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How Ikea's Billy bookcase took over the world

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Re: How Ikea's Billy bookcase took over the world

#231

Post by chris_7 »

dmeola wrote: post #229
pathikrit wrote: post #221

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Honest question: If I want the diversity of a Ikea catalogue with higher price and quality, where should I go?

Try Crate and Barrel, I've always felt it is just Ikea at a higher price + quality. I suspect the price increase is greater than the increase in quality though.

The designs from Crate and Barrel usually aren't as good as those Ikea, even if the quality is up to snuff. CB2 is usually okay, as long as they haven't decided to make the piece you want only available in bright orange or something. They do that sometimes.

There is definitely a gulf between Ikea (bad quality, good design, $) and DWR-tier places (good quality, good design, $$$$). Muji maybe, if they happen to make something in the niche you're looking for.

Re: How Ikea's Billy bookcase took over the world

#232

Post by bballard »

kriro wrote: post #59

Still looking for a board game friendly bookshelf from one of the major chains. Depth is the problem, need roughly 30cm of usable depth. I'm currently using IVAR but it's more of a temporary solution. I own about 4 Billy for books they are decent but not great. One thing in their favor is that you can easily add another one. I'd also like it if IKEA would report the usable depth of the shelves in addition to the tota…

Another option is FJÄLKINGE (http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/60221683/)

I recently got one of these for the kids room. It's all steel construction, the shelves actually seem pretty solid, they seem to have a lattice or some reinforcement inside. Depth of 13 3/4 inch / 35cm is perfect for board games.

Re: How Ikea's Billy bookcase took over the world

#233

Post by cestith »

johncoltrane wrote: post #211
gdulli wrote: post #199

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He might have to provide more info. When I looked up Billy to find out what it is I found over a dozen variants/sizes: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/search/?query=BILLY+Bookcase I don't understand if the article is talking about a specific one or the whole product line, and what makes one or the other special. I don't see anything notable, other than the impressive simplicity and packing innovation that applies to Ikea p…

He was referring to this one (color unspecified): http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00263850/ There's nothing notable with that bookshelf except the price. That model has simply been the most basic/cheap bookcase at IKEA (and elsewhere) for decades, a must have for young adults moving out of their parents'. I still have two after many years. Incidentally, I'm getting that very same KALLAX you linked to in a…

I've always thought that "Billy" unqualified meant that one.

Re: How Ikea's Billy bookcase took over the world

#234

Post by rhizome »

longwave wrote: post #101
rhizome wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a record collector, I feel your pain. For depth I'd look at the Galant shelves. Even the shallower upper units are 40cm deep, and it's wide enough for games in the way that Expedit wasn't. http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/S59184629/

The open backed Kallax units are the ideal size for storing 12" vinyl, and the vertical dividers mean you don't have too many records leaning on each other. They are also good for larger items that need to overhang the back of the shelf a bit.

Sure, and I have two 5x5 Expedits (modified) nearly full of records, but the shelf dimensions are not good for boardgames.

Re: How Ikea's Billy bookcase took over the world

#235

Post by amsilprotag »

DannyBee wrote: post #136
computator wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The real reason is simply that nobody wants it. Could you expand on that? Obviously people do want Ikea, so why wouldn't people want mass-produced really-good furniture?

Sure. Let's look at some of the major pieces of furniture people have: Tables, cabinets, chairs. It's the same story with all of them. Let's start with cabinets. A bit of cheating since most people don't consider it furniture, but worth talking about. Most people want white or colored cabinets. The "natural wood" look is mostly out of style these days, due to mass over-production of red-oak cabinets (and thank god. t…

This is a great real-world example of the Nobel Prize winning concept, The Market for Lemons. [0]

A buyer wants to spend somewhere between price 4-6, but they aren't able to tell quality 3 from quality 7. Due to fear of getting taken advantage of, they end up settling for low quality at low price. Sellers react to this behavior, and we get the price/quality distortions described above.

[0] http://www.economist.com/news/economics-brief/21702428-georg...

