[kirsty]

Maybe this already exists somewhere, but is there a dedicated place to showcase finished kitchens? There was something like this on the old site, but I can't figure out where it is in the new galleries. Sometimes really good stuff seems to get buried on there. (like that gorgeous new painted white tidaholm kitchen- where did that come from?)

I'm thinking of something sort of like the fkb, but maybe just organized by door style? That would be really helpful, especially for those of us who are design challeneged. Or maybe I'm just internet-challenged and its already hiding somewhere?

Thanks for all your great work! This is my favorite site on the internet! (even more then CraigsList! And I LOVE CraigsList!)

[Susan]

Umm....we do have Before and Afters in the Articles Section, but it's not fleshed out yet. Members have the ability to write up their own articles and upload, but not many have done so - maybe people don't know? We had hoped that the Galleries section 'Kitchens' would act as a Finished Kitchens area, but it's become a catch-all for all kitchen pictures, including plans, in-progress, etc. though there are sections for those specifically. At some point, I hope to get things sorted out a bit in there, but it's difficult to find the time for so many divergent priorities.

So anyway, getting Finished (and Before and AFter) Kitchens into the Articles section is one of those projects that's been on our list forever.... Actually, next week is the one year anniversary for when we migrated to the new forum software, and it's been on my list since then. We have recently contracted someone to do some of the work on the site, but with no real income the amount of work we can give her is limited. Someday, someday our ship will come in...

Susan

P.S. Wow! Better than craigslist? What an endorsement!

[Tigratrus]

Originally Posted by deagna

I want to say THANK YOU, though I've said it many times. You guys have saved many a kitchen (and maybe many a marriage!).

My number one piece of advice is to just keep posting. I have had almost all of my questions answered well and very quickly. Keep it up, wise ones.

As a long-distance orderer (8 hours away), I would always appreciate more photos of store displays. It's impossible to try and imagine which things you'd like together when you can't get a picture of them in the same shot. Also, I've heard there are many things in the store that aren't online or in the catalog. It's just nice to live vicariously, too.

Thanks again for you fellow IKEA fans. I absolutely can't wait to get my kitchen!
-Deanna

Originally Posted by kisaacs

Along those lines, what if we could get IKEA to let us do "virtual tours" of kitchen displays or departments for those who couldn't get to a store.

Kristen

Sorry I forgot to respond to this one, that's a really good idea. Once we have the video system in place we'll see if we can't do that. I'd imagine that it wouldn't be a problem as long as we clear it though IKEA corp, but you never know. Would it be more useful to see all the kitchen displays in one video, or separate videos for each display?

James

[kisaacs]

I'd say separate tours for each display, organized maybe both by store and by door type so you could easily find what you're looking for.

I'm envisioning a little more than just a still video, which is little more than a wide angled picture. I'm actually picturing someone taking you through a tour of the kitchen. For those people far away, it's just hard to see how some of these things work - how far drawers go out, how they close, what a pull out looks like, what the interior organizers are like, etc.

If someone were "shopping" in the kitchen doing all those things for them, then they could get a real feel for what the kitchens were like.

Kristen

[Tigratrus]

I like it... A lot. As I know Susan would never consent to be the person in front of the lens it's likely to be me or the kids if we do it.

ITA that having it be like a kitchen "Demo" would be really useful, maybe discuss some of the different aspects of the kitchen in question and the accessories used in each given display. Some of the quirks of the install, how the cover panels should have been installed differently etc.

Wonder if we could get torrus, chuck, dulci or one of the other installer types to help? It'd be great to get some expert feedback on what's right and wrong on a given display, and WHY.

James

[GardenOfDarwin]

I would also envision a 360 degree type video - like one of the ones you see on Realtor sites - where you can zoom in/out and pan around the room to see all the stuff. Would be great for folks not yet decided on a doorstyle, couch, bed, whatever and/or folks who can't remember what they saw yesterday (like me!). Sortable by doorstyle, product line or store.

For the record, there are store display photos in the galleries. And I have many more from 5 or 6 different stores on my computer - just not enough time in the day to upload them all! I'll work on it when I have some down time - it is kind of a relaxing thing to do and with Sets, it's SO MUCH easier!

Susan

[dsmcleroy]

Just please continue! I am a newcomer but have found it invaluable just reading questions and replies. I have used the search a number of times and found my question already answered...it is great!

Thanks so much for this site.


dmcleroy

[kelly]

Hi everyone- thanks for your wonderfully kind comments about this community. I know that we're really asking for donations these days- but there is a good reason...we really need them to keep on keeping on... the site costs A LOT in bandwidth monthly, and it is a full time PLUS job for both our administrators. They love it. They want to keep doing it. They just need food.

Click on the THANKS link (heart) or the DONATE link (yellow post-it) and keep this community around!!

Kelly

[choqokat]

Originally Posted by Tigratrus

I like it... A lot. As I know Susan would never consent to be the person in front of the lens it's likely to be me or the kids if we do it.

ITA that having it be like a kitchen "Demo" would be really useful, maybe discuss some of the different aspects of the kitchen in question and the accessories used in each given display. Some of the quirks of the install, how the cover panels should have been installed differently etc.

Wonder if we could get torrus, chuck, dulci or one of the other installer types to help? It'd be great to get some expert feedback on what's right and wrong on a given display, and WHY.

James

looks like i have a project! i'd be happy to get my goddesse sister to help - no promises - cuz i am not photogenic. i'll be using my cel fon - it's pretty good. we both love ikea and i'm up there much more often than i should be.
to help me kiss this, say:
* what
* where
* why
* how

[jenswrens]

I guess I'll be the lone dissenter here. I really don't like the new Ikeafans. I hardly ever come here anymore. When I do, it's only because I'm desperate for a quick answer to something. I shouldn't even post this, because I don't have any constructive criticism - just a complaint. (sorry!)

I used to visit the old site daily and read all the threads and look at articles and photos. I miss that and the fact that it was all so personal. Now it's grown and has gotten impersonal. But most importantly, I'm annoyed with all the ads and the jumbled/cluttered layout. I dislike having to scroll all the way to the bottom of the page every time I refresh or go to a new page just to get past the ads and get to the meat of what I'm looking for. (When I first go to any page, my entire screen is filled with nothing but ads and I have to scroll before I see anything of value.) When I want to go to page 2, I'd like to hit one button and then see the next page, not have to hit "next page" then scroll scroll scroll - next page, scroll scroll scroll... every time. That's too much trouble.

And it's very difficult to find anything - difficult to navigate, difficult to search, difficult to know which forum to search or frequent, even difficult to read the articles because it's hard to figure out how to navigate them. The sidebars are cluttered, and the tabs on the blue lines don't lead me to what I think will be there based on their titles. Someone earlier said that information gets "buried" in the new site. I agree.

One thing I do like is the functionality of this posting/editing/smiley screen, but that's about it.

Anyway, nevermind. I just needed to get that off my chest. See ya in another six months or so.... when I have a quick question that I can't find anywhere else.