I don’t photograph my living room often, because I am avoiding select furniture.
Do you have any idea how hard it is to tell a decor story with all the wrong components in the background?
Our sofa is about 20 years old. I can make it look ok with pillows and such, and I do love the quality. But I just couldn’t seem to land chairs that looked good with it which we REALLY needed. We also stopped using it, probably due to the loose backed pillows.
So… about those chairs…
Our chairs are 2 cheap thrift store finds, and while pictures made them look ok, they needed to be burned. 🙂 They are officially trashed. Long ago.
I meant to make neutral slipcovers for them, (insert knowing chuckle here) but it never happened.
But it wasn’t until I got caught in the love of the Ektorp white sofas so many bloggers seemed to own, that I wanted that!
I’ve long loved AKA Design’s take in white HERE, and in grey HERE.
But when I most recently went to IKEA to check it out, I started to fear the white. I’ve had white in the past, so I know how it operates. But this was a slipcover that could be washed, I reasoned with myself.
Yeah well… if it always looked grungy around wash day, the mere thought of more to do on my list had me slinking away from the white option. Drat. Maybe if I had a secondary living space…
And then my eyes landed on the Stocksund style. I fell in love with the Nolhaga gray-beige, which I knew would look wonderful with my fireplace rock.
But once I actually sat on it, I preferred the deeper sit, and was sold!
So bringing two chairs AND a sofa home, I quickly gutted the room, and set to work.
I’m going to be honest. I tried to get the works delivered for $150, fearing I couldn’t get everything in my truck. And nearly paid $50 for each piece to have installed.Yikes.
But install wasn’t avail in my area, and delivery would have taken one month! Forget that. I squeezed it in and got it home. I’m still amazed it all fit my 6′ truck box.
And then did a big gulp. I was not into putting a bazillion pieces together! But… whatever. I saved $300.
When I opened one chair, I wondered where all the rest was. This can’t be it?!
But oh my goodness, it was. The sofa came in 5 pieces, plus the small bag of plastic bolts. Plus a box of legs, and a slipcover, both sold separately.
Flipping the main frame on its side, the legs were first screwed in. Then the felt sliders were stuck on the bottom. Those were included too.
And for those asking why my cats haven’t been in photos recently, it’s because they constantly move, and my shutter has to be slow to let in lots of light.
But blurry kitties are better than none, right?
Then the arms ‘slipped into place’, and were bolted from underneath.
Then the air compressed cushions (they come flat!) and main frame were covered with slipcovers.
They really dummy down this stuff. I was impressed. Everything fit like a glove.
A mere 30 minutes or under later…
I had a chair!
A low rise, beautifully neutral, pretty to look at, deep sitting, curl your feet up kinda chair, topped with a little white fur accent, and striking black and white pillow. (all from Ikea) That chimed in really well with my junk lamp and other stuff!
Who’s house is this, anyway?
I’m looking forward to experimenting with some different pillows over time. I LOVE the flour pillow and blanket Golden Boys and Me styled with HERE.
So… a few thoughts on all this…
.
Pros
I really COULD have furniture that was easy to move, should I move. MYSELF. Or shift room to room. That’s huge!
While it isn’t like a $2k quality, it’s reasonably comfy and strong. <— both a pro and con!
Suuuuuuper easy to put together! Don’t you even dare pay to have this assembled!
Plus.. slipcovers. I can wash them, or even have extras if desired. (in diff colours too)
Cons
You really have to be careful how you bring stuff home from Ikea. I messed up royally with the sofa and had to go back for a different size. I now have the sofa I really wanted all along, but with the wrong legs (ugh). Their system is super heavily reliant on numbers. Read the numbers.
While it isn’t like a $2k quality, it’s reasonably comfy and strong. <— both a pro and con!
The visual scale for the chairs is low, and the ‘small’ sofa appears a little small. I miss the visual weight of my old clunker oversized sofa. But I’m going to give it a little time to adjust, but the extra room is a visual treat!
.
I realized I rambled a little on the sofa which I have yet to show you. Once I organize this place, I’ll do a full shoot so you can see how it’s all laid out. It really is pretty!
All that’s left to do now is let go of my big sofa. Hold my hand?
And burn the old beat up chairs… now THAT would be fun!
p.s. this was not a sponsored post. Sure wish it was though!$$$ 🙂
Can’t believe that you didn’t try something with the old sofa. Looks in great shape, maybe paint the fabric, and putty in the grooved places on the wood, removed any raised pieces and painted, cut the feet off and put on new updated ones? Wait… that does sound like a lot of work… oh well, can’t wait to see the new sofa!
