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.

I learned my lesson

[amy-rella]

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