Boy, I love Ikea

Yay! We're going to Ikea!

OK, so did you also take the day off from work?  Because we’re going to be there awhile.  How about this: spare yourself the invetiable aggrivation and drop me off, go play 18 holes of golf, and come pick me up after you’re done.  Dragging a UHaul behind you.  Love you!

Go, Hon. Have fun. Take your time!

Things I love

The entire inventory.  Really and truly.  And I’m not alone: in countless decor magazines and design blogs, Ikea products are featured alongside higher-end items.  From kitchen cabinetries to pretty paper napkins, Ikea pretty much has everything you need for a hip, stylish home on a budget.  Here’s a roundup of some of my favorites.

Don't forget the U-haul

I’m gonna have a lot of stuff.

But don’t laugh.  When our neighbors Bethany and Mo moved into their new house, they rented a truck, drove to Ikea, got all their furniture and house goodies, stayed overnight (obviously, exhausted beyond repair), and drove home the next day with their bounty.  Now THAT’s a shopping trip.

Our post-shopping pit stop

Because I’m weak with hunger.  Desperate for a drink.  And need time to sketch out on a napkin where the hell I’m going to put all of the stuff I just bought.

Fun and exciting Ikea links

The one thing I DON'T like:

Ikea’s website.  Not only is it difficult to navigate, but barely any of the products shown are actually available for purchase online.  And why bother?  Check out this ridiculous order process:

1. Finally find something that you want to buy that you’re able to purchase from the website.
   
2. Put it in your cart.
   
3. Complete billing address information.
   
4. Complete shipping address information.
   
5. Confirm order.
   
6. Get to the order confirmation screen.
   
7. Wonder why you were not asked for your credit card information.
   
8. Wonder if you are going to receive your order for free.
   
9. Don’t receive the order confirmation e-mail.
   
10. Wonder if you actually placed the order.
    
11. Finally recieve a vauge order confirmation e-mail.
    
12. Read order confirmation e-mail and get the impression there is some sort of error with your order.
    
13. Call Customer Service and explain the situation.
    
14. Receive snippy response from the Customer Service rep indicating that you will receive another e-mail confirming the shipping cost of the order, and at that point you can proceed with completing the order if you so choose.
    
15. Become totally perplexed.
    
16. Completely lose interest in the product you wanted to buy.
    
17. About 24 hours later (!), recieve said e-mail with shipping cost.
    
18. See that the shipping cost is equal to the product cost.
    
19. Delete e-mail and do not proceed with placing the order.
    
20. Figure out when the hell you are going to be able to spare three hours to travel to and from Ikea to get the product you just tried to buy online. 

Seriously?  It’s 200frigging8, people.  Let’s build a normal e-commerce site, shall we?