IKEA’s ALPTALL Collection Brings Himalayan Wildlife into Children’s Rooms

For the third year, IKEA has collaborated with Nordens Ark, a wildlife conservation center, to create a children’s collection that celebrates a unique ecosystem in our amazing world.

Red pandas, wild yaks, and Pallas’s cats are among the animals inspiring ALPTALL, IKEA’s new children’s collection of soft toys, textiles, and creative accessories.

“Since large parts of the area are remote and difficult to access, it can be a challenge to carry out the research and conservation work that is needed,” says Mats Höggren, CEO of Nordens Ark. “Therefore, we are pleased to see these animals being recognized through gentle friends that can inspire greater understanding, appreciation and care”.

The idea for this collection began during a visit to Nordens Ark, when the IKEA team encountered a red panda. Its distinctive appearance and surprising habit of raising its paws when startled helped set the direction for the collection.

That encounter opened the door to a region with an extraordinary range of ecosystems and species that need greater awareness and protection.

The animals also appear across a range of room accessories. A soft rug features animal tracks, while a hooded towel takes on the red panda’s shy face.

Pink and blue duvet covers combine red pandas with floral details, bringing the collection’s nature-inspired illustrations to the bed.

Flower-shaped seat cushions in pastel shades add a playful touch, alongside a storage bag, stickers, and coloring books.

Designer and illustrator Malinn Gyllensvaan worked closely with Nordens Ark to translate the region’s animals and vegetation into expressive, hand-painted illustrations. Her approach balances recognizable animal behavior with the warmth and charm of a childhood companion.

“When you draw animals, you want to capture their character and natural behavior, while also wanting people to fall in love with them,” says Gyllensvaan.

The Pallas’s cat, for example, has a flat face and a naturally sullen expression. Keeping those distinctive features while making the character feel appealing was part of the design challenge.

The wild yak combines long, shaggy hair with shorter, velvety areas to reflect its natural appearance. These variations give children different textures to discover while making the toys recognizable as the animals that inspired them.

Embroidered eyes add further expression. IKEA has used this detail on its soft toys since 1997, offering a safer alternative to plastic beads while giving each face its own character.

The animals living in these environments have developed remarkable ways to survive. The wild yak, for instance, has an enlarged heart and larger lungs that help it cope with thin mountain air.

Through ALPTALL, IKEA and Nordens Ark aim to make stories like these accessible to children, using familiar objects to spark an interest in unfamiliar species.

IKEA will continue supporting Nordens Ark by raising awareness of endangered animals featured in its collections, while Nordens Ark will contribute expertise to future product development.

Making Room for Everyday Play

Alongside its wildlife theme, ALPTALL encourages families to make space for play in daily life. According to the IKEA Play Report, only 51% of children are satisfied with the amount of time they have to play, while 54% of parents wish they had more time to play with their children.

The collection aims to ease the pressure around play by offering simple starting points: a soft animal to invent stores with, tracks to follow across a rug, or illustrations to color together.

These everyday moments give children room to imagine, explore, and become curious about the natural world.

The IKEA ALPTALL Collection is available online and in stores from October. See also SANDLÖPARE, last year’s collection inspired by the African savannah.