I did make it to IKEA’s…

I did make it to IKEA's Schaumburg store yesterday, and was overwhelmed, per usual. Also frustrated. The EKBY Mossby stainless shelves we were going to use in our kitchen didn't appear to be in the store anywhere -- I might have to try going out to Bolingbroke, wherever that is. I spent hours wandering from area to area looking -- so tiring. I'm glad we didn't try to bring the kids; the store was full of crying children, and I didn't blame them.

But I did find simple off-white curtains for Anand's room -- not as exciting as the other options, but at $20 / pair, infinitely cheaper and easier. I actually bought two types, one lined and one unlined, because I like the tops better on the unlined version, and the color is a little more natural and less white. I'm going to hang them up in his room and see which I like better, then return the other one. If we decide we need solid-color curtains anywhere in the house, we'll probably get them from IKEA, because they're just so much cheaper than anywhere else, and they're nice quality too. I liked their sheers, their linens, and even their heavier velvet-y drapes.

Also found rugs for the kids' rooms, which weren't strictly necessary but will help a lot to make them cozy. High-pile, 4'4" x 6'5", $50 each, but Anand's was on sale for $30. Great deal. He got dark blue, and Kavi got spring green. I'd originally planned to get her a white rug, which I think would have been better aesthetically -- but she's in a phase of hating white and black, and I just couldn't do it. She likes riots of color. So a green rug, and her Gypsy Pink room is going to feel like the inside of a flower. A little claustrophobic for grown-ups, but hopefully cozy and cheerful for a kid.

I'm not sure about the various shelving systems. We definitely need shelves in the pantry, even if we're willing to live out of suitcases in our closet for a while. We're going to have to crunch numbers and see if IKEA's shelves are actually cheaper than the Container Store ones or the local closet store -- I'd rather pay a hundred or two more if it'll get me a sturdier, fitted system that makes best use of the space. But if it's a thousand more, that's out of our league right now, and we might just throw in a few flimsy $15 shelving units and try to manage for a while. We'll see.

At least I had meatballs with lingonberries for lunch. That's a comfort.

And when we have disposable income again, I want to remember the idea of using the AKSER vessels as herb pots. I think I might have a bit of sunny wall I could use at the top of the mudroom stairs; would look cool with a few rows of pots there and be very handy for cutting herbs for cooking. Although the AKSER vessels are quite modern in appearance -- maybe just remember this idea as something to adapt with standard clay pots or some such. Hmm....

5 thoughts on “I did make it to IKEA’s…”

  1. The one problem with Ikea is that they hide things. Sometimes they can only be on the Display floor, sometimes only in the “Marketplace”. And sometimes they are in areas of the Marketplace you would not expect.

    I’ll keep an eye out for them when I go today and see where they are in my store.

    Wish me luck finding props!

  2. So you meant to spend $20 on curtains, and maybe something on shelves, and instead you spent $120: $100 on stuff you didn’t need, just wanted, and also bought lunch.

    You don’t seem to understand what budgeting means.

  3. Mary Anne Mohanraj

    Thanks for the friendly tone, Really?. Lunch was $3.95; I was there for close to four hours. Are you suggesting we start skipping meals? We’re not there yet, thankfully.

    Spent $40 on curtains, $20 of which will be returned when I decide which ones work better. Spent $80 on rugs, which granted, aren’t strictly necessary, but much of our decisions right now aren’t about strictly necessary — they’re about figuring out where we can spend money to make things nice, and where we can’t. Spending money to make the children happier in the house and more comfortable in their new rooms seems like a good priority to both of us.

    I do budgeting just fine, thanks, although I admit to not enjoying it. Maybe your next comment could be actually helpful, or at least polite. Or you’re more than welcome to leave.

    Catherine, thanks for the note. Is the Marketplace on the bottom floor? I did look through a big home organization section on the second floor, and it wasn’t there, but perhaps there’s more than one?

  4. Marketplace is on the bottom floor, yes. They usually have a map somewhere…and yes, it is so easy to spend hours and hours at Ikea….

    I’ve found sometimes they have things only in certain sections, and then others they have both up and down… it can be confusing…

    but basically there is the display section upstairs, and then Marketplace is down. But all the kids stuff is upstairs. And some of the kitchen stuff… but others are downstairs.

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