving it to the dining room when the table I'd gotten for there didn't work out. Boy, did I love scrapbooking with all that space on the IKEA Ekedalen while I had it! It's the largest scrapbooking workspace I've ever had.
In case you're wondering, now I use this smaller table I got off Amazon - the Zinus Jennifer White Frame Desk
Color Choices in IKEA Scrapbooking Furniture and Organization
Let's talk about color again, this time as it pertains to the IKEA furniture pieces you choose.
I tend to keep my furniture choices pretty basic as far as color. I like them to mostly match each other as well.
Then I add color with accessories and, in the case of my scrapbooking space, there's SO much color in play already with showing off our scrapbook supplies!
That said, when it was time to order my scrapbook/home office furniture, I came across IKEA's blue/grey color called Gray Turquoise and FELL IN LOVE 🩷 Had to have some.
I did go "white" with all of my Kallax's and my desk - but all my Alex drawers are that pretty blue. It totally coordinates with the decor of the room, which is all ocean colors (blues, greens, greys). It also looks nice against all my colorful scrapbook supplies. It may be "blue" but it registers almost like a neutral, right?
With how much I love my blue/grey IKEA items, I thought I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that IKEA has color options for much of their furniture. It's not all pine-colored or white, as some may think. Check it out and see what you like!
Since there are so many variables, here is IKEAs "Build Your Own Desk Planner" - yay!
Desk Chair
The Markus office chair by Ikea looks like a winner. It provides top-notch back support for those long sessions - an essential in any "late-night scrapbook sesh" setup. It's a Top Seller and unlike lots of other desk chairs, I like that it comes in something other than black, lol.
I ended up getting my desk chair from Amazon similar to this one: Essentials Gray Upholstered Office Chair ...
... but I was THISCLOSE to getting the Langfjaell chair from IKEA. It looks super comfy and you can get it with arms or without.
Take a look at all of IKEAs office and task chair options to see what you like!
If you mostly scrapbook standing or you have a high desktop, a desk chair may not work for you. You can see IKEAs options for sit-stand support.
Lighting
Also remember lighting matters when laying out plans. Natural light works wonders during those ardent crafting hours so if blessed with windows make sure workspace is established around them if you can. (IKEA even carries light diffusing blings - but we'll leave that to a home decor blog to cover, lol).
While IKEA does have a full range of task lighting, ... I'll admit I don't love a ton of the options.
I've always preferred OTT lights for all my scrapbooking and office-related lighting. Here are some of my faves from that line.
This is my OTT Lite desk lamp with phone charger. I got it a couple years ago at Bed Bath & Beyond with a coupon, holla!
I love that it's an OTT light so I get the best lighting to see true colors on my projects. The neck is adjustable and the lighting levels are adjustable.
The best thing is the cradle charger for my iPhone or iPad so I can easily look up ideas or photos while I scrap and my device doesn't get lost amongst the paper and embellies on my work top!
It even has a sanitizing light. I was very WOO HOO! about that during the pandemic.
As for IKEA, here are a few lamps you may want to consider:
The IKEA Harte LED has a fun shape.
The Brunbage lamp by IKEA is that gorge turquoise color AND it has some tool and pen storage built in.
Have you ever used LED light strips? They're so fun and IKEA has Vattensten lights for a great price! I have a colored LED light strip in my office and love using the colors to set the mood, match the season, and to provide ambient light.
Okay, now onto storage items. We're going to break it down into 2 sections: Storage for larger items and for smaller things like embellishments.
IKEA Scrapbooking Storage - Larger Items
As you consider IKEA items for storage in your scrapbook space, you'll want to start with larger items. By that, I mean furniture, etc. that will hold your larger items - like your computer, 12x12 scrapbook albums, your television, etc.
Also, the larger storage items will house the smaller storage items. So always keep in mind how things will fit and work together. That's another great benefit of outfitting your scrapbook space with IKEA: It's more likely that the pieces will all fit and work together because they've been sized to do so!
Okay, here are some IKEA pieces to look at:
- Kallax shelf units (formerly known as Expedit) - I have 2 of these and extoll their virtues above. I'll also do another post just about the Kallax because it's THAT important of a piece for scrapbookers to get from IKEA.
- IKEA Alex drawer units - Here's another actual recommendation because I have 3 of these.
Next to the Kallax, these have got to be my favorite storage item from IKEA! They are sleek-looking, with handles that are cut into the drawer itself. I like NOT having separate drawer pulls to choose, install, and keep clean.
