Last week, IKEA dropped the long-awaited PS 2026 collection in its physical stores. And from the 1st June, the bold, playful range is also going to be available online.
There’s been a lot of buzz around the launch with some of the hero pieces first introduced to the attendees of this year’s Milan Design Week last month – and the IKEA PS 2026 floor lamp was the highlight everyone was talking about. And it’s clear that this flexible lamp design is set to become a future design classic.
Designed by 12 different designers, the IKEA PS 2026 collection is the tenth installment of the Swedish retailer’s PS range, first introduced in 1995 also in Milan. And from day one, it’s been known for coming up with now highly coveted design classics, whether it’s the IKEA PS 1995 keyhole clock which has recently been reintroduced into the brand’s offering in electric blue (it was originally bright red), or the easily recognisable IKEA GULLHOLMEN rocking chair from 2002 which you can now only score on resale sites like eBay.
Yesterday, I got to see and try the majority of the PS 2026 collection in person. And I understand the hype around the versatile £35 IKEA living room lighting idea which has gone absolutely viral since the collection drop.
I’m sure as years and even decades go by, its popularity will remain, owing to its versatile design which can be readjusted in three different ways. It reminds me of the also hugely popular Habitat Cone adjustable floor lamp but it takes the design a little further.
‘As a designer I was trained that multifunctionality never works, which I do think is the case in most cases,’ the designer of the IKEA PS 2026 floor lamp, Alexander Pott, said to Ideal Home’s News Writer, Kezia Reynolds who recently got to visit the IKEA HQ in Älmhult, Sweden.
‘If you want to combine two functions, both of them don’t fully work. But I think in this case, it becomes almost like an archetype that’s reduced to the essence of a lamp.’
‘I made three lamps, three designs, each providing a different functionality – so an up light, a spot light and a reading light. And then having those prototypes done, I realised that they all had a similar characteristic, with a different functionality. But if I could only solve the joints by rotating it. Luckily, I managed to combine those three functionalities into one object.’
But the 44-product collection holds more than just one future design classic, at least in my opinion anyway. So these are the 6 pieces that I predict will go down in history – and which therefore make for great investments right now.
IKEA PS 2026 future design classics
This bendy design can easily be readjusted to three different positions to fit your needs - if the designer's five-year-old son could figure it out almost instantly (as did I, and it was very smooth), so can you. It's available in three gorgeous colourways (the burgundy is my favourite) and the £35 price tag makes it a steal.
Most of the height-adjustable stools out there tend to be bar stools. And the adjusting mechanism is nothing to write home about. And yet, it's the highlight and design statement of this fun birch wood stool. After testing it out, I can also confirm that the height adjusting is very smooth and easily done.
I have a stepping stool at home that features a similar folding mechanism to this design but I've never seen it on a side table. But it works so well as a small living room idea. However, if £35 for a side table is too steep for you, you can get a folding side table like this one from Amazon instead.
Given the iconic status of the aforementioned keyhole clock from the IKEA PS 1995 range, I predict this funky clock - inspired by the shape of a periscope - will join it in the hall of fame. I believe decorative clocks are making a comeback, and this one along with the HAY Jasper Morrison table clock, available at Selfridges, will go down in design history.
As soon as I saw images of this birch wood chair, I was in love - it looks so expensive and yet, it's only £60. The only thing I wasn't sure about was whether it would be comfortable enough - but after testing it out in person last night, I can confirm I'd happily lounge on it for hours.
IKEA's trolley designs are pretty much unmatched and this round, cake stand-shaped style is no exception - if anything it exceeds all expectations. The only thing with this one is that it's slightly pricier than I would have expected.
Have you got a look at the new IKEA PS 2026 collection yet? Or are you waiting for the products to become available online?
