Experience a new idea in shelving (Ikea Expedit Bookcase)

Member Name: abbadabbado

Product:	Ikea Expedit Bookcase
Date:	07/09/09 (215 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: turns into more than one storage solution

Disadvantages: none

Storage is a big issue in our house, mainly due to the fact that we don't have enough of it. I suppose no-one ever has enough, but there comes a point when I get very tired of seeing toys all over the lounge floor, bursting through boxes and spilling onto clear space.
I have been looking around for a suitable solution for quite a while, and whilst looking on the IKEA website last week I realised I could make use of the expedit range of shelving IKEA sell in more ways than one.
The shelving comes in a few different sizes and colours. You can buy a set of shelves that are square in shape at approx 70 x 70 cm. This is the smallest they sell and contains four inner square slots.
A range of other sizes are available to include eight inner slots, sixteen inner slots and twenty inner slots.

You wouldn't think there was anything special about buying shelving really would you. This range from IKEA comes into a class all on its own when you have a look at the accessories you can buy to make the shelves turn into a whole storage solution of their own.
A standalone set of shelves, albeit with inner shelves to create cubes are very basic. That is until you put drawer inserts, doors, boxes etc into them.
A box that comes with little handles made of strengthened canvas will cost you £2.99 and transform a basic set of shelves into a toy box shelf that can hide clutter.
You could choose a box with a lid that could be made from canvas, plastic, wood or faux suede, which could all be used for filing purposes at the same time as hiding away from the seeing eye.
A drawer set will provide you with two shallow ish drawers which could easily be used to store bits and pieces that would otherwise look cluttered if just placed on the shelf.
A cupboard door will hide away anything you wish to place inside.
All these extras come at a price on top of the basic shelving unit, but you can buy as little or as many as you want to mix and match and create the look and purpose you want and need.

** Pricing **

I thought the pricing structure of the shelves were good value for what I was getting. My shelves are approx 140cm tall by 70cm wide, and contain eight cubed shelves which are all the same size at 33cm x 33cm approx.
For this I paid £59 which I thought was good value for money for a set of shelves which appeared sturdy and nice and chunky in the shop.
You can obviously expect t pay more for the larger sets of shelves.

** Assembling **

The expedit shelving range comes flat packed. I would note here that we bought the above size and the two fit (just) in our Vauxhall Astra with the back seats down, so do think about transportation if you happen to visit the IKEA store and buy products to take home.

Once unpacked from the box you are advised to make sure everything is there before you start. It looked fairly simple with eleven pieces of wood, lots of dowels and eight long screws with an allen key included.
Even I could manage this and I generally do as letting my other half near anything DIY is generally recipe for disaster.
I did find assembling this bookcase very easy and the instructions were clear to follow, with pictures being the main instructions rather than words.
Each piece of wood basically slotted into each other and the edges were all screwed together. It only took me about half an hour to make the first set and even less time to make the second.

Once I had assembled the first set, I realised another hidden gem to this set of shelving. It's so universal that you can have it standing tall, on its side, and you can even put casters on them to make the unit turn into something completely different for whatever use you need it to be.
You are advised to screw the shelves to the wall using the brackets and screws provided. We chose not to as the unit itself is very sturdy, and we haven't decided where we're going to keep it permananlty yet. This was fine for our unit, but I do think any of the larger ones would definitely need to be secured to the wall.

** Quality **

As with all flat packed furniture, I am never really sure of the quality of the wood and how long it will last, especially if it needs to be moved around.
I have always been satisfied with furniture from Ikea and when we examined the shelves in store, they did seem very sturdy.
Once made (even by me) it all looked as it should and it doesn't wobble too much which was very reassuring. I think as with all furniture as long as it doesn't move about too much then it'll last longer.
The finish was fine, and hopefully will stay scratch free, but with little children in the house I do expect it to be marked somewhere down the line. This is another reason why I don't spend a massive fortune on the shelves in the first place though.

** Co-ordination **

The range of shelves comes in four different finishes, white, walnut, brown/black and natural. We chose the brown/black as it fits better with our lounge colours, and we thought the accessories that you can choose fits well enough with this shade of wood finish.

** Overall **

I have found a new range of shelving that doubles as storage that I think will be in every room in my house before I am finished. I have already measured my bedroom to see that whilst I can't have a large set, I can however buy another of the same from the weekend and a smaller four cubed shelving set which when sat on top of the other will fit nicely in my bedroom and still leave a big space for my TV to be bracketed to the wall.

Summary: a great storage idea