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furniture at Ikea

Trompe le Monde

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Originally Posted by Dakota rube
You seem torn.

1. i had already bought it
2. im not going to replace it until settling semi-permanently
3. wont buy it again

revolve.gif
 

kwilkinson

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Originally Posted by unjung
It used to be good. I slept in an Ikea bed from the time I got out of a crib until I was 21 and moved out. Now I have an Ikea bed that's three years old and about ready for the dumpster. Mattress is even worse (although abuse may have something to do with that).

What are you going to do when you throw it out? Should go with Ikea agian, since you're back in the same room you grew up in.
 

Nataku

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I'm not the biggest fan of Ikea furniture, however there is one piece that stands as the exception in my mind: The Expedit bookshelf. An absolute blessing to record collectors. A custom LP shelf would run 2-3 times what the largest Expedit shelf retails for.
13238rear-wall-room2.jpg
On the other hand, I'm a big fan of them for basics such as kitchen towels.
 

Artisan Fan

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I have found Ikea to be good for shelves to hold CDs and Records (Billy and Expedit models) and the Poang chair is very durable and makes for a nice listening chair, especially in black leather.

I have two Poang chairs and the 4x4 cube Expedit for LPs. I use three Billy shelves in Black/Brown for CD storage.
 

Douglas

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+1 on bookshelves. The Billy is a workhorse.

I also had a poang chair for years and it was very reliable. It is a bit cliched today - anyone can pick it out as a cheap Ikea standard - so I don't know that I'd put one in my living room today unless I were still in college or fresh out. Still, it's a great value IMO.

Dressers are going to fall apart quickly. The drawer bottoms will blow out (cheap fiberboard) and the glides (or whatever you call the hardware and rollers that make the drawer pull out smoothly) will not be reliable for more than a few years.

You should essentially be aware that anything with moving parts is not going to be terribly durable - tables with casters, anything with drawers, etc. You can also see pretty plainly that their fabrics aren't the top of the heap.

Still, I think they have some relatively attractive sofa options, and they are pretty unique (at least in my experience) in having decent modern styling at their price point. I wouldn't expect an Ikea sofa to last for 10 years, but I could live with one for 5, until I can afford a big-timer sofa.
 

unjung

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Hey, I have a Poang chair too! And actually, it has been pretty durable, considering it's in a house occupied by three bachelors who drink a lot.
 

ysc

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Yeah, I am looking at the billy bookshelves, glad to hear such good things about them.

I googled the poang armchair and I am pretty sure there was one in two of the places I lived whilst at Uni.
 

chorse123

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Originally Posted by youngscientist
Yeah, I am looking at the billy bookshelves, glad to hear such good things about them.

I don't think the billy are good bookshelves at all. The shelves bow very easily.
 

EL72

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Originally Posted by chorse123
I don't think the billy are good bookshelves at all. The shelves bow very easily.

+1. If you have lots of books, Billy is neither a durable, nor attractive bookshelf.

Also, forget about taking IKEA stuff apart to move. Once they are assembled, they can never be put back together as tightly and solidly as the first time.

That said, I've bought three IKEA kitchens to install in rental units and they are great options for the price considering the flexibility, convenience, delivery time...
 

foodguy

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my kitchen -- which sees a LOT of work -- has ikea cabinets and they're terrific. My writing desk -- which sees a LOT of work -- is from ikea and it's lasted at least 10 years, as have the file cabinets, etc. generally, i find it's pretty good value, but once you can can stop worrying about value as much as appearance, it becomes less attractive.
 

tiecollector

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Ikea furniture is awful. I've had a bed, credenza and a small couch and they do not last at all. Most of their small items are pretty good for the price. I'm taking a gamble and purchasing their cabinets because I read they are pretty good for the money and rated more favorably than Home Depot. Lots of higher end homes are using Ikea cabinets with custom countertops.
 

660

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Originally Posted by Luc-Emmanuel
you don't need to go as far as finland. Here is one of the Aalto "poang" manufactured by Herman Miller. It dates from 1938.
P_ART_L038.jpg


yeah, IKEA borrowed a lot from Alvar Aalto, like this stool from 1932:

P_ART_L012.jpg


!luc


Those are actually made in Finland by Artek (www.artek.fi), in the same factory as in 1932 , just marketed in the US by Herman Miller.
 

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