Under the Spell of IKEA

Our new home was bought from a German couple.
It was evident how streamlined their furnishings were in the space.
We liked the look and came to find out
that many of their pieces were from IKEA.
Having no experience with the company,
we didn't give it much thought after touring the house.
But we have now come to the realization
that those folks knew what they were doing.

We have fallen under the spell of IKEA. 

These two wardrobe pieces were actually left by the sellers.
They were moving back to Germany,
and I suppose felt they didn't need them,
so they asked us if we wanted them.
One is housing most of Big K's clothes,

while the other is now keeping his large Lego kits organized.
We have all downsized our clothing
and placed winter items up in the attic,
so we found we didn't need this extra storage for our wardrobes.
He is working on adding to this unit,
so that all of his Lego sets will fit here.



This cabinet was one of the items we purchased from the sellers.
It was in the living room,
but we found it took up valuable space,
so it's been placed in my room.
Storage is something coveted,
and this unit adds a ton of it.

These two bookcases were in the living room
and we purchased them with the house. 
We felt that they took up too much space in the foyer,
so we repurposed them in C's room.




This smaller bookcase fits beautifully in C's room
and keeps his Lego builds nicely displayed.

The larger unit is able to be used for books 
and his extensive Lego magazine collection.

Once we were living with these IKEA items for a while,

we caught the Swedish bug.

The massive IKEA store is in Charlotte,

less than an hour's drive from our location.

 The overstuffed chair and ottoman were purchased first.
This has quickly become my chosen spot for reading
or playing my favored game, Hay Day. 

 

The ottoman pad lifts up for extra storage.
It'll be a great place for extra blankets or pillows.

Next, we went back to pick up the matching sofa

which wouldn't fit in our Element on the first shopping trip.

Sister met us there so that she could take some of the boxes

in her truck, and we could squeeze the remaining in Ginger (our Element).

IKEA is famous for its furniture kits.

They come in large boxes,

and need to be assembled by the buyer.

Fortunately, I live with Mr. "I-can-put-anything-together",

so it was a piece of cake for him to get the sofa assembled in no time.

The hardest part was stuffing the pillows into the slip covers.

 Eh voila!
We chose the sofa with the side chaise,
which, incidentally,
can be moved to either side (or the middle),
when you feel like you need a change.
So far, everyone loves that chaise.
Even C, who had sensory issues with our furniture in the past,
enjoys lounging on this sofa.

The other main item I'd been wanting to swap out were our dishes.
We bought dishes when we first got married,
some 18 years ago.
Keeping in mind that we are simplifying in this smaller home,
I wanted plain, white dishware.
That's exactly what we got at IKEA.
Now, I can purchase just a few accent pieces
if I really feel that I want to jazz it up a bit.
But, for the most part,
I'm quite content with things just the way they are.
That IKEA, it's a magical thing.


New House series:
The New Homestead
Moving Toward Bliss
Organized Downsizing
Fan-tastic!
A Fresh Look
Closet Project