Haha, don’t you dare even try and change my mind! It took me months to have the nerve to let it go! 🙂
Seriously though, if we had a secondary space for a sofa, I’d save it for sure. It’s definitely one of a kind these days.
The chair looks amazing. I just recently made my first trip to IKEA. My kids love IKEA so my husband and I stopped on our way back from a weekend getaway. (The nearest store to us is over two hours away). I was in awe! I’m so glad to see you featuring some upholstered pieces from there. My oldest son and my daughter in law are remodeling/restoring the farmhouse my husband grew up in and at 3600 sq feet they need furniture. naturally after the investment of the house, they need affordable options. Can’t wait to see the couch and your whole room. I know with your style it’s going to be amazing.
I’ve always loved your old sofa (even looked for one like it when I was looking for a second sofa). If I lived closer, I’d offer to buy it. It has classic lines and lovely wood trim. I am, however, happy for you if you are happy with your IKEA purchases. That’s what counts. I’ve kept my old sofa, which is a mission style purchased in the early 1990’s. I could buy a new one, but I’m still in love with it. (I like wood.) It has cushion covers that are washable. Like the new grey chair by the way.
I love the way Ikea furniture looks and the best part are the slipcovers, and to be able to get them in different colors is so cool.
I think you will love your living room after you get it all arranged and you get used to the smaller couch.
I love the way your chair looks, and I can’t wait to see your couch and your whole living room, it will be beautiful.
The chair really looks lovely ♥
Your chair from Ikea is awesome! Like the color and style and was surprised how easy it was to put together. I look forward to seeing your new sofa, but still like your old one. I always admired it in your photo shoots. Gee, we your subscribers are probably making it difficult to let it go! It looks heavy. Is it hard to move around? I love that you are letting us in to see your progress and look forward to more. Thanks so much Donna. You’re a ray of sunshine!
I’m always impressed with what a doer you are – putting together furniture even. Wow, I love your chair. I’m looking forward to some more pictures of your room in the future. You have awesome taste in junk, lol.
That chair looks so comfy ~ can’t wait to see the sofa and it all come together.
Ahh if only this was a sponsored post, Donna! Thank you so much for your honesty. I even went over and read Shannon’s posts. I’ve always loved Ikea stuff. It is the only way to raise kids when you don’t have extra money. I love what you have bought home. it looks really nice with the rest of the decor in your room. Looking forward to seeing the rest. And then it will be time for you to play with everything in there. Enjoy!
I love that couch and always have. Thought you needed a chair that would support your neck as well. Can’t wait to see the finished look.
When my daughter and her family was here in June, we went to IKEA for the first time. She rented an extra long van for her large family to drive from Ohio To North Carolina. I had chosen the Billy bookcases in various dimensions for a place in the dining room that will become our library. To get the pieces delivered would have cost $350 — a price I couldn’t justify. I had to wait for awhile, but we weren’t in a hurry. We walked all the way through IKEA. There was so much to see! When we got to the bookcase area, an employee helped me to order what I wanted so I could go downstairs to get everything I needed. It’s been 5 months, and they are still waiting. We need to paint first and take up some baseboard in December, less than a month away. I can’t wait to finally fill up the bookshelves and decorate that room! IKEA surely has a good concept. It’s not for everyone or everything, but a few pieces could be for anyone! I’m glad you are having a mostly positive experience.
Hi there,
I liked your post, and I’m wondering how the comfort of the sofas have held up? I really like the look of these sofas, but I previously bought a second hand Ikea sofa and the cushion seat would slowly slide off the sofa when you sat on it until you were practically on the floor — extremely uncomfortable to say the least. Anyway, I would love to hear if you’ve had any problems like that!
Thanks! 🙂
Hey Andrea! I’d rate them at about 6/10. No issues with sliding off the sofa, but I don’t think they will be the last furniture I ever own. I don’t think they’ll hold up that long. 🙂 Not the best quality I’ve ever had, but I do enjoy them all the same! Just don’t allow teenage boys to jump on them… 🙂
Thanks for the reply, I really appreciate that! No teenage boys… I have a couple of nephews, but they’re less than a year old so I have some time! 🙂
Hi there – I’m toying with buying a Stocksund sofa soon. Do they also come unassembled in boxes? This would actually be great for me, because I have a handy husband and a minivan. Trying to avoid paying for delivery, which makes buying one impractical for me – might as well go with a more expensive local one than drive 2 hours to buy at Ikea. But if it comes flat in boxes, I’ll probably go for it!
Hi Stacie, all the furniture comes in boxes. You could pay to have them delivered and assembled if desired, or just take the boxes home and assemble yourself.
They are VERY EASY to install! I vote to go for it yourself! I was able to bring a sofa and 2 chairs home with me all in one short boxed truck!