IKEA

As I mentioned earlier this week, our recent trip to Cincinnati included a stop at IKEA.  I had only been once before, about 5 months ago.  That trip was on a Monday afternoon and was pretty enjoyable except that I had to carry Luke (all 15ish pounds of him) through the store since I couldn't find a normal cart for him to sit in.  If you've never been, it's a huge store.  My arms were very sore by the end.

Going in I expected this trip to be better, if for no other reason than I'd have Matt along to help carry Luke.  We also found a better cart this time so Luke actually rode part of the trip.  Big improvement.  However it was a Saturday afternoon.  A very very busy Saturday afternoon.  I heard those can be busy but apparently this one was worse than usual.  I think it was such a nice day (sunny and 60°) that everyone was inspired to get out and shop for their home.  The packed parking lot should have been clue #1. 

We skipped the showroom to save time.  Besides the upcoming bathroom remodel we're not looking for any furniture or fixtures for this house so we didn't really need to be inspired.  When we are in the market for some couches and such I would definitely want to look around more.  Or if we had more time.  Or if the crowds were about 75% less.  (If you haven't been to Ikea but have seen (500) Days of Summer, the showroom is what they are running through in that movie.)

Instead we stuck with the marketplace.  We didn't stick with my list getting side tracked by the bathroom part.  And I get distracted by pretty colors.  Ikea is the kinda of place that makes me want to buy all the things.  My frugalness and simplifying goes out the windows and I want to take every pretty thing home. 

I've heard a lot about how cheap Ikea things are and that is sort of the case.  They do have a lot of inexpensive things.  They have some cheap things.  But they also have nice couches and good full wood furniture.  It all depends on your budget and willingness to part with it.  And there are things were qualities isn't as important.  Things like picture frames, vases, kitchen utensils, etc. 

Anyways, here is what we came home with.  Only the first three items were on my careful list but nothing else was budget busting. Some are just things I hadn't considered looking for there.

Socker vase set - I found these when another blogger posted them months ago and kinda fell in love.  They are so cute and a beautiful robin egg's shade of blue.  Perfect for spring.  I don't know what is going in them (probably nothing) but they still look nice sitting on our window ledge.  And they are blue so they fit anywhere in our house!

Kassett box sets - I've been working on reorganizing my desk area and also found these linked on another blog.  I bought 2 sizes (measured and picked ahead of time) and they fit perfect.  They are just cardboard (that I assembled myself) so I'm not sure how they will hold up with Luke (he's very interested in my desk area) but so far he's left them alone.  Now I'm just figuring out how to fill them.  I might have the problem of too much office storage! (I don't really consider that a problem; I'm really excited about it.)

Korken jar - This was our (my) first impulse buy, literally the first thing we saw when we walked into the marketplace.  I did need a bigger container for my homemade taco seasoning though because the one I had been using barely fit one batch.  And this was $2.50.  Sold.

Grundtal shower towel and hand towel racks - I might be able to blame Matt for these...maybe???  The larger one is a body towel rack and the smaller a hand towel rack.  We have to do the bathroom remodel now that we are $30 in on (returnable) towel racks, right? (Although it would cost more than $30 in gas to drive down and return them...so either way we are keeping them.)

Papaja plant pots - Aren't these just cute??  They had a whole corner filled with these cute pots in many colors and I went straight for them.  Sadly, none in blue but green works pretty well around here too.  I bought them with the intent of filling them for either our front or back stairs but they are so cute they may not make it there.  Or they might.  Or I might need a few more.  Our yard definitely needs more color. 

Trilling poster set - I know pairing New York, London, and Paris is pretty common but I'm drawn to it all the same.  Three of my favorite cities (which also factored into my office redo a few months ago).  Honestly, these probably won't be hung until we move because we are pretty much out of wall space in the this house (or at least wall space we care to fill) but I like the style and it was only $12 for the set...  It's a little dangerous when Matt says "It's up to you." because that usually means it'll end up in the cart.  These are a good size and now need frames...but I can probably put that off until we actually have solid plans to hang them.  And I know I'll be back at Ikea by then...

That's it.  Nothing too crazy, right??  My new interest in home decor is not helped by browsing at Ikea.  It's a good thing I had Matt along to veto some of my other picks.  And it's a good thing we don't live closer because I could see it becoming a dangerous store for me to browse.