IKEA Alam Sutera Tour + VIDEO!

#OOTD: GOWIGASA Maple Capri Pants Mustard & Brown

#IKEAsaysHEJ, and EJ–Elle Jess (lol) says, "Hi, IKEA! Welcome to Indonesia!" (ˆヮˆ)づ♡

OMG can we just say that we're sooooooo excited that IKEA finally opens its FIRST. STORE. EVER in Indonesia?? That means we don't have to go to Singapore or anywhere else to shop their awesome stuffs again!

Besides, even if we can go shopping at IKEA overseas, we couldn't buy the large stuffs anyway like the tables, bookshelf, etc. because the shipping would be troublesome and expensive, right? But NOW WE CAN!! OMG SO HAPPY!!!!!!!! ♡♡♡

↑ Click to watch our IKEA Tour Video or click this link ( bit.ly/ikeatour ) to watch it on Youtube ↑

Okay, why we love IKEA, you asked.

Well, if you're looking for (or just love sightseeing) good quality furnitures that are functional, good looking and cheap as well, you're guaranteed to go crazy here! The way they arrange their furnitures itself is very creative and inspirational, yet it effectively displays the entire catalog. Very clever! It's as if you're going through a labyrinth of super duper awesome rooms (showrooms, actually), filled with cool things that you can buy that very same day! The freedom to sit on the couch, switch the lamps on-and-off, and even take pictures on the spot makes a trip to IKEA somewhat recreational, too. :D

Hello, gorgeous display!

 Located at Alam Sutera - Tangerang (a tad bit outside Jakarta), this world's largest furniture retailer originated from Swedish established its first Indonesian branch on a 33,000 square-meter property. It's reaaaally large and spacious! IKEA opens daily from 10 AM to 10 PM. Breakfast is also available from 09:30 AM!

Map and directions:

Okay, first thing you'll encounter here (if you park on the basement) is this entrance which resembles a theme park ride's queue, so exciting!! (≧▽≦)づ

The parking lot itself has over 1000 basement and outdoor free parking spaces, but on the opening day last Wednesday -October 15th, 2014, it was overflowed that guests had to park their cars at Mall Alam Sutera and rode a bus to get back to IKEA (the bus was provided by IKEA as well) haha.

Next thing you'll see *if you're going to a toilet first, like we did* is this row of vibrant blue lockers, equipped with cute neon green kitchen utensils as the keychain. Customers can put their belongings here if they wish to lighten up before going into the store, because boy, it would be a long ride before they reach the exit. This brings us to our first tip on visiting IKEA: wear comfortable shoes. Period.

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Showroom Displays

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IKEA's creative, pleasant-on-the-eyes displays show us that even small houses or apartments can accommodate a bunch of stuffs while still looking good and comfortable to live in. They use even the smallest space efficiently, which makes us wonder, "How come I never thought of this before?".

Can't decide whether we like this cute corner workspace more:

 Or this elegant home office more:

 Both are so pretty!!!

Modern family bedroom. Love how the pretty lamp makes up the room's ambience.

Oh, if only we had a room like this when we were kids. Can't imagine how more lively and adventurous our playtime would be!

 Whatta cute kitchen! Too bad we don't cook lol.

Selfie on the bathroom display area! Wearing GOWIGASA Chloe Bow Sleeveless Top Navy, Boston Plaid Skirt in Red-Blue and Black-White. Anyway, yes, we changed our clothes because it was a different day. We visited IKEA two days in a row because one day is simply not enough!! XD

Randomly bumped into Clara:

Jess was taking a selfie when suddenly, out of nowhere, Clara hushed and called her name lol so embarrassing!!!!!!!

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Unique Selling Points

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Aside from how much they invest on the showrooms (such large space could actually be used for storing more things, right? Instead, they spend money and time decorating those beautiful showrooms which, oh well, cleverly trigger our needs to buy the stuffs on display anyway lol), IKEA also have some other house rules which allows them to put cheaper price tags than what it should be.

See those brown boxes up there? They consist our newly bought cabinet, standing lamp, etc. and it is one of many ways to save money which is applied by IKEA; by flat-packing the furnitures which make them easier to store and transport. Customers bring their furnitures home themselves instead of using a 'free delivery service' already included in the price AND assemble the furnitures themselves, too, instead of paying someone to do it. 

As you can see, IKEA applies 'independent ways' of shopping, which is considerably new in Indonesia (yes, we're kinda spoiled and accustomed to being served haha). Anyway, despite all the do-it-yourself stuffs, delivery service is still available here, starting as low as IDR 280,000. Assembly service is also available here for 8.5% of the product's price or more.

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Lunch At The Cafeteria

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The famous Swedish Meatballs and friends!

Although there's no Lingonberry Sauce on the meatballs yet, it still tastes good enough for random nomming. The Salad is really fresh as well, but our favorite is the salmon sashimi and... the BROWNIES (which is not in the picture ahaha)!!!!!

Okay, we strongly suggest you watch the video because it shows this part (the cafeteria) a lot better. We were so busy filming (and eating) that we forgot to take pictures!

↑ Click to watch our IKEA Tour Video or click this link ( bit.ly/ikeatour ) to watch it on Youtube ↑

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How To Shop

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How to shop at IKEA? You can click here for an easy guide on their website, or let us guide you instead *curtsies*. 

First you have to know that there are two types of items at IKEA: The ones that you can grab from the display right away and put in your trolley or IKEA shopping-bag (usually the small ones, like hangers, pots, towels, etc.) aaand the BIG furniture ones that are too big to fit in your trolley! Here's a few simple steps to shop for the latter:

1. Grab one of the pencils and one of the blue brochure (there's an empty note behind it).
They will serve as your shopping list.

2. As you can see, each large display item has a price tag on it (Rp 999.000) and "Area Layanan Mandiri" tag which shows WHERE you can pick it up in the self-serve furniture area–the rack and section number of the item. WRITE that down on your shopping list!

3. Go to the gigantic self-service warehouse to collect your flat-packed items! :D

 Elle spotted Jess on the aisle

Jess ran toward Elle in high speed lol

Anyway, this is how one of our shopping carts look like, by the end of the day:

Our second tip on shopping at IKEA: Bring a guy if you're planning on buying some heavy stuffs. So grateful we brought him with us:

Baby bro all strong and grown up!!! ♡♡♡

Okay then, thanks a lot for reading and watching, hope you guys enjoy it and see you on our next post! (ˆヮˆ)づ♡

XOXO

Elle and Jess

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