Field Trip: Ikea

Mr. E has had some time off recently, and the other day we were sitting around the house, wondering where we could take the kids before they started gnawing on the furniture (or each other).  It was literally 100 degrees outside, so the park was out.  They're too young for museums.  We'd just been to the mall.  So, Ikea it was!  I brought along my camera.  Want to see some pictures?

This was the display that greeted us at the top of the escalator.  These curtain panels are a nice combination of sweet and modern:

This is the famous PS Maskros Pendant, looking like a great big gone-to-seed dandelion.  I think it's awesome.  We don't have anywhere to put it, but Mr E wasn't a fan, so perhaps that's for the best.

These mirrors have to be one of the most-hacked Ikea products ever, but I'd never seen the unfinished ones before.  They set my DIY mind on fire.  Just imagine the different displays you could create with a bunch of these and some paint.

This ottoman caught my eye.  It was different and looked pretty high-end.  I'd want different legs on it, though.

Cool scarf-hanging thingy:

I paused to contemplate the bunk beds.  With two little boys fourteen months apart, I think a set of these could be in our future:

Just $159 -- pretty darn good, right?  And you could do something neat with that unfinished wood.  Definitely something to remember in a couple of years.

The kitchen section was impressive.  These backsplash tiles are such a pretty greige color, and just a little bigger than standard subway tile.  Very nice.

A very versatile shelf that could also be jazzed up with some paint (although this whole thing could probably be DIY'd super-easily):

We ate dinner at the Ikea cafe.  It was a Wednesday, so we pretty much had the place to ourselves:

I'm in love with that blue and green tree fabric they had hanging in the window. 

After our $11-dollar dinner, it was down to the marketplace.  Tuck was psyched:

Fabric by the yard:

I almost went bananas over that red and white stripe because I'd been thinking about making red and white striped panels for our living room.  Unfortunately, I wanted horizontal stripes, and these were vertical.  Still, they have lots of fantastic prints, and it's all $7.99 a yard.

Real cowhide rugs ("Mooo," said Dash):

Awesome black and white rug.  I've seen this one around the blogosphere:

This mirror was almost the highlight of the trip for me:

I'd been eyeing the Audrey Mirror from Ballard Designs, at $99 for the small size.  The Ikea version is very similar and only $29.  Here's the Ballard one:

Glassware and candles and decorative items, oh my!  I love browsing stuff like this.  Unfortunately, this was the part where the kids started to get fussy and Mr. E's eyes glazed over.  Men.

So I just did a quick fly-by.  But I snapped pictures of some of the highlights.  Like these blue vases:

Lanterns, $3.99 each:

Chandelier that holds actual candles:

This was a nice display of all the different baskets that fit in the Expedit:

Then it was into the giant serve-yourself warehouse:

This was where things turned disappointing.  We trudged all the way back to the back corner of the warehouse, only to find that that mirror I wanted (it's called "Husnes") was out of stock, with no information on when it'd be back.  And it's missing from the website.  So I'm wondering if it's even an option now.

Ah, well.  I did pick up a few small items:  some sheer drapery panels (more about these in a future post), a Ribba picture frame (ditto), and a few other things.  And it was a fun way to spend a sultry summer evening.  Yay, Ikea!