IKEA’s New Line Is a Nostalgic Celebration of the Store’s Most Iconic Designs

With a legacy stretching back to 1943, IKEA has long been a go-to for solution-oriented, affordable furnishings. Now, with 80 years of design heritage behind it, IKEA is returning to its roots—with a contemporary twist. As the company celebrates its 80th anniversary, it’s launching a new collection of furnishings that pay tribute to some of IKEA’s many iconic designs through the decades. Called Nytillverkad, the line of furniture, bedding, and accessories embraces the past while offering fresh, playful takes on classic IKEA offerings, and all IKEA fans are sure to be happy with the results.

“At IKEA, the past, the present, and the future are all connected,” said Fredrika Inger, managing director at IKEA of Sweden, in a statement. “We’ve designed many functional and beautiful home furnishing products during the last 80 years, and it’s only natural that we get curious about our achievements in the past. With Nytillverkad, we are returning to the future, again. In multiple launches over the next few years, we will release a series of carefully selected products from our design archive, updated to match the bold outlook of the next generation. We are happy to bring back these timeless designs truly appreciated by the customers over the years.”

Items from the Nytillverkad collection will be available across IKEA stores around the world starting in July 2023. While the initial launch just includes a handful of items in various colors, IKEA will be releasing reimagined versions of items selected from the company’s design archives over the next few years. If your favorite IKEA item from years past isn’t included in the initial Nytillverkad release, don’t fret: It may still be revamped and rereleased in the near future.

That said, the initial set of items doesn’t disappoint. The intent behind Nytillverkad items is to stay true to the original designs while reinventing them with new colors and materials to suit contemporary tastes, and the first products are centered around simplicity and functionality. The first collection of reimagined products includes fresh iterations of classic IKEA designs like the BLADHUT pattern, JERRY stool, LÖVET side table, and SMED coat stand with new colors and new names (the SMED coat stand is now BONDSKÄRET, for example).

IKEA’s overall design aesthetic has always trended toward sleeker, modern lines, so few items from the company’s early days would look completely outdated in a home today, especially when you consider the enduring popularity of mid-century modern styles. Still, the reimagined pieces feel both nostalgic and imbued with modern playfulness. Take the DOMSTEN stool (above left), which rethinks the JERRY stool but with colorful, powder-coated steel legs in mint green, lilac, and orange-red, or the KULTURSKOG plant stand (above right), available in mint green or black powder-coated steel as a reimagining of BALJA, which first appeared in 1957.

“This collection is loud, colorful, and fun,” said Karin Gustavsson, the creative leader of the  Nytillverkad collection for IKEA of Sweden, in a statement. “All the products have a story behind them, like one of our most iconic products LÖVET, first introduced in 1956. In the Nytillverkad version, we call it LÖVBACKEN, and it comes in orange, blue, and light green with an ash veneer top, adding a bold pop of color to any room.”

Altogether, the pastels and candy-like color palette of the first Nytillverkad products channel fit neatly into many currently popular design styles, including the delightful Danish pastel aesthetic. For IKEA fans new and old, these items offer practicality and visual appeal in equal measure—though long-time fans are sure to take extra pleasure from the nostalgic element, too.