The double dip recession has truly hit most of us hard! So it’s not surprising that most of us are bargain hunting at the moment. Although I myself am a lover of a bargain, I find myself asking the question, is cheaper really better?
Huge chain stores such as Ikea offer cheap solutions to our furniture and money problems, however are some of their products too generic? I worry that while visiting a friends house I would notice that we had the same bed frame, or wardrobes, or kitchen table, you get the gist.
Ikea pros:
- cheap and affordable
- modern and up to date
- great variety of accessories
- modern funky children’s room furniture
- great variety of plants and garden furniture
Ikea cons:
- have to put everything together yourself
- no delivery
- have to search the huge basement for your product
- not the best quality
- very generic
- could be too common
In my opinion, it doesn’t matter how many other people have the same item as you, it’s how you style the whole room that counts, you can make a piece look original and one of a kind just from the way you decorate and accessorise.
What’s your opinion on chain stores like Ikea? Would you rather know your furniture is a one of a kind individual piece? Or is Ikea the affordable answer?
I think ikea is brilliant, especially for students! my friend got a huge faux leather frame for just ninety nine pounds from here and its gorgeous and looks like its worth ten times the price. For students its especially great as alot of the time things get damaged and you’ll only keep most things for a maximum of three years so why spend more?
I agree with your logic Ellie, after three years you could still get a good return on your investment through Ebay. If its a good design that serves a purpose then there will always be someone willing to buy at a reduced price
I don’t shop in Ikea ALL the time but I do find they have a few good idea’s that I want to incorporate in my house. I like cheap furniture that fills the gap I have. Ikea have some odd shaped stuff and it often dosn’t match anything bought anywhere else but I like the odd item…..I have often bought accessories there. Some of their furntiture is basic but does the job I need….at this present time in my life I like the affordable option and I often ‘tweek’ it to make it slightly different and to my taste !
When moving to university the first place I thought to shop for furnishings for my new room was Ikea. It does everything it sets out to but I agree it has become too common as some of my friends picked the same duvet covers and cushions. Its great for a bargain but the store can be unnecessarily stressful.
Ikea does what it says, its affordable and serves a purpose. As for its popularity you could say the same about Next etc. The trick is not to go for the whole style so as not to have a Laura Ashley room, Dwell and so on. Take the items you like and mix and match to acquire your own individual blend of what works for you.
Not necessarily the cheapest, their pricing policy is on a sliding scale. The concept works if you have a particular item in mind, unfortunately I rarely do, which leads to spending several hours in the football stadium proportioned store, only to emerge with a spoon or cheese grater!
I love Ikea, I think you can make their furniture work in any house. Yes it may lack the initial individual style that one likes, but the finishing touches you apply make the difference. I can’t imagine buying wardrobes and not getting them from Ikea. They are well built, practical and offer good value for money especially when you look at alternatives from shops such as B and Q. Long live Ikea.
I think that deep down everyone wants to have their own unique look and feel that makes their home their own. However at the end of the day many factors make us compromise on what we dream of and what we can actually do. Those compromises can be anything from limited budget to limited space or even as simple as having children. Ikea has played a huge part in our home decor since we have had kids because it is simple, relatively durable and when they draw all over in, smear food all over it and crash into it often enough you don’t mind so much. Once the kids are older we can start looking for more signature pieces that reflect our style.