IKEA fans?

[Katzateer]

An IKEA opened in West Chester near my daughter's gymnastics classes.

I have been 3 times in the last 2 weeks.

I come out as tired as I would from a day at Epcot.

Lots of fun stuff to look at.

Anyone else live close to one?

We have gotten some linens, a couple of chairs, and a cabinet.

My youngest wants a bed, which will probably be our next big purchase.

[Aggie97]

I love IKEA for things like desks, bookcases, file cabinets -- all kinds of storage. I am typing this note while sitting at a desk (and on an office chair) from there, actually! :)

[Love of Disney]

Pretty much my whole house is Ikea. You can furnish it for a very reasonable price. Be warned though, since it;s cheap tp buy, it's cheaply made. There are many items that have not weathered all that well. Our bedroom furniture was white when we bought it 5 years ago and about 3 years later it started turning yellow. It is fun to shop there!!

[Hair_Razor]

Everyday since the 12th I have tried to find an excuse to make it down to the new store. I used to go to the Pittsburgh one, now I am so excited to have one in state.

[scoot241]

I don't care for most of the modern stuff, but our entertainment center is Markor. We might be expanding out to the rest of the living room with the same style.

[PEA_Swe]

I worked 6 years for IKEA, at the central product company in Sweden. Most products all over the world are in one or another way generated or at least passing through there.
I worked there during the years when IKEA did their first big expansion in the US. I was actually hired on the day that the store in Philadelphia opened.

[Tink2002]

I'm so jealous! The closest one to Maine is in Mass, but I love everything I see, so I may just have to make a trip down one of these days!

[meldan98]

I LOVE IKEA!!

I actually went to our local store on opening day. I was so excited, because I wouldn't have to drive all the way to Emeryville, CA any more.

I agree, it is cheaply made, but when you are getting your first house, it's a wonderful resource because you can buy nice, new furniture that matches and aren't stuck with ugly, worn out and miss-matched handy-me-downs.

It's also great with kids. We splurged on our first furniture purchase as a couple when we bought a Pottery Barn couch ($1400+) - before us knowing about IKEA. That thing is a pain in the rear end to clean. My dd spilt so many milk and formula bottles on that thing, it is permanently stained and it will be $800 to get a new slipcover for it. Had we known about IKEA, we could have bought a couch for $299 and been good.

Funny thing is, we discovered IKEA while to and from Disneyland. Their distirbution center is right off of I-5 and they have a store we drive by once you get into LA.

[RenDuran]

I love IKEA, but the last several times I went, checkout was too much of a hassle.

The lines are astronomical. They don't accept checks anymore....not even doing electronic transfers.

[PirateLover]

I live a 5 minute drive or 15-20 minute walk away from the Philadelphia store. My current dresser is from there and so far it's held up better than "Top of the line" Italian furniture we had bought. I have been there recently with friends and also my brother who just moved out. I love it. It's so much fun! And the food is really good and really cheap. I think the coolest part is the kid's section though. There are just so many neat ideas they come up with...

As far as the lines, I'm sure it differs from store to store but the only time I've had a problem is Sunday. Usually the lines go pretty fast.

[Scar]

I only go for the meatballs and knickebread.

Too bad they don't have Lutfisk and Glogg.

[Dracula766]

IKEA beds are great!!!

I just bought a couple of bricks yesterday to hold up the broken side rails. :unsure:

I learned my lesson

[amy-rella]

We've also been to the West Chester store 3x's since it has opened. :blush: Love it!

[Hair_Razor]

Wow I am surprised at all the problems people have had. I have had no problems with anything I have ever gotten there. Thinking back the oldest thing I have from them is about 5 years old though. I'm not sure how good that is for a track record though.

[AdventurelandTikiGirl]

I come out as tired as I would from a day at Epcot.


No kidding! A trip to IKEA is an all day affair! It's a sensory overload by the end, but I love it. So glad we have on in MASS now.

