Ikea, Love

In Amsterdam, more than any other city I have lived in, getting to Ikea is a breeze. There are several in the Netherlands and two easily accessible by public transport from Amsterdam.

Yesterday I headed out there with the intention of picking up some fabric for bag making and also to have a better look at some of the furniture pieces we are considering without the weekend crowds or the reluctant husband.

The fabric section was an absolute goldmine. The off cuts bin was overflowing with useful pieces, most of them quite large and nearly all for under one euro, including a three metre long piece of hemmed fabric for 70 cents which will be our new table runner. I have been wanting to try out lining bags with plain canvas instead of fusible interfacing for a while and in Ikea you can cut as much as you want for E4.50 a metre.

My best bargain, however, came from the "as is" section right before the cash desks. When we first moved into our current rental we needed a spare bed but due to space constraints we knew a sofa bed would suit us better. We chose the Beddinge in Sandvik Green and put on the best mattress primarily for the comfort of our guests but also incase we ever had to use it as a bed or sofa for a period of time ourselves.

When we move to No.75 it will remain a spare bed but it is going to be in a room with a wall of windows and will also be nice to slump on for reading when the weather is not quite nice enough to sit outside. While scouring the bargain bin yesterday I saw a cover for the square arm cushions (which we had eschewed previously due to them being 26 Euros each). Hmmm, I thought, if I can find another one I'll get them. And, lo, after a bit of digging another one was unearthed. Having tracked down the cushion fillers (vacuum packed foam, how practical) I thought I better check how much they were discounting the covers for (the fillers are 7 Euros and the covers are normally 19 Euros). The tag in the first one said 15 Euros, not great but a saving is a saving. The other one, however, said 2.50 Euros, which happily Ikea matched.

Yes! *Happy Dance*

So two arm cushions for 18 Euros, less than the cost of one cover.

And here they are, assembled and looking pretty in the spare room.

Image by Me

I also got to get a look at the new garden furniture (as featured on Apartment Therapy here).

I couldn't get up close and personal with anything as it was all still in construction phase and roped off but what was out was very good looking.

I really think that the low lounge furniture

Image courtesy of Apartment Therapy

could work on the roof terrace. The cushions were extremely thick and the colour of the furniture is more of a milky caramel than it seems in the photo. With a few brightly patterned cushions and a couple of throws I think it could have potential.

Ikea, Love.