He says, " So many times I tell people - I look at Ikea as a "hardware store" as much as I do a Furniture retailer...No offense - I think Ikea's awesome....just that many items they sell are so adaptable - and likely candidates for "hacking"- that I see many items there as "components" for a project - or a "project-to-be"...which is how the Grono hacks occurred.
I was in the lighting area of Ikea - and saw these cute little inoffensive cubes - I was attracted to their simplicity; and their clean lines and volume.
But, they seemed too "elemental" to me.
So, the designer started sketching...
And this is what came out!
It helped that business is slow now - and I have some extra time to "play-around"....designing and building these items as Prototypes - for a future collection of products for sale on a soon to be created "rePurposed Furniture" website.
Plenty of years of metal working (and woodworking ) skills went into the fabrication of these "hacks".
Like they say on TV- not recommended to try this at home.
Welding, Mag-Drill Machining, Dado-Cutting, Sandblasting,and Powder
Coating are a few of the more "Industrial" processes that I used to create these new lights - that most folks don't keep in the garage, or basement workshops!
I hope that you and your readers may find some enjoyment from these new Lights I created using the Grono - and hope that IKEA will give me a job designing some for them!"
Randall's other hacks:
- Seena's bathroom countertop
- Expedit Grande
Wow! Fantastic! I also hope IKEA hires Randall :-)
ReplyDeletevery creative and your drawing looks so perfect
ReplyDeleteIf you want a job designing for Ikea, start thinking about how the designs would flat-pack and how easy they would be to manufacture, in addition to how cool and sleek they look. Also, start drawing up uninterpretable assembly pictures.
ReplyDeletenice style lamp. i should buy it to my bedroom.
ReplyDeleteWow. All that fancy equipment you're bragging about and you've managed to make it look so totally unprofessional! Threading the cable through the base in the third one instead of just letting it dangle loose (and a black cable on a white base at that!) would be a start. Design is in the details, so if you want to become a professional furniture designer, you should give them more thought...
ReplyDeleteI kind of like the first one, but the others - try again. Especially if you're planning to sell them!
anon #2: wow, you're snarky. where's your creativity? in meaness?
ReplyDeleteRandall, I especially love #3.
@biophile:
ReplyDeleteActually, I'm a design professional. An architect. It's not "meanness", it's well-meant advice to stop him from seeming so amateurish if he wants to make a living at this kind of thing and be taken seriously. Good design is in getting that last 10% to work, not the first 90%.
I also second Alexa's statement. Think about how it can be made, packed, and transported efficiently, rather than just how it looks.
If the so called design professional/architect had done any further research, he/she would have noticed a website which elaborates on the various designs Randall has created. He has been published in several well known design magazines such as Interior Design, Luxe Home etc. and home editions of newspapers such as the New York Times. I'm not so sure these publications would cover amateur work. Besides, part of design and being a good designer is playing with possibilities! So, let's appreciate what he managed to make out of a $6.00 Ikea item!!
ReplyDeleteI like it.
ReplyDeletehttp://receptiondeskcentral.com
Love them.
ReplyDelete