Though we have a lot of other furniture in our home besides IKEA, this tends to be my go-to store for a lot of reasons. The prices are great, and we've been fairly happy with the quality of the furniture. So a few years ago, when my daughter was ready for a "big girl" room, we added an IKEA Micke computer work station to her furniture ensemble.

As a designer, I am not fond of open desks in a home, especially in a child's room.

They tend to turn into dumping grounds for clutter and are rarely used for their intended purposes. But we homeschool, and though my children love studying on their beds, and we spend loads of together time at our dining table, I recognize that there are times when they need a hard work surface in a quiet place like their rooms.

After two years of use, here is what I think of the IKEA Micke desk/computer work station.

Pros

• Great for small rooms or tight spaces.
• For its smallness of size, the design of the desk offers a surprisingly nice amount of storage.
• Ease of assembly.
• Endures daily use (even in a kid-filled household) extremely well.
• Easy to customize to fit almost any space.
• Write on/wipe off surface has held up well to daily use.
• Desktop is wide enough for a laptop and papers.
• Drawers glide effortlessly, even after two-plus years of heavy kid-use.
• Lots of finish options, some which are extremely fun.

Cons

• Drawers are open to the backside, and things slide out unnoticed through the back of the desk very easily.

• Laminated surface is very slippery, and unless desk is on a very stable surface, items tend to move. (We live in a 1925 raised-foundation house on clay soil. 'Nough said.)
• If you do some legwork, you can find cheaper desks that may be of better quality.

The Bottom Line

This has been a fine purchase, though I'll admit that the Micke desk was a convenience purchase. (Daughter needed a desk. It looked fine and matched her existing furniture. It wasn't too expensive.) We have other desks in our children's rooms that I prefer more, including a heavy duty solid wood desk that I picked up at a yard sale for $25. When compared to those prices, the Micke desk isn't very affordable.

However, the Micke has held up well to daily, hard use. (I am sure that when I was not looking, it has supported the weight of a child more than once.) The Micke's modern lines look great in our home and fit in with our existing style. And Daughter likes it, so that is good enough for me.

Need help setting up a home office? For creative yet small home office ideas, see my article.