IKEA X Gustaf Westman: An Interior Designer Breaks Down How To Use This Signature Style On Your Tablescape

Once a year, Swedish furniture manufacturer IKEA hosts a summit called the Democratic Design Days in the company's hometown of Älmhult, focused on celebrating all things design, art, and innovation. In addition to inspiring presentations and panels, IKEA uses the event to announce what the next year will look like, including new product lines, designer collaborations, and ways of doing things. The 2025 summit was held June 4th and 5th, and among the many announcements about IKEA's much-anticipated new direction for the year, one in particular was celebrated by the collaborator's cult following on social media. As a part of a three "mood" collection, IKEA has revealed that they are collaborating with Swedish architect-turned-designer Gustaf Westman to release a line of fun, untraditional entertaining products to liven up your celebrations.

Westman is the master of playful, exaggerated curved shapes and cheery colors, meaning this new collection will feed right into your mood-boosting dopamine decor aesthetic. As an interior designer, it's no surprise to anyone who has worked with me or read my words that I absolutely adore color; so this lively, carefree rainbow of functional yet beautiful objects is right up my alley. Who says gatherings with friends and family have to be formal, fancy, or stuffy? Westman's style demands the exact opposite: An instant visual clue for guests that the celebration is meant to be lighthearted, joyful, and blissfully go-with-the-flow. So without further ado, let's dig into Gustaf Westman's signature design style, the details released about his IKEA collaboration, and how I recommend you work these funky, vivacious pieces into the tablescape or decor for entertaining.

Known for his curvy, colorful objects that are simple yet striking, Gustaf Westman's product design style is certainly distinctive and fun. Often minimalistic in form yet playful in scale, shape, and hue, these often chunky, spiraled, or bubbly objects are showstopping eye candy for any space. In regards to his designs having a general lack of straight or defined edges, Westman said (in an interview with designboom), "I like how, with curvatures, the object kind of gives the impression of 'continuing'. It feels like it's whole and enveloping like it's going on and on, like a wave." One of the things I connect with most about his work is that it has an incredibly inviting, casual quality about it. Westman's candy-colored, joyful pieces are meant to be used, shared, and enjoyed with gatherings of the people you love rather than precious items coveted from afar. There is something very refreshing about not being afraid to actually interact with a beautiful piece of art.

Specializing in small objects like vases and dinnerware, as well as furniture pieces like tables, mirrors, lighting, seating, and more, Westman's creative vision has gone viral on social media over the past few years. The frenzy over Westman's undulating objects began in 2020 with a custom green squiggly mirror made as a one-off for a client, and within months, the design took off. However, all of Westman's pieces are made with local Swedish artisans, so fans have been patiently (or not so much, according to many social media comments) waiting for their favorite items to restock; the demand is higher than the availability. This is precisely why so many fans are excited about the upcoming IKEA collaboration, crossing their fingers that the retailer brings more widespread availability and an affordable price point to his pieces.

Announced by IKEA on June 4, 2025 with an official press release and fun social media teaser featuring the designer holding a sign with the big news on a sign throughout a store, the IKEA x Gustaf Westman collaboration is slated to hit the shelves in the fall of 2025. Unlike the visual sneak peeks offered on other upcoming collaborations and product lines announced at the annual summit, IKEA has released few details about the Westman collection. But here's what we do know.

The Westman collection, along with the work of Eveline Kroon and a third product line, will all be focused on celebrations of every variety. From those spontaneous get-togethers to long-established traditions, IKEA's new products will be centered around entertaining and gathering around a beautiful table of food. For Westman's contribution to the exciting launch, he said (via IKEA), "For me, this is an opportunity to turn traditional holiday aesthetics on their heads by introducing a sense of playfulness and boldness. This is my interpretation of holidays, it's a new design for a new generation."

"His colorful and fun vibes will no doubt be channeled into this collection, which aims to celebrate the beauty in unconventional shapes and relationships with friends and (especially chosen or untraditionally defined) family. While IKEA plans to reveal Westman's collection later in the year, I am fully preparing myself – and my wallet – for some seriously gorgeous, bold, fun designs packed with charm. Ready to gameplan for the same? Here's my advice about how to best go about using these unique pieces to adorn holiday tables and beyond.

Assuming the IKEA celebrations collection follows Gustaf Westman's signature style, these entertaining items are sure to bring a wave of happiness to your home. Perhaps you're just looking for fun pops of color to incorporate in small doses, which is ideal with his exuberant shapes and hues. But if you're ready to take home the whole collection, there are a few ways I love to tackle a bold, colorful look like this. 

The first is to fully commit to one hue, creating a jovial color-washed tablescape or decorative display (such as a cluster of ceramics or candleholders), not unlike Westman's recent bubblegum pink Mercedes-Benz campaign. The all-in approach is impactful and super fun, yet cohesive and easy to design around. The next option is to choose a color palette of a few hues, such as having all the plates one color, the cups another, and perhaps the vase or candle holders a third, for example. While the unexpected combination of happy hues brings a playful array to brighten up your table, the limited color palette helps it feel put together. The final approach, which I absolutely adore with groovy designs like these, is to grab tableware or accessories in the entire range of colors, creating a rainbow of cheeky cheerfulness to knock your guests' socks off. No one's forgetting a buoyant, eclectic, technicolor tablescape like that... ever.

No matter which color approach you take, one thing's for sure: throw out notions of what celebration table settings and decor "should" look like. Instead, inject some unconventional, bubbly fun to elevate the spirit of the occasion with Gustaf Westman's unique, light-hearted take on color and scale. Now all we have to do is wait patiently for IKEA's grand reveal!