For remodelers looking to design a kitchen on a budget, Sektion—Ikea’s latest kitchen cabinet system (before Sektion, or Metod as it’s called in the EU, there was Akurum and Värde)—is a savior. It’s frameless, meaning the cabinet doors cover the entire front face of the cabinet, which makes it easy to swap out the fronts for a custom-on-the-outside, Ikea-on-the-inside project. Architects, designers, and contractors like them for their modularity, standard sizing, and affordability (the most expensive base cabinet is $413), and new companies offering stylish cabinet fronts have made the process easier than ever. One thing’s for sure: The stealth Ikea kitchen is on the rise—and here are 20 ways it’s being done.
![photography studio rye london was built with ikea\2\17;s kitchen cabinet 17](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Rye-London-all-white-kitchen-6-733x510.jpg)
![laid back california style meets french luxe in this ikea kitchen, which has oa 18](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/riverside-house-normandy-jordan-feilders-10-733x977.jpg)
![bangia agostinho architecture fitted photographer pia ulin\2\17;s brookl 19](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Pia-Ulin-loft-Brooklyn-Bangia-Agostinho-Architecture-Remodelista-4-733x980.jpg)
![dana miller of house tweaking redesigned her cincinnati ranch house with ikea k 20](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/fields/Dana-Miller-House-Tweaking-Kitchen-Remodelista-12-733x489.jpg)
![a brooklyn kitchen by space exploration has basic ikea cabinetry with glossy wh 21](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/space-exploration-white-wood-modern-kitchen-733x489.jpg)
![ikea\2\17;s jarsta cabinets were fitted together \2\20;like tetri 22](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/park-slope-apartment-kitchen-bdhm-brian-ferry-733x1099.jpg)
![another ikea kitchen in park slope, this one has semihandmade fronts painted fa 23](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/park-slope-townhouse-sheep-stone-branca-co-21-733x489.jpg)
![tikkie and mads elsøe designed their frederiksberg, copenhagen, kitchen wi 24](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/reform-basis-01-ikea-hack-kitchen-tikkie-elsoe-copenhagen-1-733x1098.jpg)
![\2\20;it\2\17;s an ikea kitchen structure that i dressed up with 25](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/ilaria-fatone-ikea-hack-kitchen-cabinets-2-733x1100.jpg)
![in münster, germany, illustrator swantje hinrichsen designed her kitchen u 26](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/swantje-hinrichsen-repurposed-ikea-kitchen-1-733x556.jpg)
![ikea cabinets, fixtures, and appliances make up the berlin kitchen of food blog 27](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Our-Home-Stories-Ikea-kitchen-Remodelista-1-733x488.jpg)
![to stay on budget, the designer of this hatfield, ma, home opted for ikea cabin 28](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/hatfield-massachusetts-ikea-kitchen-designer-shannon-tate-side-detail-733x1100.jpg)
![a brooklyn kitchen has ikea sektion base cabinets fitted with custom doors of&# 29](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Architects-Gregory-Merkel-and-Catalina-Rojas-Brooklyn-townhouse-Remodelista-3-1-733x489.jpg)
![a plywood lined ikea hack kitchen and biergarten table in a tiny beach house in 30](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/marcia-mihotich-tiny-plywood-beach-house-seasalter-kent-england-via-the-modern-house-5-733x488.jpg)
![\2\20;in my previous kitchen i had custom cabinets, gaggenau appliances, 31](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/amy-lindburg-san-francisco-kitchen-daniel-dent-1-733x916.jpg)
![design firm white arrow created a budget kitchen for buzzfeed editor peggy wang 32](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/1-peggy-wang-ridgewood-house-keren-richter-kitchen-island-733x1100-733x501.jpg)
![the kitchen in designer lisa jones\2\17;s london maisonette has ikea box 33](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/lisa-jones-london-kitchen-1-richard-round-turner-733x978.jpg)
![ikea kitchen cabinets, doors, and countertops in a remodeled beach cottage in p 34](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/glenn-ban-stephen-johnson-provincetown-kitchen-733x474.jpg)
![parisian stylist lucille gauthier braud created an eat in kitchen from ikea gry 35](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/lucille-gauthier-braud-ikea-kitchen-remodelista-1-768x512-733x489.jpg)
![french architect philippe harden designed a small apartment kitchen in montparn 36](https://media.remodelista.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Philippe-Harden-Montparnasse-tiny-apartment-remodel-Remodelista-4-733x1101.jpg)
N.B.: This post is an update; the original ran on April 30, 2018.
More for Ikea fanatics:
- 10 Favorites: Best of Ikea’s 2018 Collection
- Editors’ Picks: 10 Ikea Kitchen Favorites
- Ikea Hack: DIY Furniture You Can Paint
- Ikea Kitchen Upgrade: 9 Custom Cabinet Companies for the Ultimate Kitchen Hack
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