Photo courtesy of South Miami News

I love me a good dose of home goods. You may think this love affair began when I bought my first house, but no. I’ve always loved to spend hours in any sort of home decor/crafting/design store from as long as I could remember. Decorating has always been a love of mine, starting from when I just had my own room in my mother’s home to renovate. So you could imagine my joy when IKEA finally opened its doors in South Florida a couple of years ago. In fact, I joke that the majority of my home is IKEA (but it really is), and that I should be made into some sort of brand ambassador because I am always singing their praises.

But wait.

What is this I hear?

The newly stationed CasaIdeas has moved into my neck of the woods?
I had to check it out.

And I did last weekend. And I loved what I saw. Unfortunately, it seems to have gotten some pretty ill reviews on Yelp, but I like to just disregard those, as people in South Florida can be pretty snooty and I…well, I’m on a budget and don’t care whether my table runner came from ZGallerie or Walmart. As long as it is good looking. And good looking stuff is what you will find at CasaIdeas for a fraction of the price you would pay in other decor stores.

This is CasaIdeas’ first U.S. store, and I think we are pretty lucky to have been chosen. The store is stocked with vibrant and unique items (from bedding to stationery) that really spoke to me. I can understand others not digging it though, especially if they are more into that “cold and modern” feel for their homes. I personally like to combine the two: warm, but modern. Unfortunately, I did not have my camera with me to snap some pictures of the merchandise, but luckily their Facebook fan page has a great selection of photos to wet your appetite:

Needless to say, I cannot wait to go back and actually do some shopping! There were several chartreuse colored items (rugs, frames and table runner) that I need to get my hands on! And for those of you expecting, mother to babies or young children (or are just a child at heart – like me), definitely check out their 2nd floor. You won’t be sorry (but your wallet may be)!