I’m not typically a picky person but when it came to the must-haves of our newly built home, I was bound and determined to have a farmhouse kitchen sink. A sink, Sarah? Who really cares. Look, I get it!! It seems like a silly thing to focus on to most. To me though, I recognized that a lot of our time as a family is spent in our kitchen. Whether we’re making meals, hosting friends or having Saturday night dance parties…it’s always been the center of our home. I found the IKEA Havsen apron front sink and instantly knew we needed it in our home!
When we were designing our kitchen I started looking into farmhouse sinks to see if it was even going to be feasible. Oh, and one minor detail: We were getting laminate countertops so whichever sink we chose would need to be over-mounted. Laminate countertops can’t hold the weight of an under-mounted sink (which is what most farmhouse sinks are). I wanted an all white farm sink that was deep enough to hide some dirty dishes. I am a “throw it in the dishwasher” kinda girl but I must say…this kitchen sink has covered me to a dish-doin’ lover. (Most days 😉)
There were lots of pricey options. I’m talking between $500 and $1,500 for a kitchen sink. As newlyweds and a couple just starting out, we knew that this was totally out of the picture….Until I found this beauty. I stumbled into it on one of my rare trips to IKEA and it was close to $200. My eyes were deceiving me, I was sure of it 😍
After lots of attempted research I realized that there were very few reviews or testimonies of this kitchen sink because it was a newly released product. There was a discontinued sink similar to the one we purchased that was a bit different. An IKEA employee helpfully informed me that this was the Havsen, the new version of the Domsjo.
Since this was in our price range and would surely make all of my farmhouse dreams come true, we went ahead and bought it. It was a bit tricky to install since there was no template included. Typically, sinks will come with a template so you know exactly where to cut your countertop so that the “hole” isn’t too big/small. We made a template using cardboard and nervously cut into our brand new countertops. Luckily, it was a perfect fit. Phew!!
We have now been living with this kitchen sink for about 3 1/2 years and I figured it would be a perfect time to share my thoughts on it for anyone looking into a farmhouse style sink on a budget. Overall, we love it! The depth is amazing for hiding dirty dishes and cleaning large pots and pans. We haven’t had any chips (this was said to be a problem with the discontinued Domsjo sink) and haven’t had any staining that couldn’t be taken away with some Barkeeper’s Friend.
If you do end up purchasing this sink, I would highly recommend getting a faucet that has a hose sprayer. Our faucet alone can’t reach all parts of our sink so if it weren’t for our sprayer, I may be a bit annoyed at food particles just laying on the outside perimeter. Just something worth mentioning! To see specific information on our kitchen hardware (including our faucet) check out this blog post.
Overall, we are super pleased with the IKEA Havsen apron front sink and how it has held up. You really can’t beat that farmhouse charm on a super-duper budget. I hope that this was helpful if you are looking to upgrade your sink area! You will become a dish-queen if you decide to get one…trust me ❤️
xo,
sarah jane
Hi! Love your kitchen! What faucet is that?
Hi there! I have a blog post that links our exact faucet. Here it is 🙂
https://sarahjaneinteriors.blog/farmhouse-kitchen-hardware-faucet-knobs-and-pulls/
Hi Sarah Jane,
Just wondered how the laminate was coping with water pooling around the tap. We’ve been looking at this sink for ages but I’m a bit worried about water pooling behind and wrecking laminate and no draining board so would love to hear how you’ve got on!
Thanks
Lizzie
Hi Lizzie!
I was worried about the same thing. I will say I am pretty diligent about wiping up any water around the base of the faucet after cleaning/doing dishes. That being said, it hasn’t been an issue at all! I think with the proper caulking and general upkeep of wiping it down, you should have no issues. Let me know if you have any other questions!
Hi Sarah Jane, you’ve done a brilliant job and the sink especially looks amazing. We’ve picked up a havsen like yours but I’m just wondering how you fixed yours in? The instructions just show the silicone being applied around the edge but most sinks have some kind of clip screwed in underneath. Is there really nothing else holding the sink in place other than the silicone? Thanks in advance!
Hi there! We didn’t use any type of screws for attachment. Since it’s an over-mount sink, it is held up pretty well with our countertops. I hope this helps 🙂
Could you provide the measurements of your template cutout if you still have it? I’m trying to install this sink right now and I can’t figure out what size to make the hole!
I’m sorry I don’t have the measurements handy. We actually used cardboard to trace the inner lip of the sink overmount. It was scary & we measured a whole bunch of times before cutting into the laminate. I have since thrown out the cardboard template. So sorry I couldn’t be of more help!
Hi Amanda, I’m about to do the same but don’t have the sink yet! I’m looking for the dimensions for the cut out notches at the front. How di you go with your install?
Love the faucet! What color drain/strainer do you have?
Thank you! Right now, we are still using the brushed nickel strainer that came with the sink. I’m hoping to get a matte black one soon
RE: Ikea farmhouse kitchen sink
Hi! My boyfriend and I have the same problem you wrote about in this post. We are putting in laminate counters and need a drop in sink but I would love to have a farmhouse sink as well. I found the sink on the ikea website and it says it’s 37 inches long… is this the same size you purchased? If so, how long is your base cabinet underneath? We are putting in a 36 inch base cabinet. Thanks so much I appreciate it!
Hi there! We actually don’t have a farmhouse sink base underneath, just a standard one. We cut into our laminate to install the countertops and the sink is sitting directly on the countertop. Sorry I couldn’t help more & best of luck!
May be too late to help, but I’m installing this sink now and it will work with 36”W cabinet base – definitely not any narrower. The width for the cutout is 34” – the top part that goes over the countertop is 36.5” and the front width is narrower than 36”. Hope that helps if you are still considering this sink.
Cost for this sink – Havsen sink? How long to deliver once ordered?
Material it is made of?
It was $195, we picked up in-store, it is ceramic
What are the sink dimensions I have a copper farmhouse sink but time to up grade, ours has the little lip to sit on top of the countertop, love this, how many holes are on it faucet wise
There are no holes for the faucet, we cut holes into our countertops to install. The sink dimensions are 37×19″. Hope that helps!
Hi Sarah Jane, great to hear you like the sink. I’ve had the Havsen double bowl apron front on backorder for oh.. 6 months and hopefully might get it in another two. My issue is I can’t find the bench cut out anywhere! Don’t suppose you still know the dimensions of the cut out – specifically the notches at the front sides to accommodate the apron when pushed back.
Rgards,
Sheryl
Hi Sheryl,
I can’t recall the dimensions. We did some tracing of the sink on cardboard and went from there. I’m sorry I couldn’t be more helpful!
March 2022. I have been reading reviews of this sink from 2019 to 2022 on Ikea’s site. (1) How is the sink holding up since you made this blog post in January 2019, any cracks? The one review about it cracking simply from the heat of water off pasta being drained was quite alarming! (2) A couple reviews said the sinks weren’t designed to be filled with water and to hold water for washing dishes, etc. Have you found that?
We haven’t had any issues with cracking! Our sink does have a few scratches on the base from over the years. Nothing very noticeable. Also, we have filled ours with water using the stopper many times…no issues. My daughter even takes a bath in it sometimes. Hope this helps!
Hey! Do you know what size strainer this sink uses? I can’t find it ANYWHERE!
Ahhh! I am sorry I have no clue…
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