IKEA is not only a staple for stocking up on affordable furniture and decor—you can count on the retailer's seemingly-never ending collection drops to deliver new trends and get fresh design ideas. I love wandering the aisles of IKEA for inspiration, but truthfully, I rarely have the time to do so. And the showrooms do a great job of laying out the furniture that's easy to envision in a home, but… not necessarily my home.
This is where IKEA Kreativ comes in. A new AI tool, Kreative helps you create a furniture layout and design scheme for your home. Though using artificial intelligence may sound intimidating, I can assure you using this tool is anything but. I used the app to create two living rooms, one "fantasy" room from IKEA's designs and the other using images from my real living room that I’m in the middle of redecorating.
Spoiler alert: The tool helped me find pieces I found myself happily adding to my cart.
Read on to learn how you, too, can use the AI to help you create the stylish space of your dreams—without hiring a designer.
How IKEA's AI Tool Works
Getting Started with the App
Kreativ works on a smartphone and a computer, so you can use whichever you’re most comfortable with. (Download the IKEA app to use the tool on your phone.) To use all its features and save your designs, you need to set up an account and give some personal information.
Once set up, the app allows you to shop and save products, filter by room and style to narrow down your search, and more—very useful, since IKEA has a massive inventory.
Creating Your Designs
One way to use Kreativ is to "design a showroom" using preloaded images of rooms from the app. There are two options here: The first is to start with a furnished showroom created by IKEA designers, or you can start with an empty room.
With both, you can choose furniture, accessories, and even art to hang on the virtual walls. Rotate and move items about, and swap out colors to get your perfect palette. You can also see the room from different perspectives—get a bird's eye view of the room, and see it in a "dollhouse" style. These features reminded me of what you'd see on HGTV when a designer is creating a room, so I found it cool to see my own designs like that.
The premade showrooms (which you can make alterations to) offer some inspiration to get your design juices flowing if you find a blank space intimidating. Choosing from different schemes that match your personal style means you're able to starting with something you like.
However, only certain items in the predesigned showrooms are available for instant purchase through the app. While they're used to style the rooms, only the "main" pieces of furniture can be added to your shopping cart.
The other option is starting your room from scratch: Like the predesigned showrooms, there are different styles and layouts, and you can even change the wall color to create a space similar to your home.
I first added a rug to the blank room to set the tone. From there, I decided to take advantage of the tool's suggestions for what "goes with it" and incorporated the furniture it selected. There were a few quirks at this point—I couldn't get the tool to suggest a coffee table, so I had to search for one. But overall, the results were impressive. Using its advice, I was able to fully decorate a bright and sunny living room that felt very cohesive.
The other innovative option for designing through Kreativ is uploading your own room and virtually see how different IKEA designs look in your space.
The tool walks you through how to take pictures of your space, and once it analyzes them, you end up with images that look three-dimensional. Unfortunately, you can’t rotate the room or see it from different angles like with the preset rooms, but you can upload a few photos and create multiple views if you want to get precise with your design.
When you're satisfied with your photos, you can create an empty version of your space or “erase” some of your furniture while keeping other pieces. I particularly love the ability to mix and match new and old—you’re usually not looking to do a complete overhaul. Seeing how a new couch looks with your existing chairs is quite helpful.
After selecting some new couches and a coffee table to complement my current bookshelves and side tables, I experimented with different layouts for my room (something I’ve wanted to do in real life, but moving everything around isn't really how I want to spend my limited free time as a working mom). Being able to do this effortlessly on the app was a big win.
Once I had the furniture set, I went all out on accessories to give it a completely “finished” feeling. I tried a few design elements I’d been considering for the room, like oversized art over the fireplace and a few extra lamps to add dimension. By the time I was finished, it really felt like I was looking at my redesigned living room, and I was delighted with how it turned out.
My Thoughts on Using Kreativ
Like any technology—it didn't work flawlessly. Here's what went well and what didn't.
Pros
- The Kreativ app is easy to use. The interface is very intuitive; there's no need for lengthy tutorials. If you want to try it out, all you have to do is download it, and you can start designing in minutes.
- It helps with budgeting. As you add items to your room, it keeps a running total of the cost, so you can see the impact of introducing pieces or swapping things out. This makes it easy to keep everything within your price range.
- It's free! Having a designer create a mockup of your space can be expensive. While you don't have a professional's perspective to help you choose products or lay out a design scheme, if you know what you want, this app can help you design a room and save money.
- It's fun. I found myself wanting to design more rooms—how would this tool work for a bathroom? What about a kitchen? I'm willing to bet if you're a design lover, you'll feel the same.
Cons
- One obvious con is that you can only use the app with furniture and items from IKEA—so if they don't have what you're looking for, you won't be able to add it to your image.
- You can't click and buy the accessories in the predesigned showrooms (you can only add furniture to your cart with one click). This was probably the most frustrating aspect since the rooms are well-designed, and the accessories are part of what makes them shine.
- You need to know what you're looking for. While the AI tool gives you some recommendations of what goes together, they don't always make sense. The app definitely benefits from a human touch.
- There are a few glitches. At times, accessories I was trying to add to a room became so small they were invisible. Removing items from my scanned room also left a few gaps in the rug. However, these issues didn’t take away from the overall positive experience.
In my opinion, the pros of this tool far outweigh the cons. IKEA Kreativ is a fun, interactive way to experiment with design. And while it doesn't replace working with an interior designer, it's an easy way to discover your style, and if you see something you love (like I did!), purchase it then and there. Plus, it's free! I'd recommend if you're redoing your space or simply a design lover looking to pass an afternoon (or two, if you want to redesign your whole house).