apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

You just have to love IKEA's user-friendliness!

The IKEA Tempe has had this feature since it opened and I absolutely agree that it's a really great feature of the store. I've purchased more than one thing based on how it looked in their in-store apartments.

I'm jealous of the sewing room and like the long counter/shelf on the left side in the kitchen.

Is this really new? Ikea Seattle has been doing these types of displays (specific square footage, specific price) for as long as I've lived here (three years). And the Ikea in Portland, OR had them when I was there a year ago.

In fact that, 278 sq ft home has been at Ikea Seattle for three years, although last year the bedspread was blue and now it's the same yellow one that's in the photo.

I just assumed that the displays at one Ikea were largely similar to the displays at another, with small differences due to space. Maybe there's more regional variation in the showrooms than I assumed.

The IKEA in MI has had that since it opened and I do love it (well, did until I moved several states away). I love it, I often noticed things in there that gave me ideas for my own apartment.

Hmmm... I was just at Ikea Pittsburgh getting a new ceiling light fixture & didn't notice this feature... but perhaps I was just preoccupied (racing to exactly what I needed, avoiding distractions & extra purchases). lol- I'll have to be on the lookout!
http://cozylittlecave.blogspot.com

anybody know anything about the rug in the 7th photo? i looked at their website and couldn't find it. thanks!

cool idea. they've been doing this in catalogs (room for $500 or whatever) for a while.

I love this feature! We've had it in the Atlanta one since it opened...I think. Makes me realize the possibilities of small spaces.

I had also thought that all the stores did this, but each store does have control over what the displays have so that may not be true. Glad to hear more are picking it up- especially the square footage one!

Each room appears cheaper than the price - Amazing!

redmusette,

isn't that the rug

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30141715

er, i could be wrong and confusing college park w/ woodbridge, but i don't think this feature is new at college park. (still a neat feature, though, and always fun to walk around the rooms)

The only downside is that a lot of people don't realize that furniture showrooms have those 20 to 30 foot ceilings. That room will look a whole lot "cozier" when you put a lid on that box.

I'm not terrifically impressed.

What would commentary on an IKEA post be without snark from bepsf?

Yep, Tempe does it, and when we were living in CA, they did that at most locations. I guess it's exciting :)

hmmm... my local IKEA showrooms appear nicer than these.
Is there a universal room design template for IKEA, or does each store have their own designer open to interpretation & imagination?

I do like that kind of thing. Being able to feel and live in the space for a moment.

*A* sofa will fit in this spot. It doesn't have be an IKEA sofa.

Those kinds of lessons can last a lifetime, adding to a knowledge of floor planning, layouts, maximizing space while minimizing clutter.

The same narrow kitchen layout can be used, no matter what kind of cabinets or shelving is used. What matters is being able to go into the display and see if it works for you.

It's good to take kids into those spaces too. Kids can absorb those things like a sponge. So that by the time they hit their teens, they have their own mental library to choose from fixing up their bedroom or dorm room or first apartment.

No matter whose products are used.

hahahaha!! love the splatgirl comment about bepsf. I thought I was the only one who noticed such blatant snarks! So true! And so sad for one to lead such a negative life. Such a downer on AT.
And everyone else... keep on shining! (:

oh bepsf, how i agree with you. bring on the snark. there's room for us all here.
ikea's a nice place if you know how to add their pieces to your decor, but an ikea-themed room. ack!

My sentiments exactly splatgirl...its not just Ikea posts though...gets kind of old after a while. OK we get it, you don't like ANYTHING.

Woodbridge has had these changes for awhile. College Park just reno'ed and the White Marsh/Baltimore store, after a visit on Saturday, needs a major overhaul. It was disgusting. I love my Woodbridge Ikea. :) And while some of us may not furnish our apartments in all Ikea, you have to understand that there are people out there that do not have any design sense or desire to have that sense. With that in mind, having a space already planned out makes it easy for them to buy it all -- and who are they to care if their apartment looks all like Ikea? You could have everything from the Pottery Barn catalog and they wouldn't know the difference. :)

Laura
http://www.justalittlebit.net

our ikea (schaumburg) has always done the room layouts, but i never noticed the budget breakdown, thats kinda cool. i love walking through ikeas "rooms".

I used to work at IKEA in the design dept long ago. We had 5 showroom designers ? plus the manager who also focused on showroom. I believe they had guidelines for the rooms: a room in X style using furniture a,b,c but not d or e, a room in Y style using furniture d,e,f but not g, and so on. The designers chose paint colors, flooring, accessories, but there may have been the same kind of style guidelines for those too. It seemed like way too many people for the amount of work they actually did, and I always remember being more impressed with the other IKEA's showroom rooms whenever we'd go on "field trips".

Laura - I grew up in Woodbridge. I miss the Potomac Mills area!

The first room is a riot. I couldn't live in it, but I love looking at it. (Edmonton Ikea has always had the "sample sized" apartments as well--they're terribly fun to play in!)

Thanks cindycindy for sharing the "behind the scenes" info. It's always fun to learn a little backstory from an insider.

Both Calgary and Edmonton do it, here in Canada. I didn't think it was new...

Sydney's been doing this for years! But it's a great touch, I appreciate it greatly. Gives you great context.

Hmm, I thought all the IKEAs did this. They're great mostly for seeing the products in context. I can't imagine buying an entire room tho'

There's a one-snarky-comment minimum on IKEA-related posts, didn't y'all know?

I've never understood the negativity toward IKEA. IKEA fits a lot of people's decor tastes. There's plenty of other stores if you don't like IKEA's style.

Seriously, though, bepsf-your predictable comments are kind of a bummer.


Maybe you should try to remember rule number 4 of the comment policy:

4. Add value, don't take it away.