IKEA: that iconic superstore, the crowned (Swedish) prince of DIY, the apex of self-assembly. Walking into the IKEA warehouse is like strolling right into Home Remodeling for Dummies . You simply choose a table leg, now a table top, and…okay, grab your allen wrench and have a nice day. At IKEA you can get everything from bulk tea candles to a new kitchen; and all you need is a screwdriver (and wallet). But is it all really worth it? Can those Swedish geniuses behind easy, prefab home remodeling really be that smart? Well I recently had my first chance to find out, and with the scariest DIY remodeling venture of them all: new kitchen cabinets . The Showroom I must admit that IKEA certainly has the look and feel right. Within moments of entering their showroom I felt like I could do anything. After a quick trip to the salad bar (yes IKEA has a cafeteria too), it was on to see the kitchens. Now, this was a friend’s remodel and I had little to do with the selection process, so I won’t go too deep into that. I will say that you can sit down on a computer right there and design your kitchen using their simple CAD-type program. Exhibit frames of every cabinet they sell hangs on the wall in front of you, and if that is not enough, there is even a small, gridded diorama with small magnetized blocks just in case you’d like a 3-D representation of your kitchen-to-be. The only issue at the showroom was understaffing. Even with the help of a computer, choosing your kitchen cabinets is no small feat. It takes time and a good deal of attention from employees. Unfortunately, on my two visits to IKEA there was rarely more than one person in the vicinity. They were very polite and hardworking to be sure, but if

there are more than one or two people trying to choose cabinets at the same time be prepared to wait. To be fair, both my visits were on weekdays and I can only assume that weekends are much more heavily staffed. Delivery After the choices are made and cabinets bought, delivery is scheduled (at a cost unless you live close by). Now is where you want to harness all your skills at paying attention to detail. For the kitchen in question, there were to be 16 cabinets, kitchen island included. For those 16 cabinets came 181 separate boxes of materials , all of which must be inventoried on arrival because once you’ve signed for it, consider it bought. Having plenty of free space in which to organize this slew of boxes is key because things get confusing real fast when you start trying to fumble through everything to get ready for assembly. NOTE: Be sure to protect these boxes from the elements, even in your garage. In my case there was an accident with spilled water (undiscovered for some time) and entire cabinets were rendered useless. IKEA cabinet frames are made with particle board and soak up water like a sponge (It was an hour-and-a-half drive back to the store for replacements). Assembly Assembly. Now we get down to the heart of what makes IKEA great: easy-to-assemble products. A child could do it! Well, maybe not, but it is very simple, and all I needed was a screwdriver and hammer. Other than that it is all dowels and pressure fits. Assembly will take time, so be prepared. It’s fairly easy to get the hang of but it is tedious work. I highly recommend some music or talk radio — whatever swings your hammer, as they say. (more…)

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A Week (or Two) in the Life of IKEA Cabinets