IKEA: classic or dud?

Dennis Björnberg wrote:

Ikeas founder, Ingvar Kamprad, was a member of a nazi-party in his teens. He has since totally rejected nazism, and said that he was just a stupid teenager without a clue about what nazism really was.

I'm sure that's true. But Ingvar Kamprad (the I and K in Ikea, now 75) is an odd cove.

Ikea's product catalogue is well read. Media reports suggest that with 65 million copies published in 20 languages it is the worlds second most widely read publication after the bible.

Appropriately enough, then, a book Kamprad published in 1976 was called 'Testament of a Furniture Maker'. It stressed qualities like humbleness, simplicity and self-reliance, and spoke about Ikea's 'Nordic values'.

Kamprad has kept total control of Ikea, it's not answerable to any shareholders or finance capitalists. Its head office is a 'charity' in Copenhagen. An article in the Indian Express reports: 'If Kamprad had not turned over the company to a foundation but listed it on the bourse and kept 40-50 percent of shares he would be worth some 40-45 billion.'

The article continues:

Despite Ikeas success and his wealth, Kamprad tries to stayout of the public spotlight, always travelling economy class from his home in Lausanne, Switzerland.

He made headlines in Sweden in 1992 when it was revealed that his travel expenses to attend an interview at a Swedish television station showed he had taken a bus to the studio.

Kamprad's reputation was called into question in 1994 when a Stockholm newspaper found his name in the archives of pro-Nazi activist Per Engdahl with whom he was friendly in the 1950s.

Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.

There are some people (for instance an activist group in Bristol, UK) who boycott Ikea, claiming they use child labour and discriminate against black employees, but I think such witch-hunting is fairly silly. The big picture is that Ikea provides good design at reasonable prices. And if you look at Ikea-owned Habitat (unfortunately not available in the US), under new design director Tom Dixon I'd call their new stuff 'good design at reasonable prices'.

Hmmm.. don't know that this is strictly true. I've bought similar style furniture that wasn't do-it-yourself, and I've found that my IKEA stuff is way, way sturdier and harder wearing. Some of the materials admittedly aren't brilliant, but they do seem to be improving all the time.

Don't forget the cheap gravadlax, crayfish, pickled herrings, Diam bar related products, 9 metre packs of strawberyy laces, arctic flat bread, lingon berry jam, cloudberry jam etc. that can be got there.

I do not think I could put the stuff together by myself though so beware when I DO get to IKEA I will be calling on all you strong tough meng rowr oh yes.

my Ikea inventory: three shelves, two PS armchairs (red), one coffee table, four Herman kitchen table chairs, two rugs, two sets of curtains, three lamps, knives and block, dish rack, cutlery holders, and more cutlery, dishes, bowls, pans, knives, wine glasses than i could possibly count.

Things I would not buy from Ikea: bed linen (nice, but I HATE patterns on sheets etc - COMMON), sofas, the actual bed.

In reality this meant seven beds, seven wardrobes ten chest of drawers and sundries - chairs, pointless shelves and five bookcases despite the fools they got in never reading any of the crap free books we got off of the remaindered bookshop. Bathroom cabinets a gog go not to mention the entire kitchen cabinets (I did get half a day off to lump a fifteen foot roll of Lino from Borough to Nitting Hill by tube but that was barely a break really.)

This is why I like my furniture to come pre-made by people whose job it is.

In reality this meant seven beds, seven wardrobes ten chest of drawers and sundries - chairs, pointless shelves and five bookcases despite the fools they got in never reading any of the crap free books we got off of the remaindered bookshop. Bathroom cabinets a gog go not to mention the entire kitchen cabinets (I did get half a day off to lump a fifteen foot roll of Lino from Borough to Notting Hill by tube but that was barely a break really.)

This is why I like my furniture to come pre-made by people whose job it is.

I once had to spend a whole Saturday in my old job assembling 10 new Ikea desks. On a Saturday! How unfair. I agree, furniture should come ready assembled. DIY sucks. I have better things to do with my time.

I like IKEA because I can buy fairly large (ultimately) items and still get them home in my car. And they finally carry good CD cabinets - three shelves, walnut veneer, sliding glass fronts, wall hangable - for $20. They never seemed to get the size right before, like they weren't really made for CDs, or they were those slotted types where if you wanted to insert a new CD while maintaining the order you had to take every other disk out and move it one slot.

