The August 2018 IKEA catalog brought a novelty called Bror. It is a range of furniture, a new storage system, but it is also a snap to the maker community. Robustness and mobility are two essential aspects in the functioning of a creative space. The same two characteristics can be used to describe the Bror furniture line. However, the Bror line is far from the first IKEA product capable of meeting the needs of a maker.
Here are IKEA products for your workshop:
SAMLA BOX — Not everything is needed at all times. Materials, tools, utensils, consumables, etc … The list could go on forever. When not in use, it is important that these elements are tidy. Otherwise, they are just in the way of other tasks. However, just as important as being away from action when not needed, is being protected and accessible at any time. The rigidity and transparency of its plastic, combined with the fact that they are stackable, makes Samla boxes a mandatory presence in a maker space.
BILLINGEN TRAY — No matter how efficient we are, there are always things we don’t control. Ink taking its time to dry is a great example of a situation that forces us to interrupt a process. However, the work always continues on another project. That is, a project never runs alone. In fact, there are often several running simultaneously. So that the elements of each project do not mix with the others or get lost during fallow stages, Billingen trays are the best option. They have the ideal internal dimension and division and, in addition, they are stackable. When its usefulness disappears, however many trays we have, they never take up much space.
TROFAST BOX—Created with the youngest in mind, the TROFAST line couldn’t be more in tune with Curious Goblin. Basically, a workshop is a playground for the child who survives within the adult. TROFAST boxes are great when you want to put a job aside without separating the parts that make it up. But they go further, as their strength and protruding edge make them good options as well as drawers. Too bad they didn’t exist in transparent and it could be the best of both worlds (billingen tray and samla box).
ISTAD BAG—Do you know those consumables that we took months to spend, but whose packaging is unusable as soon as we use the first copy? Or when we want to compartmentalize what has strange shapes? Well, that’s when reusable bags come in handy. At Curious Goblin they are used in various situations. For example, inside the circular sandpaper boxes we find a disc bag for each different grain.
TOMAT SPRAYER — There is no need for flowers in the workshop for the Tomat sprayer to be a fundamental tool. At Curious Goblin we always have one with water and the other with alcohol (properly identified so as not to cause mistakes). Above all, they are useful in painting moments. The small amount of water is enough to wash with a few drops of paint. On the other hand, the ability to distribute alcohol droplets is also very useful for weathering techniques.
FILUR CONTAINER — The only way for a maker space not to generate waste is to not work. Even with sustainability as the main requirement in creative production, it is inevitable to generate waste. At the same time, it is important to separate them into categories. Nothing that several Filur boxes don’t solve. They are resistant and have the ideal capacity to not end up too heavy when we dump them.
TILLGÅNG BOARD — The bench game is a classic in the workshop. It is like the traditional game of chairs, but with work surfaces. At any moment a project appears that requires more space and everything needs to change places. At that time, Tillgång trays are precious. The materials and tools specific to each job are quickly arranged and space is freed up.
BROR BENCH — The Bror bench is not part of the Curious Goblin workshop, although it was the launch of this IKEA piece of furniture that promoted this story. The reason for its absence is due to the option of building our own uniform work surfaces, as well as the recent appearance of the Bror line. Thus, I cannot subject the Bror bench to the daily challenges of a workshop. By the appreciation in an IKEA store, it seems to me a piece of furniture that is up to what it proposes. However, I suggest to its future owners the simultaneous acquisition of a plywood top with a minimum thickness of 15 millimeters.