[BronxTigger]

It's been awhile since I've been to IKEA. The closest one to me is by Newark Airport. On the weekends they offer a free shuttle from midtown Manhattan to Ikea and back.

The only bad thing about the shuttle is that you can only go on the weekends and it's INSANELY crowded. Traffic jams everywhere. But, I still like to go and look at their cool stuff. I don't have any furniture from there, just plants and other accessories. The cinnamon rolls, however, are loooong gone!

[ElenitaB]

I usually make a trek to New Jersey to go to Ikea, but coming this summer, they're opening one right here in Brooklyn! Yeah!!!

I have several things from Ikea with mixed results. Some of the drawers on the chest of drawers in my room have pretty much fallen apart, but I guess that's what you get when you buy the least expensive stuff. I had also bought bed linens from them, but I'm not a fan of sheets that need to be ironed.

I do love the whole "Ikea experience" though... everything from the childcare through the displays and the cafeteria (the Newark one has a great view of the airport across the highway).

[Ed]

We just remodeled our kitchen, and were very close to ordering our granite countertops from Home Depot, until we found the exact same granite at Ikea for $20/square foot less! That alone saved us $1000.

And it ends up that the contractor who fabricated and installed it for Ikea is the same contractor that Home Depot uses!

We still have some Ikea furniture that we bought 10 years ago that is still in like-new condition. We've never had a problem with quality issues.

[disneydrmr]

Hey Katazeer.. we must be neighbors! I live close to the new West Chester Ikea also... dh and I went Monday for the first time.. it was 'controlled chaos'.. so crowded... we mainly did just a 'walk thru' and it took 45 minutes. Saw a few things that looked nice.. but nothing that jumped out at me. I'm sure we'll go back once the newness has worn off and it's not as crowded.

[MsMin]

I love going there. I have only gone to the one in Baltimore when my son was living up there. We would visit Rhett and visit IKEA. He has a lot of furniture from there that is now sitting in my dining room. I do wish they would open one down here. When we had pups the gift baskets included doggie bowls from IKEA...

[Kairi_7378]

I worked there during the years when IKEA did their first big expansion in the US. I was actually hired on the day that the store in Philadelphia opened.


I also have a connection to this store... I was one of the engineers that designed the foundations for the South Philadelphia store. While not everything in the store is to my taste it is definately fun to walk around. DH loves going there for the meatballs. He likes to build furniture and loves the IKEA furniture challenge.

[DisneyDog]

We live about 15 minutes from the one in Conshohocken, PA. We have tons of stuff from Ikea, including the Markor entertainment center. We have 3 of the Markor pieces. My DS5's bed is from there, we have a leather recliner with a footrest (less than $200 for the 2 pieces!) that is now in my DS's room (replaced the glider), and a whole bunch of other little things. We used to have an entertainment center from there that we bought when we were first married. It lasted 10 years and 3 moves, including the big move to Florida. I've been pretty happy with their quality and prices. The only thing we bought there that didn't last was a toy chest. But, it did get a lot of abuse.

We love the food there. It's tons of fun to go there. The only problem we have is actually leaving the place. Not only do you keep finding things to look at, it's just difficult to find your way out.

[jkj1224]

my entire apartment looks like one of those IKEA showrooms, I've moved my furniture all the way from Seattle to Orlando but now thankfully we have our own store here. :thumbsup:

[BrerGnat]

Ikea is great for some things, not so much for others.

When it came time to furnish our baby/toddler's rooms, we steered clear of Ikea. We needed sturdy, HEAVY (so it wouldn't tip) well made, safe furniture. Ikea's baby stuff is scary...very unstable. We recently bought a bunk bed for DS and I was SO turned off by how shaky the bunk bed was at Ikea. It was cheap, though (like $300) so you can't expect much) but bunk beds are something that needs to be good quality. We went with Pottery Barn furniture (because my sister works there and gets a 40% discount).

