I - kea, do you? (Ikea)

Member Name: masterchef98

Product:	Ikea
Date:	25/10/09 (23 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good prices and good value, some unusual items

Disadvantages: You get what you pay for, the cheap stuff isn't built to last

Ikea is a Scandinavian store which sells a wide variety of fairly cheap furniture and home decorations.

I normally visit the Nottingham store which is a few minutes drive off the M1 and very easy to get to. There is a large display area for all the different selections of furniture and you have to write down where they are located in the furniture section at the end of the store so you can collect them. The furniture is flat-packed and self-assembly meaning a treat for someone when you get home but is fairly easy to put together.

There is also a cafe, and a small home furnishings section (the items are small, the section is quite large) where products such as toys, pots and pans, blinds and lighting are available off the shelf. This is the bit where you have to exercise a lot of self restraint otherwise you get to the till and find that all those £1.99, £4.99 bargain things you picked up have come to £100.

The furniture is variable in quality, there is a lot of very cheap furniture which doesn't last well and doesn't really survive house moves, but is great as student furniture or when you're kitting out a new home on a budget. I've never noticed any very expensive items but they do have more expensive stuff which is a bit more robust. The home furnishings section has a range of prices again and here you will find some more unusual things, rather than the mass-market furniture which you see everywhere (including on Hollyoaks). There are some great textiles and quirky toys, I got two soft toy rats for 99p each today, just because ... well, where else could you buy that? Actually they are fantastic, they are suitable from birth, very soft with whiskers and a big washing label (always an attraction for babies). They are machine washable and my toddler loves them!

They also have a good website which details the whole range and you can add items to your shopping list and print it so that when you go you don't have to go round the whole furniture section but can go straight to the warehouse and collect them from the locations on your list.

Summary: Huge selection of low to mid price home furnishings