IKEA Ektorp Chairs Are The Best!
Out with the old and in with the new. In our case, it’s out with the dark colors, and in with white and light. We have lived in our Northern California home for about five years. And after remodeling the kitchen, family room, dining room and living room, I’m finally getting around to decorating our home with furniture.
As some of you know, we used to live in Seattle, Washington, before moving to sunny California. While we lived in the Pacific Northwest, I collected dark furniture and décor that emulated the Starbucks coffee shops! It was a nice and cozy feel and perfect for those long dark winters! But, now that we are living in California, my soul craves light and white.
So, at the end of 2014, we took the plunge and bought a Crate and Barrel white slipcover couch. I did a ton of research and even shared a blog post on my fabric stain test.
I thought, that if I was going to purchase a white sofa, I wanted to know how it was going to clean up. So far, the sofa has been awesome, and surprisingly, we have kept it pretty clean. I must let you know that we don’t have any pets since my son is allergic to everything fun. Also, my kids are teenagers and aren’t allowed to eat anything in the living room. And if you noticed on the chair in the foreground, there is a faux fur blanket, that I have the kids throw down before sitting.
So, first we bought our Crate and Barrel sofa, but the chairs that went with the set were so expensive, that my husband nearly had a heart attack.
So we opted not to buy the two Ikea chairs.
I still really wanted the complete white décor, so on a whim, I hopped onto Craigslist for a quick looky! Well, there were a few IKEA, Ektorp white slipcover chairs for sale! They ranged in price, from $40-$150. So I contacted an owner, who was selling their chair. But, of course, the slipcovers were pretty stained.
Here is a photo from our first trip into the city. I thought I would share with you the steep hills of San Francisco! The funny thing about the San Francisco city dwellers is that they are so tight for space, that they are giving up these pretty bulky IKEA chairs for an essential home décor!
Now, onto the cleaning of these white slipcovers.
Here is a sample of the dirt that I was faced with. I was pretty intimidated at first.
I must state that this cleaning method should only be used on Ikea Ektorp white slipcovers!
Without hesitation, I first soaked them in 1/3 part water and 2/3 chlorine bleach. Then when some of the stains were still there, I did try a little bit of oxy clean. I soaked them, according to the directions on the container.
1
On the tough stains, the only thing that worked was pouring straight bleach on the stains and watching them disappear. I didn’t let them sit for hours in the bleach but rather watched them. I was worried that if I let them sit too long, the fabric would turn yellow.
I didn’t have this happen, but I have had it happen on white clothes. On one of the slipcovers, it had either a pencil or pen mark, and I was worried I wasn’t going to get the stain out. You see, when I did my little stain test in my previous post, the pen mark was very difficult to get out. But, strangely the satin came out pretty quickly with bleach.
I washed all the slipcovers in regular detergent and washed them on my machine’s white setting. I heard that the hot water will shrink the covers. It didn’t shrink my slipcovers, but then again mine was used.
4 I have read that some people will wash their Ektorp slipcovers with 2 scoops of oxyclean in their washing machine. I didn’t do this step, and they still came out clean.
5
If you have a bad stain, make sure you handle it immediately, don’t leave it in for the next day. I found in my stain test that a pen mark I tested was difficult to get out when I waited until the next day to deal with it. I also read on the internet other blogger saying the exact same thing.
So, if you buy either a new or used Ikea Ektorp chair and you happen just to want a new slipcover, Ikea sells the white ones for $29! So, the chair in this photo has a brand new slipcover. It turns out that this chair had dog stains (it looked like red paw stains) that I just couldn’t remove. So after many washes, I decided just to buy a new one. The price is so reasonable that I think I’ll buy a different color, so I can switch out the look now and then. I’m sold on the Ikea chair and especially buying them on Craigslist is the best way to go. For the two chairs, I paid $90 and then an extra $29 for a new slipcover.
I hope you found this post helpful! Drop me a line or leave a comment if you would like to me to add to this post anything you have found works on stains. I always love hearing from my friends!
Cheers,
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I named my blog Happy Happy Nester because I love everything related to the home. I’ve always enjoyed decorating my surroundings. Get cozy and stay for a bit, thanks for visiting!
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Deborah Sommerlot says
Girl, you know I love ya! This is gorgeous stuff and craigslist is my go to, outside of Goodwill. I really notice a difference, though, living in a small town vs a very large city (PHX). We had way more stuff to choose from in AZ
Janine Waite says
Hi Deborah,
Oh my goodness it is so nice to see you over here! You're so sweet! I'm feel so lucky to have you as a blogging and IG friend! It sounds like you made a big change, moving from Arizona to Oregon! But, it sounds like you are enjoying life in Oregon, but just missing a few shops. You'll just have to make a journey north, to San Fran! Thanks for stopping by, my great friend!
Lisa @ Texas Decor says
You got such a great deal on that furniture!!! I used to have the darker "Starbucks" colors in my home too! Our old paint was a darker brown and was even called "coffee kiss!" Ha! Love your new things and that clock is amazing!
Janine Waite says
Ah Lisa,
You always make my day, seriously! You're visits are awesome and I'm not sure what I would do without them! So, thanks! Yeah, too funny about the coffee shop colors. I think moving to a sunny state has transformed my design sense to the lighter side! Thanks for stopping by, my dear Texas Friend!!!
Colette Joseph says
I love these, J. I just want to jump into that chair and sink into a nap.
You are a genius. And I love what you did with that clock. The whole living room
is crisp, white, cozy and inviting.
When you come decorate MY house?
Janine Waite says
Hi Colette ~
I totally will come and decorate your house, although I think you have done an awesome job!!! Thanks so much for stopping by!
Nadine says
The clock is really gorgeous! It fits the interior really good! Thanks for the lovely post! Greets, Little Ilford Carpet cleaners LTD.
Janine Waite says
Thanks, Nadine for the nice comment and visit! You're so sweet to stop by!
Isabel says
I really appreciate the tips for cleaning the slipcovers of your sofa! I find them really helpful! As a cleaner I deal with sofa cleaning all the time but honestly, when I need to clean a white sofa I don't feel really confident. It is so nice that yours is with slipcovers that you can wash separately! Thanks! You have a gorgeous home! <3
Spa Break Lady says
This is a very interesting shape for a clock! I really like the yellow version. Also, awesome cleaning tips!
Padhma says
Really useful tips you had furnished here. I think this will be useful for the people those who wants to maintain their surroundings especially their home as neat and clean. So please keep update like this.
Abiya says
Great post! I am see the programming coding and step by step execute the outputs.I am gather this coding more information.It’s helpful for me my friend. Also great blog here with all of the valuable information you have.
yuni says
what a great deal, janine! i have to say that i do love our ektorp sofa and chair as well. you can’t beat the price and i just love the bright white look too. thanks for sharing the cleaning tips with us!
Carolann says
I love the brightness of your entire living space! I have leather sofa’s and they are dark brown but I love the leather so much. Someday, I might go back to fabric but for now, I’m loving the ease and look of the leather. Sounds like you got some great deals! It’s so nice to find exactly what you are looking for at great prices!
Carrie says
I crave light and bright too. I have two boys so keeping white things clean is a challenge! Loved all your tips!!
Sam - Raggedy Bits says
What fabulous tips!!! Love your living room to bits! So light and bright!
coimbatore says
Wonderful ! Thanks for sharing this article keep update this kind of nice articles