ashleyonmusing: about those Swedes....

Last night, I went for it and took on the IKEA factor. I got right to it after work and at 5:00 jumped on the highway, which landed me with a whole new experience...rush hour. Working just blocks away from home and a bicycle ride at that, rush hour is a beast I only hear of, but rarely meet. It's kind of an Alf or a Harry kinda of beast here in Denver (at least yesterday anyway)---it looks more ferocious than it actually is (although you definitely wouldn't want it to cohabitate with you, by any means). Anyway Anyway Anyway....there, after 36 minutes of highway hoopla, it was. The happiest boxstore since well, Loehmann's in South Florida, but that's a whole 'nother post. Big, bubbly and BLUE is IKEA...there's no missing that exit.

I'll tell you what, Swedes are smart. They may as well be synonyms. The store is huge, it's Bed Bath and Beyond on crack, scratch that--- on meth. It's probably 5 times the size-- seriously. But, it is smartly and organizedly <------(not a word?) so. Where do I begin? Well, at the beginning then.

Grand opening is a big deal, and apparently it is still, 10 days later. So, to help escort you into a parking spot, those sweet Swedes hired Event Staff sporting parking wands to point you on your way. We aren't talking 10 staffers, we're looking at more like 100, per shift. Upon scoring a front row spot by the elevators, I jump in with a bunch of stroller donning couples, the doors close and the scent infiltrates my schnoz---- cinnamon rolls, boy those Swedes- they are smart. Smells like the home sweet home I want, and by golly, I am gonna shop my way to it!

And, we're off! Off the elevator and into....santa's workshop. Elves (shoppers) scurry around, speculating, sitting upon, opening drawers...they all seem to know what they are doing. Have they been here before? I, on the other hand, am a fish out of water. But, those Swedes, they know there are those out there like me.... those who need just a bit of logistix, some kind of game plan for the field, some kind of..."instruction manual." Ahhh, sign with 4 simple steps, I can do this!

You start in the "showrooms." Which honestly was very foreign to me (no pun intended this time). How unAmerican, you mean, I walk from room to room, desiring goods to consume, but I don't get them right now? Nope, instant gratification is not here... instead, you walk around with a "list," which looks like a golf scorecard actually, and write down what you like, that you will pick up later, when you get to step 4. The showroom was not doing it for me, until I realized that I just had culture shock. True blue, real deal, culture shock.This shopping theory was so new to me, that, just like being in another country, it took me some minutes (60 of them) to assimilate into. For one whole hour, I walked the entire store, not picking up one thing. I actually worried to myself, am I really not going to buy anything? When I made it to the checkout (the OZ) perhaps I felt as if I had a sense of the "lay of the land" of this culture. And, I turned around and went back thru----backwords. Kind of like those people who read a magazine starting from the back cover (you know who you are). And all of my worries evaporated right there in the cinnamon bun air when I rediscovered, the textiles.

Oh fabrics! duvets, sheets, curtains, rugs, towels.....my pretties! Forget the coffeetables, here are the pillow shams!! I learned something about myself there under the flourescent lights, my love of weaved cloth of any kind runs way, super.... deep. And so, the American consumer is me resurfaced and I filled my yellow Ikea bag with linen curtains and silky feeling pillow covers and fluffy washcloths... ah, yes, I found my way along the yellow brick road...you can stamp my passport!

How I appreciate those Swedes, for they are so detailed, well, just so gosh darn smart! They provide signs to move about, well designed and such functional furniture. They had the coolest "exhibit".... a 590 square foot "home." teeny tiny right? But it had it ALL....living, dining, kitchen, Ma and Pa's room and a little kiddo room....such smartly used space. What a model for living as we continue to multiply on the planet. They also do so at such smart prices and with very little waste. No unneccesary packaging and remember your own bags because they don't provide them, which helps keep their prices lower, I imagine, and, keeps our sea turtles happier.

Satisfied with the my Swedish shopping experience, they whopped me with their smarts one last time on the way out. They provide a moving walkway for you and your cart (never seen it before) It's not any wider than it has to be and the tracking fits perfectly with the cart wheels, so they grip and keep your cart from sliding when going downhill.... and you don't have to do a thing. Oh, those Swedes.......