A lot of people love IKEA, others hate the store and everything they offer. I’m one that really likes IKEA furniture, but I have come across some lower quality stuff before. I would ooh and aah over something in their catalog, only to find the in-store sample to be flimsy or otherwise disappointing.
I do not visit IKEA lightly, at least not if I haven’t been there in a while. Yup, I’m one of those people that can spend a couple of hours walking through the maze of room and furniture displays.
Sometimes I’m looking right at the furniture, other times I’m taking pictures of things I could adapt into DIY or woodworking projects. A tabletop organizer, for example, with curved sides and 2 shelves. I can relatively easily modify the design a little bit to better suit my needs. A couple of cuts in some plywood, and I’ll have one built.
Even if you don’t want to base an entire project off of IKEA furniture, you might find some design features to incorporate into your next project.
IKEA designers are very talented and optimize the heck out of everything they design. They have to, given the sheer number of units IKEA manufacturers. How long do you think designers spent on IKEA’s ALEX rolling drawer cabinet? How much work went into tweaking the size and shape of the drawer handle opening?
So why not take advantage of their work and incorporate a feature or two into your own furniture or accessory project designs?
Your source of inspiration doesn’t have to be IKEA, but IKEA builds each product in enormous worldwide quantities, and they’re not quick to discontinue anything. When they come out with a new piece of furniture, or furniture accessory such as a desktop organizer, you can bet that a lot of time and energy went into making sure the design is just right. What other furniture store comes close?
Do you have any other sources for woodworking or other DIY project inspiration, aside from typical sources such as magazines and forums?