I have 3 Alex drawer units! Two "drawer unit on casters" and one "drawer unit with 9 drawers".
The drawers are roomy and shallow, which is perfect for scrappy supplies. You can either use plastic dividers/bins inside for really small stuff, or use the drawers as-is to house things like all your tools and trimmers. Everything shows at a glance as soon as you open the drawer.
I used a label maker to label the drawer handle with what's inside. That way, I don't waste any time finding what I need.
Don't forget all the real estate on the top as well. I use the top of one of my Alex drawer units to house my printer, with the top drawer holding extra printer paper, ink cartridges, and a stapler (my scrapbook space doubles as my home office that I work from daily).
- IKEA Billy bookcase - These are an affordable staple item at IKEA. If you don't already have one in your home being used for something else, I'm surprised, lol. For scrapbooking storage, they're very versatile and you can make lots of configurations for not a lot of money.
The only thing to keep in mind is that the depth of the Billy bookcase is only 11 inches. So if you're a 12x12 scrapbooker and, as we know, you deal with many items that are even a titch larger than that (WRMK D-ring albums @ 15" x 13", I'm lookin' at you!).
But if you'd use it to store 8.5 x 11 scrapbook albums, pages, and supplies, I think you'd be golden. Alex shelves would also be great for idea books, smaller storage organizers, decor items, etc.
Speaking of 8.5 x 11 paper storage, check this out!
- IKEA Kvissel letter tray - Yup, I have a few of these too. I use my Kvissels primarily to sort home office papers but I do use one slot to toss in ongoing memorabilia and photos before I have a chance to file them properly.
You could use the Kvissel to hold things for your scrapbook projects too; not so great for 12x12 but 8.5 x 11, mini books, etc. Or to sort your 8.5 x 11 (or smaller) papers or embellishments.
IKEA Scrapbooking Storage - Embellishments
Okay, now for some IKEA storage ideas for your smaller scrapbooking items - embellishments, photos, small tools, Project Life cards, etc.
There are 2 ways to go here: Either using smaller trays inside larger items like IKEA Alex drawers and Kallax shelves, or storage items that are smaller in themselves.
As for trays and such, check out the IKEA Variera line. It's meant for kitchen storage but you can adapt a lot of the items for your scrapbooking space
Likewise, the IKEA Kuggis line looks excellent for keeping your precious materials sorted tidily and easy to grab. There's a Kuggis box with lid, insert tray with 8 compartments, and a magazine file 2-pack that all look very useful.
The IKEA Pallra mini chest is affordable storage, if you like drawers. It only comes in black unfortunately but, hey, maybe that fits your decor!
Fancy keeping small things like jewels and accents neat as well? I got ya – the MOPPE mini chest by IKEA should do it. Not only does this little hero help sort out your bits-n-pieces swiftly, but its customizable design means you can jazz it up any way you fancy: paint stroke or washi tape wrap– all set to blend seamlessly with your decor!
And last but not least, the IKEA Glis boxes look perfect for storing those tiny items like stickers or embellishments that always seem lost when we need 'em most? It comes in some pretty colors too, along with clear.
Phew! That's a lot of small storage at IKEA and I feel like I barely scratched the surface.
Go Vertical
A great way to maximize any scrapbook space you have is to ... go vertical! In other words, don't just utilize your workspace, storage, and surfaces. Use the walls as well. With IKEAs Skådis pegboard, you’ll always have easy access to all your tools without compromising on neatness.
You can jazz it up with extras such as hooks, shelves, and containers to arrange tools in whatever way suits your groove.
Conclusion
Let's wrap this up, folks! For all your scrapbooking needs, look no further than Ikea.
So here's the deal - Ikea is your one-stop shop for all things scrapbook organization. You need versatile storage? You got it with their popular Ikea Kallax system! Looking to jazz up your crafting corner with other cool ikea scrapbooking goods? Yup, they have those too.
Here's the important question: Do you have too much scrapbook stuff? Nah, you just need better ways to store and organize it!
Crafting an enviable scrapbook room that's both efficient and budget-friendly has never been easier thanks to these chic yet practical options from Ikea. They'll keep your crafty space super organized while inspiring you every time you step into it.
Wait a sec… are you still sitting there reading this when stylish and affordable furniture waits just a click away?! The range at IKEA caters perfectly to everyone’s aesthetic tastes – so why settle for ordinary when extraordinary can be yours? Ready for some fun-filled online shopping right now? Ready, set, GO!
