Moving house – unknowing Ikea nerd
February 26th, 2007 by boon
Friend 1: “Boon knows everything about Ikea”
Friend 2: “If you’re lost, just quote him the row and aisle and he’ll find you”
Friend 3 (looking around the apartment): “Ok, maybe we should start asking what’s NOT from Ikea”
Ok, so almost every single piece of furniture in my apartment is from Ikea. It’s not that I haven’t tried, okay?
I even went all the way to the border of Shah Alam and Sungai Buloh on the recommendation of my friend that Cavenzi’s stuff looked good and was affordable.
I even considered Gudang at BSC but that was 5 times above my budget.
I contemplated shipping back furniture from Bangkok, and called up places in KL like timelessdesign.com.my that imported quintessential interior furniture from historic artists like the Eames chair.
I also went to the clearance sale at Fella Design near BAT, PJ.
I just really really really couldn’t find anything that was well designed, affordable, and practical all at the same time.
The LDP/puchong/Cavenzi furniture all had those cheapish fuzzy sofas, with the same foam padding and hardness that was unwelcoming (you literally bounced on it).
The Gudang BSC furnitures were really nice, and avantgarde, but they were all priced at least 3 times more. I had to pretend I was rich when I walked in.
Even the timeless design imports were selling the Eames chair for RM6k (and that’s relatively cheap for an imitation Eames).
Everytime I go to Ikea, I get free coffee. I get to visit the As-Is section, and I do get deals every once in awhile. I’ve saved about RM1000 from those deals alone.
The Edefors table is Solid Oak for less than RM2k. Every time I sit on the Ektorp sofa, I feel like home. The smell of the Gorm pine shelves are enduring, and buffers the stale stench of a utility room. I’m just not ashamed to admit it. Why should anyone else?
Anyone who believes Ikea kitchen cabs are of poor quality need to learn how to discern the various grades of medium density fibre boards. I’m already regretting that my kitchen set comes from SCI.
Everything in Ikea has a designer’s mark on it. It’s functional. Design is about building a product with brains. There’s a reason why certain chairs are fixed at a certain height, why some lamps are blue… versus the carpenters in local factories who churn out cheap imitations by the hundreds.
I don’t claim that Ikea is the best thing in the world. I just wonder why the LDP furniture guys don’t go the extra mile to build good furniture. Why import design furniture can’t be as affordable (after all, it’s all coming from regional sources).
I even told myself, maybe it’s pine wood versus rubber wood. And then Ikea recently came up with a lovely rubber wood table and 4 chair set that cost less than RM400 for the whole thing!
And guess what? It’s made in Malaysia!
I really wish there were more Pottery Barns, more Habitat stores, more Pier 1 imports, more Restoration Hardwares. But there aren’t.
Habitat’s the closest, located in Bangkok, and I’ve already bought my RM300 worth of placemats, cushion covers and soap dishes from there.
Ikea is just taking over the world, well… at least it’s taking over mine. I blame my sense of style and practically.
I absolutely LOVE Ikea stuff! I don’t know the names, nor the rows and aisles, but I love the simplicity and functionality of their products! I would love to decorate a room with only Ikea stuff!! =)
what’s holding you back?
I like Ikea- for the food and creative ideas. Unfortunately, I’ve had quite a few things from Ikea not last very long, especially after moving it once or twice. For guest room furniture and accesories, we purchase from Ikea, for long-term furniture, we tend to gravitate towards Slumberland and Hom Furniture (http://www.homfurniture.com). I also love Pottery Barn, Restoration Hardware. Have you heard of Room and Board (http://www.roomandboard.com/)? Crate and Barrel (http://www.crateandbarrel.com/) is also great!
err…no empty room for me to decorate? =)
karen, ya… these are really big names in furniture. Kansas City had a restoration hardware when I was there. Of course, I didn’t find anything worth buying there as a college student, but they would be stuff I’d get if I was starting out at a new place. I’ve never been to the Pottery Barn though I’ve heard of it a lot. Same with Crate and Barrel. Haven’t heard of Room and Board.