Can’t Get Out Without Spending

Ikea, man. There is always something, huh? This past weekend I went with a friend to the College Park Ikea to find her a new TV solution for her living room (while also helping her rearrange and space-plan). First off, let me say that if you are in the Washington, DC metro area and have the choice between College Park and Woodbridge Ikea — DO NOT go to College Park! Sure, it’s right off of 495 (heck it basically has it’s own exit if you are coming from the outer loop) but in the store itself — man, it is a disaster! Sad too, because they just remodeled it.

ANYWAY — back to the true topic at hand — PURCHASES! For once I was the small ticket spender, leaving after only spending about $40. There were a few things that have been on my radar from Ikea over the last few months, and I used this time — the time of no big purchases for me — to go ahead and stock up on a few accessories!

Most of these accessories have found their home in my dressing room, which I am in the process of putting together. Eventually I’ll have a post or two regarding that space, but for now, it’s mostly a disaster area! What I do have are a few small pieces that make me smile in the mean time. The new items in the dressing room include a couple of trays and a super-signature vase. The particular vase in question, which I picked up in teal (but also have its three sisters in white) found its home on one of the trays — a sweet little tray with fantastic grey and white stripes on it.

The thing I love the most about these stripes is they aren’t just regular stripes, which I thought at first, but they are a bit irregular, adding a bit of fun and whimsy to the vignette. This tray has found its home on top of my dresser, and the other tray is now living it’s life on my former desk-turned-vanity, holding some of my daily odds and ends.

Those little dots are so darned cute! By the way, it’s kind of hard to see — but isn’t the grain on that desk lovely! Remember how groudy it was before I refinished it! This tray is perfect here because of it’s longer shape — and once I finish painting the walls (you can kind of see on the right side of that picture) it’ll coordinate perfectly!

The last item I picked up was a sheep skin rug! Well, it’s more of a throw, really. At first I placed it on the floor in the living room, but it kinda looked like a dead.. well, sheep. So, because the Bertoia chairs weren’t feelin’ the love lately due to them being uncomfortable, I went ahead and tossed it on there!

Walah! In a fit of never-ending “I gotta change this place around” aka nesting, the chair now sits caddy cornered in front of the bookcase — feels a bit more cozy that way. In fact, the living room has had a few other updates in the last week or two, and I’ll be sharing those with you shortly!

So — can you leave Ikea without spending a dime? That’s right, not even on a tasty cinnamon roll or a yummy frozen yogurt — no meatballs either! When you do go, what do you normally grab up? Accessories, kitchen supplies, plants, or maybe just some tasty Swedish delicacies. I am a sucker for most things Ikea, but I always have to have some meatballs, a hot dog or a frozen yogurt before we hit the road home. Yum!