However, our ENTIRE living room

is Ikea (Leksvik and the old Abo line). Everything there has held up very well! We love it. Our sofa is about dead though, but it lasted 7 years and went through a move AND 2 babies (lots of messes). :) For the $400 we paid for it, I feel it far exceeded my expectations on durability and comfort. I am SO sad that they don't offer this sofa anymore, or I would just buy the same one again. I hate all the current sofas there...they are SO hard. :(

Our whole bedroom is also Ikea (Narvik). I love it too! Our first dresser totally fell apart, but we got another one from a different line and it has held up great so far. I like the bed best of all. I like slat roll foundation beds.

What I don't like at Ikea is the linens. Poor quality and scratchy. I do like all the kitchen gadgets, but it's funny that all the measuring stuff is metric. :) I also love the cheap lamps...they last a long time.

I like the cafe too, but it's always SO crowded.

Luckily we have an Ikea about 5 min away, so that is great.

[NotaGeek]

I love IKEA, but the last several times I went, checkout was too much of a hassle.

The lines are astronomical. They don't accept checks anymore....not even doing electronic transfers.

Checks? They do take debit cards and credit cards ...

I love IKEA and found then when I was in college in Europe years ago. While I would never buy a couch or bed there, I do have a great desk and tons of accessories from IKEA. Unfortunately the closest IKEA is about 4 hours from Spokane ... I miss the HUGE store in the Phoenix area!

[DisneyDog]

The bed that we got for DS is just a frame. We bought his mattress at a bed store. But the frame is so heavy, I can't move it to clean underneath it. This thing is sturdy. It's not going anywhere. I hope he likes it through college, because the only way we are going to be able to move it is by sawing it apart:D

[Ed]

The new store in Orlando is so big that they should issue you a handheld GPS system when you enter just so you can find your way out!

My only gripe with Ikea is the instruction sheets they provide. They are totally drawings - - no text. I got confused trying to assemble something, and called Customer Service. They were great. They sent someone right to my home to explain the instructions to me.

A mime. ;)

[BrerGnat]

My only gripe with Ikea is the instruction sheets they provide. They are totally drawings - - no text. I got confused trying to assemble something, and called Customer Service. They were great. They sent someone right to my home to explain the instructions to me.

A mime. ;)

Well, Ed, you know that's how they keep prices down, right? If they had to print those instructions in EVERY language where they have stores...can you imagine how many more CENTS each item might cost? :D

I actually think the pictures are funny sometimes.

MY biggest gripe is that there are ALWAYS screws, dowels, washers, etc. missing from everything I buy! I either get like 10 extra of something or am missing, like, one critical piece. I've had to return to the store SO many times to get "parts", it's unreal. I've started opening the package as soon as I get to my car, and counting the parts to make sure I have them all.

[prprincess]

I have a love/hate thing going on with IKEA. I live close to the South Philadelphia location, but dealing with the traffic, parking, and crowds there is a pain. But I have to say then when I do brave it, the trips are worth it because I usually find what I need and more. And need is the key word...I never come out of there with junk because I find most of their products extremely useful. I also love their cafeteria food, even though they got rid of my favorite mousse pie! At least they still have Lingonberry.

I agree about the instruction pictures being funny to look at. But could the fact that you have to use Allen wrenches for almost everything be more annoying!!

[Katzateer]

My only gripe with Ikea is the instruction sheets they provide. They are totally drawings - - no text. I got confused trying to assemble something, and called Customer Service. They were great. They sent someone right to my home to explain the instructions to me.



I loved the instructions for a wall unit I put together. I am not good at assembling items and can barely use a hammer or screwdriver :blush:

I got the unit together in a little over an hour and was proud of myself. Of course my husband probably could have done it twice as fast but I did it all by myself!

[swampfox28]

This thread is SO up my alley!

I don't live near an IKEA (which makes me ALMOST as sad as the fact I don't live near WDW!!) as I LOVE it so much!

