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WHY GO TO IKEA??

Short answer its AMAZING! And things there are super affordable ! I mean where else can you buy a coffee table for $9.99!

If you’ve never been to IKEA, you are missing out BIG time, its every thing you have ever imagined plus sooo much more! Whether you need to decorate your entire home and have no clue where to start or just need some inspiration IKEA is definitely the place to go.

I have loved Ikea since I was about 14 years old and my mom took me and my sisters to New York, and the first place we went to was IKEA. I have always loved home decor, if I wasn’t a pharmacist I would have been an interior decorator so going to IKEA I am like a kid in a candy store.

We didn’t have a IKEA store in Florida at the time, so whenever my mom went to New York that was the first place she went to! Fast forward to October 2007 IKEA opened their first store in Florida! My mom and I went to the grand opening, it was a mad house! we parked the car down the street and walked there because it was just that pack, yup I know that’s dedication, we are MAJOR fans of IKEA.

PLAN AHEAD

Even you are going just to look, take a look around your house and make a list of household items you have been needing. Don’t forget to take measurements before leaving the house if you are planning on buying furniture.

Since I don’t go to IKEA often because its about an hour drive from where I live I have an ongoing list on my phone for items I need from IKEA. I use the Google Keep app, if you want to learn more about this app check out this blog post I wrote about my top 3 apps that help me stay organized.

BRING YOUR REUSABLE BAGS!

Ikea does not provide you with bags so make sure you bring your own, or you can purchase one from them, or just throw everything in the cart to take it to your car.

HOW LONG WILL BE THERE?

Honestly you might be there all day… We’ve spent over 4 hours there without even realizing it, time just fly by! Plus they serve breakfast and lunch there so you really could spend all day there.

Set aside at least 3 hours or more. Honestly I would say set aside the entire day because once you leave you will most likely be tired and not want to go anywhere. If you are anything like me you will excited to go straight home and put everything together.

SHOULD YOU TAKE THE KIDS?

Yes! Located inside IKEA usually on the first floor is Småland, a free supervised play area where you an drop your kids off while you shop. I’ve never actually used it yet with Aiden but it seems pretty fun for kids.

WHEN TO GO

I would strongly suggest going during the week, because its a mad house on weekends. I like going on a Monday morning when they first open so I can have most of the store to myself.

IS IKEA STROLLER FRIENDLY?

Yes! They have elevators to get to all of the levels.

BE PREPARED TO PUT FURNITURE TOGETHER

one way they are able to keep their prices so low is by selling their furniture in a flat box completely taken apart, so you do have to build it once you get home.

RENT A VAN

If you don’t own an SUV or a truck and you plan on getting big furniture then definitely rent a van. It will most likely be cheaper than having them deliver the stuff to your home.

We rented a van when we were buying the shelves for out walk in closet they were too tall to fit in our sedan.

PARKING

Most IKEA have a parking garage, and parking on the main level with some handicap parkings and family parking right by the door. I have never been there and not found a parking, and if you go on a week day you are more likely to find a parking on the main level really close to the door.

Here’s a tip! Take a picture of your parking location so you don’t spend hours looking for your car in the parking garage.

YOU ARE HERE NOW WHAT?

Almost every IKEA I have gone to is set up the same, the showroom and the restaurant will be located on the second floor the marketplace and small world are located on the first floor.

Once you are on the main level there will be an escalator with an arrow pointed to the top that says entrance. That is where you want to start your experience, on the second floor in the showroom.

THE SHOWROOM

Chances are once you get to the Showroom you will find carts as soon as you get off the escalator. Take a cart, even if you don’t think you will need one just take one…. you will need it. While your at it grab a pencil a map and measuring tape that they provide.

The showroom is where you get to see all the house decor inspiration you There are a few small items you can purchase in the showroom, but most of the items to purchase are in the marketplace on the main level.

Follow the Arrows!

Throughout the entire place you will see arrows on the floor pointing to the right direction, you are kind of going around in a circle but with lots of twist and turns if that makes any sense. IKEA is like a maze so unless you are an experienced IKEA shopper (yes thats a thing! I can get in and out of that maze through all the shortcuts like it’s nothing!) just follow the arrows or grab yourself a map. They do have multiple “shortcuts” where you can cut through if you don’t want to go around the entire showroom.

The showroom is divided into different categories. Most IKEAs start with the living room, and end with kids room

WHAT ARE THOSE RED TAGS HANGIN ON EVERYTHING???

Throughout the entire place you will see these tags hanging from most of the bigger furniture places you will notice a AISLE and BIN if you find an item you want to purchase write those numbers down or just take a picture of it. You will need this information in order to find the items you want to purchase.

THE RESTAURANT

Prices might be different at your local area but it will be very similar! As you can see its pretty cheap to eat there you can find your entire family of 4 for under $20!

They serve breakfast and lunch, they have an amazing chocolate cake that you can purchase by the slice.

After walking thru the showroom we usually have lunch at the restaurant to fuel up again then head down to the Marketplace !

THE MARKETPLACE

The Market place is where you can shop for all the smaller items, the set up up is similar to the showroom, its divided into differers categories.

My favorite things to get theres are kitchen gadgets and bins to organize the house.

WHERE TO PICK UP YOUR FURNITURE?

After going thru the marketplace you will pick up your items at the Self Serve area, it pretty much looks like a big warehouse. This is where the aisle and bin numbers you wrote down will become handy.

Make sure you grab a cart before heading to the Self-Serve area!

TIME TO PAY!

After you have loaded up all your goodies in your cart head to the register to pay!

They usually have multiple registers open especially on the weekends.

TIME TO HEAD HOME AND BUILD SOME FURNITURE!

THINGS I HAVE PURCHASED FROM IKEA

If I had to pick one absolutely favorite IKEA item it would have to be their rolling cart! we currently own 5 of them! My second would be the dresser in Aiden’s room that we actually painted the drawers. you can see both of them pictured above.