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Ikea Billy Bookcases
by shopping_jem
Arguably Ikea's most famous piece of furniture, the Billy bookcases come in a wide range of sizes and styles, with or without various doors. This review is for the tall 2-door one (80cm wide) and the tall skinny (40cm wide) one.
The bookcases are easy to put together if you can handle standard flat-packs, but if you move them ... after assembly the backs tend to fall off as they are just thin nailed-on chipboard.
The tall 2-door Billy in white, which I own with the glass doors, looks fab in my living room as it fits perfectly into the chimney breast alcove. It has 5 shelves, and you can place them at different heights so it is very versatile. We mainly use them for books, and this has been a bit of a problem as it can't really cope with the weight of a shelf full of books without bowing irreparably. After a year or two, one or two shelves actually collapsed, and we had to reinforce the shelf with a metal bracket. In the end, we decided to buy a new identical Billy, and reuse the glass doors off the old one, as this was our cheapest option. Had it come down to buying the whole thing again, I don't think I would. On re-examining the bookcases on display in the Ikea showroom, you can actually see some bowing even under the weight of fake books. I wish I had noticed it the first time!
The Billy glass doors we have had for 7 years and they are still very strong with a good finish. The only thing that lets them down is that the little wooden handles look cheap, but you can always change those.
The tall, skinny Billy is much stronger that the 80cm wide one, because of the design and the fact that there is less length of shelf that can bow under the weight of books. We have it in my daughters' room , filled with books, and there is no bowing or weakening at all. My conclusion - if you want durable, longer lasting bookshelves then you are better to go for the tall skinny Billy rather than the 2-door version as it is stronger, and you can screw several side-by side if you want (as my in-laws have done to create a strong wall of bookcases.
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Marks & Spencer Hastings Wardrobe
by shopping_jem
I bought the Hastings wardrobe recently to co-ordinate with the Hastings bunkbeds in my girls' bedroom. It is a lovely, versatile range with various drawers, bedside tables etc. available in the same range. The wardrobe is slightly less well-built than the bunkbeds, in that they are solid wood whereas the wardrobe is mainly wood but ... the back of the wardrobe and the bottoms of the drawers are flimsy. This has caused no problems at all, but obviously as time goes on I would expect there to be weakening. I bought the wardrobe at 20% off so it cost £319, so I actually think the quality is good for this price - a similar but slightly less attractive wardrobe from a famous Swedish flatpack retailer is £300 and this one come swith free delivery and assembly and seems more well-made.
The finish of the "soft white" paint colour is excellent - it is very smooth to the touch and looks great quality with a nice sheen. The colour is more of an ivory than a white - it is very creamy-toned next to the white skirting boards. The handles are satin silver knobs which look pleasant, and the feet are slim and tall.
The dimensions of the wardrobe are smaller than other wardrobes I considered, which I considered to be an advantage as it does make the room feel more spacious than if it were more bulky. There is a nice space underneath the wardrobe where you can either fit a storage box or slippers, shoes etc. if you are pushed for space. My girls' clothes (eldest age 6) fit on the hanging rail with tns of room to spare, so I will be putting storage boxes underneath to maximise space, which I will rethink as their clothes grow. The hanging rail seemed a bit loose when I first checked it, and it is surprisingly square, but on using it is seems sturdy and I have had no problems with it.
The wardrobe was assembled by M&S delivery team and placed perfectly in position. They were punctual and put it together very well, covering their shoes to walk in my house which was a relief for my new carpets! They removed all packaging and were very friendly. This free service is a major advantage of ordering M&S furniture - no more domestics over the instructions as screw "P" doesn't fit hole "C", lol!
Overall, I am very pleased with the Hastings wardrobe, and with the range overall. I will definitely be purchasing more Hastings furniture in the future.
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Ikea Mammut Shelf
by user789
I bought this purely as a bit of fun as they looked cool and funny and were at a cheap price in ikea.
The selves were only £3.50 so I bought three two for my brother and one for me just as I simply liked the funny looking shape so if you are looking for a very extravagant design then this would do the job.
The ... mammut shelves are vibrantly coloured with a range of a light blue and red. The plastic is thick and long lasting. The product is made from two pieces put together into a very wide V shape that looks unique when comparing to some of the more ordinary selves.
I put the shelves slightly tilted on the wall so one side would take the weight of the books and the other side is for resting the books on, just to make sure the stability of the books is safe. The book shelve can also be used to put other small items on display such as toys, however I suggest only using softer toys as harder toys can fall easily and may cause injury.
After using this shelf for a few months I can happily say I have liked the look this shelf has added to the wall the used to be plain.
I would definitely recommend this shelf if you need an unconventional book shelf that is easy to put on the wall and at a very cheap price. And good looking too!
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