My SIL and I went to Houston 2 weekends ago and it was sort of near our hotel. Because the breakfast is SO good and SO cheap, we ate breakfast there every day (YUMMY!)

The first day we shopped there and my SIL could have killed me - she did the whole 2nd floor and I was still in the kids' section (I can't HELP myself - I LOVE their kids stuff!)

And although I agree with the poster that said their linens are, in general, scratchy, I find that their children's linens are getting better (softer) AND get MUCH softer with wash wear (really!) Besides, with their duvet/pillowcase combos, you can get higher thread count sheets and still have IKEA's adorable linen sets on top.

I'm still mad at myself for not getting more than I got (my SIL would laugh her head of at that!) They had new sets by Silke Lefter who is my FAVORITE linens designer (she did Hokus previously, for example; one of the cutest sets EVER!) She had a new set that had elephants for the crib in blue and pink. I only got the pink and could SHOOT myself for not getting the blue set, too. It was only $10 or $15 and I'm DYING to have that set too as my 3 year old LOVES it so much! eBay never has a good selection and when they do people want a million dollars to ship it (?!?!?!)

I'm ready to bribe ANYONE who regularly goes to Ikea to get me a set (anyone? Anyone?!?) :o)

I think overall I spent 6 hours in that store that weekend - and had a BLAST, too! I wish they were closer as I could really do some "damage"! We SO need a sofa and a chair and I'd LOVE to make a closet organizer set for my daughters bedroom-to-be which is cute but has NO closet (darn older houses!)

Okay, I'm TOO long winded (sorry!) but I'd work at that store if I could - I like it that much!! From a design standpoint it totally inspires me and I love that mostly it's very affordable!

-Sarah

[d_m_n_n]

I am so excited to visit the new Ikea store in West Chester!! Can any of you "locals" help me find it? We are going to be at the satellite Children's Hospital location in Fairfield. I'm not very familiar with the Cincinnati area (I can find the CHMC main campus and the zoo :blush: ). When I look at the map on the Ikea site it is a bit confusing since I don't recognize any of the street names...:confused:

[PirateLover]

Hey all! I thought I'd resurrect this thread to let ya'll know I got a job at the South Philly IKEA! I work in sales in beds and children's depts. I've only been on the floor 2 days but I'm having fun learning about all the stuff we sell (and there is A LOT!) So stop by and see me sometime. :)

[Kairi_7378]

When did you start? My husband and I were there last weekend looking at furniture for our baby who will be arriving in September.

[PirateLover]

When did you start? My husband and I were there last weekend looking at furniture for our baby who will be arriving in September.
I started on the floor Monday because I had a camping trip last weekend. We had orientation all last week. I'm part time, so I won't be there everyday, but I do have a lot of hours right now since I'm training.

[valjane]

I really like Ikea, though the one in Atlanta is so crowded that it's not always much fun to visit. And my husband HATES the crowds so it's hard for me to convince him to ever go!

Our kitchen table came from Ikea-- we've had it three years now and so far no problems. It was hard to put together though!

We've also gotten some small end tables there-- again, no problems. Mostly I go for the bottom floor stuff, like the bathroom rugs, curtains, kitchen stuff. It's so cheap I just go crazy! :blush:

[Flower]

I am just not an IKEA fan.....:blush:

The only things in my house from IKEA is a throw rug and I have a bunch of the storage boxes in various sizes for the office, with coordinating magazine holders.Oh, and 2 wicker garbage cans.

We have a store within an hours drive - we went there one Saturday morning for breakfast with the in-laws. The food was terrible - I would have gladly paid the extra $5 and gone to McDonald's for bad greasy food.

[DisneyDog]

Oh, I think the food is amazing. I've never been for breakfast. But, I love the Swedish Meatballs and the lingonberry juice is awesome. I also love the shrimp and the salmon too. I once tried the chicken marsala, and it was amazing. Mmmm.