In the future, all materials will be like this.

I hate Ikea because I haven't got a car and nor have any of my friends. It's as simple as that.

It's just not NOT worth it, but what choice do I have????

Sorry, there. It just gets very, very tiring living in a location where all the big chain stores are from local or regional chains(hello, H-E-B!) and so many stores I keep on hearing about are nowhere near me. What I wouldn't give to have a large music store somewhere close by, for example. But I digress. Heh.

(but what of Todd Oldham at Target?)

2 different ballgames. Are you looking for craftsmanship, and the price that comes with it, or functionality, pure and simple? At this stage in my life, decent design, affordability, and DIY assembly outstrip brilliant design, excellent materials, craftsmanship and the attendant premium. Someone said they had "better things to do with [their] time" than put furniture together. Alright, I hope those better things include work...so you can pay for my Eames lounge!

That said, I have a collander that is the shit and ez to clean, and one of those 4x5 bookshelves full of books and trophies and such.

Tres chic.

I enjoy that blue kitchen shot taken when sky outside matched cabinets 0_0
I would happily exist in any of these kitchens

Lee626 could we maybe get one of those for $1500?

Depends how close you are to DC (or northeast US which gives me a good excuse to visit a gf there more often). But they're nothing magic about my renovations - anyone can do it really, I just carefully choose items that look expensive but aren't. Sometimes I do splurge, but carefully. Fancy handles or knobs can make ordinary cabinets look special. A few small colored glass 2" diamond tiles can be set in a piece of tileboard, and everyone will think you spent a fortune on your backsplash. Ikea cabinets of course, but sometimes I throw in one or two matching-look cabinets from a high-end cabinetmaker, like a curved 12" radius cabinet in a corner, and only you will know you have one cabinet that accounted for 40% of your cabinet expenditure - ppl will know you didn't use cheap Ikea cabinets 'cause they don't make round ones. Prefabricated laminate countertops with rolled edges, sold at the big home centers or Ikea. For appliances, instead of buying cheap new ones, spend the same money on high-end used ones, scouring Craigslist and eBay for bargains. You'll find lots of 5- to 10-year-old luxury grade stainless-steel stoves, Sub-Zero built-in refrigerators, or Miele dishwashers for a few hundred each. Likewise for elegant sinks and faucetry.

Oh, I was totally kidding. But I am in Philly and I do plan on buying a house someday, so...

But srsly damn bro, those are some A+ pro-tips!!

LOLling out loud at me being considered "pro"! I occasionally moonlight as a kitchen and bath renovator. I don't really daylight at anything....

I'll post some more pix later that are hiding somewhere on my old computer's hard drive. I have one where I repositioned the existing 40-year-old wood cabinets, added three new glass-and-aluminum Ikea cabinets between them ($295 for all three), and somehow it came out looking like all the cabinets were new.

My latest Ikea purchases.... make of these what you will....
http://www.ikea.com/PIAimages/24037_PE108848_S3.jpg
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/images/products/idgran-cushion__0135632_PE292376_S4.JPG http://www.ikea.com/us/en/images/products/idgran-cushion__0135632_PE292376_S4.JPG
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/images/products/tindra-scented-tealight__0085474_PE213265_S4.JPG
(cinnamon & apple scented)

congratulations on your impending booty-getting

man i really hate going to ikea.

NEVER AGAIN

Thought this thread got bumped because of the monkey (wearing a little coat!) found in a Toronto IKEA today.
http://torontoist.com/2012/12/ikea-monkey-ikea-monkey/

O_O ikea redeemed.

seriously though, i don't understand the love for that place. it's fucking insane in there. the cafeteria is not good either. always makes me gassy.

just full of screaming people and it's a goddamn maze i tell you

how do you not take a video of this monkey?

and yeah the cafeteria is awful. it can be a savior if you're hung over, though.

I <3 the IKEA monkey.

what a stylish fellow

I don't hate IKEA, I like the caf and the walk-through part! I just hate getting your pieces together and standing in line at the end, and then having to get them HOME. It's all a lead-up to the horrible part, which is carrying way too much home on multiple subways and/or buses.

