Why Buying a White Ikea Couch and Chair Was a Huge Mistake

I know, I know. You’re googling and looking all over Pinterest because you want reviews on the White Ikea Ektorp couch and chair so you can prove to your doubting family that it will be fine to buy one. Then you can buy your gorgeous White Ikea Couch and live in farmhouse heaven until eternity, because the bloggers said they are great, right? Or was that just me? 

Well, I’m here to tell you my honest thoughts on the gorgeous  White Ikea Ektorp furniture and in short……… I say don’t do it.

I pride myself on being a frugal and educated buyer.  So when I was obsessed with getting a white couch, because …hello farmhouse style, I really did my homework. I searched the interwebs high and low and read every blogger review and they were all in the same theme. They all went something like this

“I have six kids, twelve dogs, sixteen cats and a camel and even though I haven’t washed the cover in five years my white ikea couch is still sparkling white!”

Yes, I’m exaggerating (a little) but you get my point. I did my homework. I’m not new to using white decor. I love white linens and towels because they are bleach-able. After years of research I really believed  in my soul that if I purchased the ikea ektorp couch and chair, bleach would solve any issue that came along. So I made the leap. They were really inexpensive, super easy to assemble and they are the perfect farmhouse furniture pieces. They looked fantastic in my one room makeover last year, you can see that here.

Believe me I’m not here to bash the IKEA Ektorp pieces. I love them for the value, they are very comparable to pottery barn furniture and structurally they are holding up super well. The back pillows haven’t smushed down even a little. And they are soooo pretty!

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Before I delve into my review of the white ikea couch and chair, here are some things you should know about us.

-We are empty nesters. There are two adults and two small dogs in the house.
-We have three adult boys, we are used to cleaning up messes.
-We are pretty clean. We should be prime candidates for white furniture.
-We’ve had this furniture less than 18 months.

So why wouldn’t I recommend the White IKEA Ektorp set to you?

The Reasons Why Buying a White IKEA Couch and Chair Was a Huge Mistake

 My husband is afraid to sit on them

Seriously. My husband won’t sit on them. He covers them in blankets so instead of looking beautiful, they look like this. 😢😢😢 this is not the pretty look I’m going for!

 

I’ve told him a million times I don’t care if he sits on them without blankets, but he doesn’t feel comfortable.  If someone is coming over we  have to collect all of the blankets to make the  house look cute again.

The rest of my family won’t sit on them either

Everyone is afraid to sit on the furniture. At first my family wouldn’t even go in the family room during our holiday celebration. When I finally convinced them it was really ok, they still were very nervous. They think my family room is one of those untouchable sitting rooms from the 80’s and that’s not how I want my guests to feel.

Unlike your family your pets won’t be afraid to sit down at all!

They will sit, roll, wipe, drag and do whatever else dogs do all over your couches. They will find the spots the blankets don’t cover. If you’re one of those families that don’t allow your dogs on the furniture, you’re better off than we are. But my dogs sit everywhere because they are soooo cute.  I couldn’t possibly make them get down.

White furniture shows stains just like you would expect

You instinctively know that white furniture is going to get filthy dirty…….listen to your instincts! This is after being washed in bleach

They are washable, but nobody wants to wash them THIS often

We have three grown kids, two dogs and we use our furniture. We have always had washable furniture and we wash it quite often. But I’m not interested in stripping my whole entire couch and chair constantly. Washing them, hanging them to dry and then putting them back on every week is just.not.happening. (Plus, Putting them on by yourself is like wrestling with an uncooperative toddler).

Even when you wash them with bleach all the stains don’t come out

We’ve only had them for around 18 months, and they have had blankets on them for most of the time. Yet, they are pretty stained. Here’s the picture evidence. These aren’t even spill stains they are just everyday stuff.

So now you know why I think buying white furniture was a huge mistake. But wait, there’s good news..

As I looked at the white ikea couch and chair, part of the appeal was the fact that I can buy a new couch cover for $200. So I was able to try out the white slip covers with minimal risk. It stinks to lose $200 but at least I don’t have to replace the whole couch. There are many colors to choose from and I’m leading towards a dark gray.  As a blogger I might pull out the white covers for pictures sometimes, because they are still so pretty!

Even though these didn’t work out for us, I still love Ikea so much. This is a great set of furniture and the price is amazing. If you are going for the pottery barn look without the price, this furniture is a great choice. The white slipcovers just don’t work in my house. If you still really have to have them, I hope you have better luck than we did!