IKEA Fanatics

The first time my daughter and I went to IKEA together we were there for five hours. It was a huge new store and my daughter was in her first apartment and in the market for, well, everything. The entire place was fascinating. We loved seeing their clever ways of using every inch of space in small living areas. And we liked the Scandinavian style of furniture that could blend in with many other styles. We stood in every room set-up, discussing what we liked and didn't care for. We sat on a whole lot of the furniture. Note: the fact that it looks comfortable doesn't mean it is, which applies to furniture everywhere, in my opinion. We were in serious visual information overload by the time we'd gone through the main floor and collapsed in the restaurant to refuel. When we thought we could handle more, we entered the Marketplace. It has everything you could possibly want to furnish your space: towels, sheets, rugs, pictures, mirrors, plants, little things, big things, kitchen ware. A ton of kitchenware. Much of it is inexpensive and you can easily take home more than you ever realized you needed. I've gone to IKEA with friends and my husband and it's always fun but never quite the same as with my daughter. We understand each other's tastes and we also have strong opinions. We can spend a good chunk of time discussing the merits of a chair, a lamp, or a whisk. She also has an eye for unusual decorating items. One time in the bath area, I picked up a small wrought iron wall towel holder with five movable hooks. I was thinking that five towels would never completely dry on it, when my daughter popped up and said, "Necklaces." And that's what it was really meant for. I bought all they had out and shared them around. Another time, I had turned to grab a cart and when I turned back she was holding two square class vases. She said, "They're fifty cents each--what can we do with them?" After some pondering, I sorted through the colors and chose six. On our first trip to Venice, my husband and I had splurged on a glass sculpture. But the only place I'd found to display it left it looking rather lonely. Now my Venetian glass is set off by three dollars worth of IKEA vases and looks just right. As our semi-annual visits continued, they became progressively shorter. We knew their stock so well that we easily pointed out which items were new and which had been moved from another area. We also found that we recognized IKEA items in other people's homes, in restaurants and waiting rooms. All over really. But I promise, if I see some in your home, I won't mention it. Unless you do first.