PS the next thing I want from there is a dining table so I guess I should start being nice to someone with a car.

btw i broke at least one wine glass on the way home because it was stupidly packed in the bottom of a huge back.

also i have about a million christmas sausages

http://distilleryimage9.instagram.com/58ccedb6423811e2979622000a1fb04f_6.jpg

i thought i was a basically heartless person but goddamn if this isnt the saddest photo ever taken :(

ikea is just about the lease stressful furniture buying experience out there. unless you're loaded then buying forniture is all pretty stressful and at least in ikea you can have fun if you just decide to go with it.

fun in ikea looks like a photogenic couple spinning their goods trolley around & hugging in front of the wine glasses, a montage set to sugar pie honey bunch, like there's always this homemaking scene going on somewhere around you while you're glibly deciding whether you need a weirdly dimensioned bowl that you don't need but which is basically too cheap to not buy

I don't hate ikea at all but yeah it sucks if you go there w/o a car because it's like idk going to a p good restaurant and being allowed to taste and chew the food presented to you but there is a maitre'd who physically prevents you from swallowing it and makes you spit it out into a bin

and you never ever feel like paying for car service or delivery service because then it doesn't feel cheap anymore and what's the point of going if it's not cheap!

PS the next thing I want from there is a dining table so I guess I should start being nice to someone with a car.

it's just not worth it

man i really hate going to ikea.

― i guess i'd just rather listen to canned heat? (ian), Sunday, 9 December 2012 23:02 (Yesterday) Permalink

NEVER AGAIN

― i guess i'd just rather listen to canned heat? (ian), Sunday, 9 December 2012 23:02 (Yesterday) Permalink

Me too man. And I think it actually has been at least a year and a half since I've gone, because of this hatred. Although we've had our eye on a bed from there for a while, and I guess eventually when we have the extra money we'll go get it.

ikea is awesome for some things (beds and mattresses, lamps, things with shelves) and really awful for other things (housewares, anything that you sit on).

i don't plan to go there again unless i need another thing with shelves, and we already have too many of those.

I got rid of the crappy Ikea bookshelves the last time I moved
felt good

i do maintain that my ikea bed consisting of a $100 foam mattress and $70 frame and $20 slats is the most comfortable bed i've ever had.

more comfortable than the disheveled pile of old winter jackets that you previously slept on?

but I suppose it could be true. I just hated the last ikea bed with slats that I owned

believe me i was as shocked as you that it was any good

That's good to hear. My spring mattress is a pile of crap and I'd wondered if the IKEA foam mattress was any good.

Haha, I just saw someone on facebook call the monkey "Jörj".

Oh no, now CTV is saying the monkey won't be returned to his people because of his prohibited pet status. He's still in Animal Control custody. ;_;

CTV now reporting the monkey is a sex addict ;_;

CTV now reporting the monkey's favorite metallica album is St. Anger ;_;

but seriously that is too bad. I hope the monkey finds a good home. I love the little guy.

Poor little monkey. Am sad that I cannot plan to have a pet monkey in the future as I temporarily dreamed.

ikea is classic. ikea platform beds with slats are even more classic (xpost). i think it's more comfortable than a traditional box spring, but more importantly it looks kewl and sophisticated in my opinion.

http://i.imgur.com/w2g6c.jpg

i have been to ikea twice in the past two weeks. i have assembled five bookshelves, a couch, an ottoman, two metal shelving units, a tv stand, a nightstand, and a dresser. i hate ikea.

I feel your pain, I am old so I dread 'hex wrench finger' and sore back. My mind was utterly blown when I found out their catalog is all CG and not photos

that makes perfect sense as i suspect all their in-store employees are holograms as they are utterly unwilling to lift a finger to assist you.

I feel your pain, I am old so I dread 'hex wrench finger' and sore back.

Use a hex bit in any cheap power screwdriver or cordless drill. Not sure what Ikea was thinking expecting normal people to assemble 4x4 Expedit shelf cubes with a tiny hex wrench that needs to be turned about 400 times.

Today, around 75% of all IKEA’s product images are CG

http://youtu.be/vDNzTasuYEw