Elin's kitchen vision becomes our new cabinet door - a successful collaboration

Our design series Color+ 

Color+ – our painted door in ash – was developed a few years ago. A door where the color takes center stage, and where you as a customer can choose any NCS color to create a kitchen that connects with the rest of the home. Maybe in the same tone as the walls, maybe as a soft contrast. Or in combination with wood – oak or walnut – to let the materials meet.

The series also includes a frame door in painted ash veneer, where the wood's texture still shines through. A door that many have chosen to combine with Color+ without a frame, or use throughout for a more classic expression.

But we wanted to explore more.

A meeting and an idea

When we started looking at how the frame door could be further developed – how it could get a clearer own expression but still be easy to combine – it felt natural to get in touch with the interior designer and influencer Elin Skoglund.

We had worked together before, and the timing was right. Elin was facing a new home – an apartment in Vasastan in Stockholm, where she, together with her son Charlie and dog Selma, wanted to create something personal and cozy.

There was a clear direction from the start.

Elin drew her kitchen in her own design program – a clear vision that we then translated into IKEA Home Planner.

A kitchen with a built-in feel. Soft colors. A decorative door in a warm yellow tone, crown moldings that frame it, a freestanding stove, and a porcelain sink.

A kitchen to settle into.

"At the same time, I wanted to keep the renovation period-appropriate and for it to feel like the kitchen had existed for a longer time, rather than something new and modern."
- Elin

From sketch to reality

We had previously tested different decorative lists for our frame door, but were looking for something more specific. The decor list should fit nicely in the frame, preferably break the edge slightly, rise softly, and land harmoniously in the panel.

In the end, we decided to design our own profile list. 

After several sketches, 3D-printed models, and tests, we ended up with two options: a more angular and a softer, more flowing shape. When we presented them to Elin, the choice immediately fell on the softer variant. 

The door – with its raised, softly shaped frame – got an expression that both stands out and feels natural at the same time.

The craftsmanship behind

As always, the development takes place in close dialogue with the carpentry workshop. What challenges and steps are required in manufacturing to reach where we want. Prototypes are reviewed, adjusted, and tested again – until everything fits, both in feel and function.
After a few final adjustments, the tool could be brought out, and production of the profile molding in solid ash began.

Day to install the profile molding

Before the installation began, we gathered in the joinery. We went through the process, test-mounted, and felt it out. That moment when you see it works – that the lines hold, that the proportions fit, a very nice feeling!

And now the doors really started to take shape.

About 100 meters of decor list was made for Elin’s kitchen.

A color to rest in

Elin chose the yellow color with care. It was not to be bright yellow nor pale yellow but the feeling should be warmer and lighter. Like butter. Like oats. Like honey.

In the end, the choice landed on NCS S1010-Y20R.

The same color is repeated in the crown moldings and baseboards, giving the kitchen a calm and clear unity.

Details that frame

Elin chose to install crown moldings as a beautiful and natural finish on the wall cabinet/vent hood cabinet and tall cabinets. The crown moldings enhance the built-in feel.

Crown moldings come in many different designs; this molding harmonized nicely with the decorative trim on the doors.

The baseboard, surface-mounted and profiled, gives weight and stability. The cabinets can settle, and the kitchen gets its foundation. Here there is also space to incorporate ventilation in a way that feels thoughtful and discreet.

A few quick questions for Elin

Elin in her kitchen in Vasastan – where every detail has been given its time.

What feeling did you want to create in the kitchen – and how did you get there?

I knew the kitchen would become the heart of my home and therefore reflect how I wanted my home to feel. I wanted my home to feel warm, safe, and like a true home. A place where everyone is welcome, a place where my son can grow up and play & be a child. I have spent a lot of time in Mallorca and have been greatly inspired by the style seen in the old houses there. You can see that in the choice of tiles and the hanging kitchen utensils in copper. At the same time, I wanted to keep the renovation timeless and for the kitchen to feel like it had been there for a long time, rather than something new and modern. 

How did you know that this particular yellow tone was right?

That my kitchen became yellow was no coincidence, but something I decided early in the process. The color yellow symbolizes what I wanted my home to convey – warmth, joy & life. The shade it finally became was also the first color I test-painted several months earlier. However, I tested quite a few colors in between before making my decision. I wanted a creamy yellow color that wasn’t too loud and overpowering. It had to be a shade you don’t get tired of.

How would you describe the door’s expression now that it’s in place – what does it add to the whole?

Which detail in the kitchen makes you happy every day?

I am very pleased that the fan cabinet turned out as well as it did. It really makes the kitchen feel custom-built! But to be honest, I get happy every time I look at my yellow kitchen. 

A kitchen to settle into – soft tones, classic details, and a warm yellow color that ties the whole together.

What started as a clear vision took shape along the way – in sketches, conversations, and craftsmanship. The result is a door with its own expression, designed to last over time and live on in many homes.