Can you get a closer shot of the bloom AND the foliage? andrea

I got a very brief look at them - not enough time for a thorough investigation, but my first impressions were a definite letdown. The new cabinets, especially the drawers and pullouts, just do not have the almost high-end look and feel of the old ones. The sidewalls of the drawers and the supporting rods are no longer metallic silver metal, but rather a white enamel that looked like plastic though I don't think it actually was. The doors looked like plainer versions of the Akurum doors - Grimslov is the new Adel for example, yet they look less upscale and aren't obviously solid wood anymore. The available accent colors, not to mention the full-line door colors/styles, are more conservative - no more red, blue, or that retro light blue/green. The sinks and taps still look and feel cheap. I would have liked a finished-side option for the boxes (or available thin cut-to-fit panels in the common cabinet door colors) common in other cabinet brands as well as Ikea's thick panels used for exposed sides, which can sometimes complicate installation and cause width mismatches or infringe on adjacent wall cabinet doors from opening fully. I don't think the cabinet boxes are available in a light woodgrain anymore - I've seen just white thusfar, although I recall reading that a dark black-brown color would be another option (less attractive than the lighter color for most door colors IMO). The counter-depth SxS fridge is nowhere near as nice as the old one - the formerly wide-open freezer section now has the top shelf completely filled by the icemaker mechanism and ice storage rather than tucking both unobtrusively into the door. The fridge section no longer has LED lighting scattered throughout the walls, instead just having a big lighting bar at the top and bottomi. The door shelves now have a non-transparent frame. There are only 2 slide-out bins rather than 3. The controls, water filter, and lighting intrude upon the space more. It does cost hundreds less than last year's model, but looks it. The ovens have an odd part-stainless, part-black frame. A double-oven range is available only in freestanding, not slide-in configuration. The only distinctive appliance remains the nice built-in 24"w microwave (with included extensions to fit 27" or 30"w cabinets), which I think is a new model but looks similar to the previous Nutid model. It's basically the Kitchenaid or Jenn-Air built-in MW minus the convection option, but at 1/3 the price. There are also some obvious improvements though. There's now a base cabinet designed to hold their built-in microwave below the countertop, with a drawer beneath it, in 24" and 30" widths (if the KitchenAid and JennAir convection or speed ovens can be installed undercounter, they'll fit in the 30"w cabinet too). I'm guessing by ordering a shallower drawer at the bottom and relocating the divider shelf downward, a 24" or 60cm" conventional oven like my terrific sub-$1,000 will fit nicely in these too (help for such mods can be found over at IkeaFans..... NOT). Likewise, I think a Fisher & Paykel single DishDrawer dishwasher could fit nicely under the new shallow top drawer and above a shallow or deeper drawer below it - even the newer deeper dish drawer might fit installed as such in a 24"w cabinet - a great option for small kitchens The base cabinets can now be installed using a rail system just like the uppers. The cover plates in the drawers no longer have a big Ikea logo, shouting to resale buyers that these are low-priced cabinets. The full-height tall cabinets for pantries and ovens are now available in an 18" width as well as 15" and 24" (I can hear the applause all the way from the opposite coast). The horizontal wall cabinets with upward-opening doors finally are made in widths that match the common wall cabinets with side-hinged doors rather than in metric sizes (more applause). The interior fittings are a huge improvement in both design quality and variety available. The corner cabinet revolving pie slices now have solid rather than wire shelves. The built-in LED lighting should ease installation of in-cabinet lighting - it could be added to the old cabinets of course, but the new ones seem designed for easy interior lighting installation - I'll see if they are actually any easier to add lighting to, and if the Ikea LEDs give off good quality light. Electrical and USB outlets are also available. I didn't find the 15"d wall cabinets to be too in-your-face, and the added depth will be useful to hold large plates, two stacks of smaller plates and bowls one behind the other, or more glasses and cups. So some improvements and some backsliding. I'd be more forgiving if I didn't know Ikea was treating non-North American customers a much more versatile new Metod cabinet line that's much more in tune with Ikea's make-the-most-of-small-spaces philosophy that guides the rest of the store's offerings. I sure would like the tall 24"w refrigerators, 24" induction cooktops with 3 large burners rather than trying to needlessly squeeze four burners into that space, even a washer and dryer that hide behind cabinet doors, plus the variable-height base cabinets available in widths starting at less than 9" - with a broader selection of door styles to boot.

Blubird: I've been using the Trader Joe's because I've heard it was a knock off for the Neutrogena but IMO the Neutrogena felt way better going on. The Trader Joes gel almost feels tight...I'll have to do a side by side comparison but I think the Neutrogena is a winner for me.

Start with lowering the TV. It should only be a few inches above the console. I'd also recommend a new longer console. It should be 25-50% longer than the TV. Other than that, I wouldn't do much. The TV is the focal point, and most people don't want distractions around it.