{"id":298,"date":"2015-05-25T19:10:52","date_gmt":"2015-05-25T19:10:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/2bgreener.com\/?p=298"},"modified":"2015-05-26T15:11:16","modified_gmt":"2015-05-26T15:11:16","slug":"ikea-is-the-blue-and-yellow-greener","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/2bgreener.com\/?p=298","title":{"rendered":"IKEA – is the blue and yellow…greener?"},"content":{"rendered":"

We visited IKEA for my birthday.\u00a0 We are very engaged homeowners, always trying to make spaces more usable and more funky and more \u201cus\u201d.\u00a0 We\u2019ve had nightstands on our list for a while, and our use of our living room has recently changed to include movies on a big-screen (I\u2019ll tell you that whole story another time as it is all about home automation), so we needed some footstools and better seating.\u00a0 Off to IKEA to check out what they have to offer and to indulge in some Swedish meatballs (for my husband) mac-n-cheese (my son) and salmon over salad with krispbread (me).<\/p>\n

Every time we go to IKEA I get into a personal debate over their sustainability.\u00a0 I have read many reviews tearing the company down, saying they encourage cheap purchases for short term use, that half of NYC is entirely redone every few years because of IKEA, that their practices in purchasing from 2nd<\/sup> and 3rd<\/sup> world countries is lacking and that even the styles are limiting. I have also seen sustainability reports about how they are reducing waste in packaging and store layouts, installing PV on stores, working to find creative products that use local talent, and re-vamping menus to source non-antibiotic beef and provide vegan options. New menus at IKEA<\/a><\/p>\n

So is IKEA the devil incarnate or an angel of modern green business.\u00a0 Neither, I suspect.\u00a0\u00a0 Just like all of us, they are on a path to becoming more sustainable in their approaches, and discovering ways to \u201cdo well by doing good\u201d which means balancing business, people and the environment.\u00a0 I bet the balance isn\u2019t always perfect, but even the attempt makes them a damn sight better than many corporations.<\/p>\n

Why do I feel they are on a sustainable path, and worthy of my visits?\u00a0 A couple of reasons.<\/p>\n

\""billy"<\/a>

“billy” bookcases in our home.<\/p><\/div>\n

First, though there is an inescapable mass-market uniformity that comes with such a huge market share, I feel IKEA is a lot like Lego for grownups.\u00a0 Basically the style and configuration are only limited by your own use of the products.\u00a0 There are so many IKEA hacks<\/a>\u00a0and so many ways to assemble and plan the modules that are the standard IKEA fare that I find the possibilities to be truly unlimited.\u00a0 Want a room with one modern style – then do that.\u00a0 Want some chintz and to mix in some of your family antiques? Okay.\u00a0 How about perfectly toned eclecticism. Fine.<\/p>\n

\"Plat<\/a>

Plat packed and tucked up tight<\/p><\/div>\n

Second, the packaging:\u00a0 wow.\u00a0 I cannot rave enough about the flat-pack skills at IKEA.\u00a0 Each package is tight and solid with thin corrugated cardboard and only a few unrecyclable pieces. \u00a0I hope they are working toward eliminated these foam sheets \u2013 go with corrugated paper, please, or reed mats.\u00a0 Buying furniture and bringing it home in or on our car is exceptionally easy.<\/p>\n

\"Recyclable<\/a>

Recyclable plastics (In NYS, just bring these into the store with the plastic grocery bags to be recycled.)<\/p><\/div>\n

Finally the assembly.\u00a0 Our entire kitchen is IKEA cabinets and doors and we easily transported the flat boxes, assembled the cases ourselves, and then had a contractor install them. Easy-peasy. Many people say that IKEA stuff is cheap and it\u2019s hard to move pieces when you move.\u00a0 I absolutely disagree.<\/p>\n

\"Solid<\/a>

Solid connections that can be undone.<\/p><\/div>\n

The connection hardware is so very smart, and as long as you don\u2019t foolishly strip the heads when you screw them in, you should easily be able to disassemble and re-locate bookshelves and cabinets. No glue and few, if any, nails.\u00a0 Other assembled furniture, I would just not take it apart.\u00a0 Not because it cannot be done but because I wouldn\u2019t take apart any other chair or table. I\u2019d just move it as-is.\u00a0 As for the cheap part, I think that comes from the paper-board backing on shelves and particle board shelves that can sag when there is a lot of weight on them\u2026we leave off the backing much of the time, and any shelf will sag if you overload it.\u00a0 So there!<\/p>\n

\"Nightstand,<\/a>

Our new nightstand, ready to go.<\/p><\/div>\n

Add to these the idea that people can add style and finesse to their homes inexpensively.\u00a0 Add also the creative storage that lets people live with more comfort in smaller spaces.\u00a0 Add to all of that the PV panels, healthier food options and triple bottom line business planning, and I will continue to be an IKEA customer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We visited IKEA for my birthday.\u00a0 We are very engaged homeowners, always trying to make spaces more usable and more funky and more \u201cus\u201d.\u00a0 We\u2019ve […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":301,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[10,3,7,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-298","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-critical-commentary","category-recycling","category-personal-reflections","category-products"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/2bgreener.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/IMG_9093-e1432582258599.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p40KlT-4O","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":64,"url":"https:\/\/2bgreener.com\/?p=64","url_meta":{"origin":298,"position":0},"title":"IKEA and PV","author":"greenerjsa","date":"November 7, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"http:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/blogs\/innovations\/wp\/2013\/10\/15\/big-box-solar-and-the-clean-energy-revolution\/ I LOVE that IKEA will be selling solar panel kits. We\u2019ve changed over nearly our whole house to LED and most of the fixtures and bulbs were purchased at IKEA, early in the market penetration of LED. This article has one fault \u2013 it states that \u201cyou can now\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Energy"","block_context":{"text":"Energy","link":"https:\/\/2bgreener.com\/?cat=2"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":532,"url":"https:\/\/2bgreener.com\/?p=532","url_meta":{"origin":298,"position":1},"title":"The Easter bunny, edible spoons, and mushroom materials.","author":"greenerjsa","date":"March 27, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"My son and I colored Easter eggs yesterday, finally using a natural method to do so instead of buying the infamous PAAS kits for coloring, marbling, tie-dying or what have you. 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At least\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Inspiration"","block_context":{"text":"Inspiration","link":"https:\/\/2bgreener.com\/?cat=18"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/2bgreener.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/IMG_1788.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/2bgreener.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/IMG_1788.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/2bgreener.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/IMG_1788.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":411,"url":"https:\/\/2bgreener.com\/?p=411","url_meta":{"origin":298,"position":3},"title":"Tiny houses and big opportunities.","author":"greenerjsa","date":"November 1, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"I can\u2019t turn around without a book or an HGTV show on tiny houses, retreats, camps, trailers, etc. Where did this come from and why? 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