Elliot Nolten

Hi! I’m Elliot

Designer, builder, leader

Design lead at IKEA.com, shaping how millions of people compare and buy. Before that, I designed for both sides of Dutch marketplaces: home buyers, sellers and estate agents at Funda, and merchants on bol’s partner platform. I also built an internal Figma plugin, used by 396 IKEA designers, that now lets AI assistants search live product data.

work

Placera
10 product itemsBest match

  • RÄFFELBJÖRK

    Vase, 7 ¾"

    $39.99

  • ÄRTBUSKE

    Vase/watering can, 9 ½"

    $19.99

  • FRÖVÄXT

    Vase, 5 ½"

    $6.99

  • KÄLLARHALS

    Vase, 8 ¾"

    $24.99

  • IKEA PS 1995

    Wall clock, 19"

    $49.99

  • SMYCKA

    Artificial bouquet, 24"

    $19.99

  • SOTENÄS

    Armchair

    $229.99

  • BLÅSVERK

    Table lamp, 14"

    $19.99

  • BRÄNNBOLL

    Inflatable gaming lounge chair

    $79.99

  • GRILLTIDER

    Pizza cutter, 8 ¾"

    $4.99

PlaceraLive IKEA product data in Figma and Miro.Read the case
Claude Code next to a browser running an IKEA product search prototypeAI-assisted product searchPrototyping IKEA product search with AI assistants and live product data.Read the case
3D showroom render of a sideboard with decorations
Placera 3D showroomReal IKEA products in a 3D room you open from a link.Read the caseFunda home search results with mapFunda searchHome search for buyers, sellers and estate agents.Read the case
Top choice

VÅGSTRANDA

Innovative double-layered springs

VÅGSTRANDA mattress
  • 5-core pocket springs
  • 7 comfort zones
  • Foam
€229-€499

Choose from 6 sizes and 2 firmness levels

Top picks for mattressesHelping people choose a mattress at a glance.Read the caseIcon setThe icon set I drew for Funda’s website, apps and design system.Read the case

timeline

  1. 2025 - Now

    Design Lead

    IKEA

  2. June 2023

    Speaker

    Figma Config 2023 - San Francisco

  3. 2021 - 2025

    Senior Product Designer

    IKEA

  4. 2016 - 2021

    Senior Product Designer

    Funda

  5. 2013 - 2016

    UI Designer

    bol

  6. 2012 - 2012

    Web Designer

    Staples

  7. 2010 - 2010

    Internship - Industrial Designer

    Joolz

  8. 2008 - 2010

    Master - Integrated Product Design

    Delft University of Technology

  9. 2004 - 2008

    Bachelor - Industrial Design Engineering

    Delft University of Technology

Great value

VALEVÅG

Individual pocket springs

VALEVÅG mattress
  • Pocket springs
  • 5 comfort zones
  • 26 cm high
€279-€449

Choose from 6 sizes and 2 firmness levels

Top choice

VÅGSTRANDA

Innovative double-layered springs

VÅGSTRANDA mattress
  • 5-core pocket springs
  • 7 comfort zones
  • Foam
€229-€499

Choose from 6 sizes and 2 firmness levels

Seasonal favourite

VATNESTRÖM

Natural materials

VATNESTRÖM mattress
  • Natural materials
  • 5 comfort zones
  • Pocket springs
€689-€899

Choose from 3 sizes and 2 firmness levels

  • IKEA
  • Concept
  • E-commerce

Top picks for mattresses

A concept for choosing a mattress at a glance, which led IKEA to build a mattress comparison table.

In 2025 I led Top picks, a concept within IKEA’s complete sleep initiative, working with other designers and research. On mattress pages, Top picks shows a few mattresses worth considering, each with a reason to pick it. The card above is one of them.

Problem

IKEA sells a lot of mattresses that look alike in a grid. What sets them apart, such as firmness, springs and materials, sits in product names and deep in product pages, so the only way to compare was to open them one by one. Prices made it harder: a mattress comes in several sizes, so the one price on the listing doesn’t tell you what yours will cost.

Approach

Give each pick a reason. A badge says why the mattress is on the shortlist: Great value, Top choice or Seasonal favourite. Shoppers start from a reason to choose instead of a grid of near-identical products.

Put the specs on the card. Attribute pills show what sets the mattress apart, such as 5-core pocket springs, 7 comfort zones or foam, so you can compare without opening product pages.

Show the real price. A price range from the smallest to the largest size, plus a note like “Choose from 6 sizes and 2 firmness levels”, tells you up front what to expect.

Bring the teams along. I pitched the concept to the initiative’s leadership and ran workshops with the product designers in the listing and product page teams to turn it into something they could build.

Outcome

Top picks wasn’t built as designed. It set the direction for a comparison table on the mattress listing and product pages, which research has tested and which is now in development. We expect it to raise conversion and add-to-cart rates once it’s live. The same approach is planned for other high-consideration, technical products: sofas, appliances and wardrobe systems.

What I learned: a concept that doesn’t ship can still set the direction. Top picks gave the listing and product page teams a shared picture of the problem, and the comparison table came out of that.