Is IKEA Hacking Itself? Sneak Preview of the 2017 Catalog!

There’s lots for an inveterate hacker to love in the new 2017 IKEA Catalog. While images reflect a new urban-industrial vibe, with a muted color palette to match, what hasn't changed is the utilitarian design and affordable prices. There's a new herringbone wood countertop, Cadovius-inspired storage system and free-standing minimalist kitchen to name just a few.  (Photos via IKEA)

Brace yourself for a new wave of fauxdenzas. Handsome new walnut-veneer countertops will be available that can be cut down to size, and they are just so hackable. They come with walnut-veneer strips to cover exposed fronts. The freestanding mini kitchen is perfect for a live-work loft, temporary living quarters or weekend cottage. Or hack it for use as a wet bar in your man cave or a pop-up outdoor kitchen. And if you loved the IKEA 365+ line of delicate carafes and pitchers with cork tops as much as I do, you'll be jonesing for the new SVÉRTAN blown glass bottles. Hack the tray table base for a great looking mid-century inspired planter base.

The ELVARLI storage system recalls Danish modern wall units by Poul Cadovius, but in a sleek white power-coated aluminum that disappears into the wall. These pieces are so hackable, I may do it myself. My IKEA office built for two needs some wall storage above the desk and I've been strangely hesitant to pull the trigger on installing upper cabinets on our recently skim-coated plaster walls. This ceiling mounted tension rod system could be the very thing I've been needing. Could the brackets be hacked to hold a desk-depth surface for a work station? Stay tuned.

Finally, if you've been coveting the industrial-chic cabinet doors of design studios like Superfront — and lamenting their unavailability in the U.S. — your prayers may be answered by these moody KALVIA door fronts designed to fit all of IKEA's modular kitchen boxes. It's a sleek urban look and a departure for IKEA to be sure, begging the question:

Is IKEA hacking itself?