Small Furniture Makes Big Rooms - Why I Like IKEA

First off, an apology for being late.  Things have been mildly psycho around here this week.

I have a small house.  Two stories, three bedrooms, 2 1/2 bathrooms ... but small.  When we first shopped for furniture in so-called "normal" stores, the furniture came in two sizes; big and "we're from another country and showing off our huge American leather couch".  As we looked around and considered the size of our rooms, we realized that if we put a regular American couch in our living room there would be no room for living.  Thus, we went European.

If you have ever watched a program on HGTV called "House Hunters International", you will realize that when people from the U.S. look for homes overseas, they come across as whiny, "where's the closet space", "how can I cook in this tiny kitchen" complainers.  They are spoiled here, and fail to realize that in the rest of the world, more than one bathroom is a luxury, a full-sized bathtub is mansion material, and kitchens are designed to cook and not to host a slumber party.  The way that Euros make this work is that they buy smaller furniture than can sometimes even be hidden away when not in use.  Brilliant!

Americans tend to make the IKEA stores the butt of jokes, largely because buyers of their furnishings generally have to take the flat-pack items home and assemble the tables / couches / beds themselves, often with an enclosed Allen wrench.  Put that aside, along with the cost savings that are passed on to consumers with items that are flat-packed and less expensive to ship and store.  Look at the general size of the furnishings.  Sure, you can buy things that are larger and capable of seating 6 and a Yorkie, but you can also buy furniture that can make a small home look larger.  And that is a prime selling point for me, and for other folks who realize that a bigger room makes you feel better. 

An example:  we have an open floor plan that has the kitchen flowing into the dining area flowing into the living room.  A table from a normal furniture store would either be ridiculously large, ridiculously cheap and tacky, or just ridiculous in its uselessness.  We went the IKEA route, and bought a nice round table that seats four, but when you open a couple of latches and pull the table apart, there is a butterfly leaf that folds out from the center and seats up to 6 (or more!) in the new arrangement.  Brilliant!  Our couch is small, our entertainment center is small, and yet, we have plenty of room for friends to visit and we didn't sell any vital organs to afford the furnishings.

Say what you will about IKEA, but I love it.  I look at the examples of how to live in 200 square feet and think, "I could live like that!"  Americans need to take a look at how other people live, and then take another look at how they live.  Maybe then Americans won't look like complete jerk-faces on "House Hunters International".