Re: How Ikea's Billy bookcase took over the world

#236

Post by KingMob »

chris_7 wrote: post #231
dmeola wrote: post #229

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Try Crate and Barrel, I've always felt it is just Ikea at a higher price + quality. I suspect the price increase is greater than the increase in quality though.

The designs from Crate and Barrel usually aren't as good as those Ikea, even if the quality is up to snuff. CB2 is usually okay, as long as they haven't decided to make the piece you want only available in bright orange or something. They do that sometimes. There is definitely a gulf between Ikea (bad quality, good design, $) and DWR-tier places (good quality, good design, $$$$). Muji maybe, if they happen to make so…

I love the irony of naming yourself "Design Within Reach", while still being out of reach for most people who aren't professionals.

As the owner of several Muji items (trash cans, silverware holders, rolling storage unit, coasters, dish rack), I have to say while they look nice, they're rarely as well thought-out as Ikea. The trash cans don't seal, and the dish rack can't actually hold plates upright in position.

Re: How Ikea's Billy bookcase took over the world

#237

Post by erikb »

Two9A wrote: post #203
erikb wrote: post #200

Where is it common? I think I've never seen one, not even in Ikeas.

I believe that's the point: you never notice a Billy, it turns into part of the wall. You can build a wall of storage with shelves in various places, and it's fully extensible.

That was actually quite funny.

Re: How Ikea's Billy bookcase took over the world

#238

Post by Gravityloss »

freehunter wrote: post #227
Gravityloss wrote: post #209

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Galant desks are not sturdy. I would not dare to stand on one. First of all, if you use the telescoping legs, the locking mechanism is plastic IIRC and can't take a lot of load. But even just the actual desk surface: I think it's a sandwich of paper honeycomb with a very thin veneer and bends a lot even when someone's just sitting on it. It would probably just break in half if you stood on it. It is light so that…

While I fully expect my current (non-Ikea) desk would support my weight if I sat or stood on it, I've never actually considered doing that. Is sitting/standing on desks a common activity? My desk just supports my laptop and an external monitor.

At least at home, if I have to do something to my curtain rod or put up christmas lights to the window etc, I find it perfectly normal. At work you're not expected to do those things. But I most definitely wouldn't call a desk that can't take standing "sturdy".

Ikea has lowered the standards expected from furniture a lot, though it's been in decline with formaldehyde chipboard etc since the fifties or so anyway.

Re: How Ikea's Billy bookcase took over the world

#239

Post by Gravityloss »

pathikrit wrote: post #221
bane wrote: post #150

I don't buy much IKEA furniture, very little of it survives even a single move, and for the price you can find plenty of furniture that does. So it ends up not being a great investment, except for a few very specific, highly optimized pieces. I have 6 Billys and my parents have something like 10. When I worked at a small startup and needed to fit out some field offices, I bought two things from the store, a Galant de…

Honest question: If I want the diversity of a Ikea catalogue with higher price and quality, where should I go?

Are there used furniture online communities (craigslist, facebook groups), stores, auctions or recycling centers where you live?

Where I'm at, things like a certain brand's bookshelves can be bought and sold relatively easily, because they're common, strong, practically forever and modular so can be customized to almost anything. They also have a timeless look.

It's everything Ikea is not. Even most of the solid wood Ikea stuff uses is just weak and soft.

Having said that, most new unpainted wood furniture here (not just Ikea) looks terrible because it's filled with knots. That's because of local forestry policy decisions, good quality forests and wood has been destroyed, and the country has been driven to producing low value pulp.

By the way, efficient aftermarkets exist for other things as well, for example musical instruments, because they also don't wear out so much in amateur use, or at least the wearing parts should be replaceable.

It brings satisfaction to me to use, own, buy or sell a good product that is designed and manufactured to last.

Re: How Ikea's Billy bookcase took over the world

#240

Post by ciupicri »

aedron wrote: post #174
hueving wrote: post #166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One thing I lament after switching to ebooks is the lack of books. Sounds silly, but I think a wall with shelves of books was quite nice looking and colorful.

I am happy to not have to store books in physical form. They are heavy, take up loads and loads of space, and do not keep well. And that's not even getting into how impractical they are to actually read (or search) compared with e-books. And still, something is missing in the home. A book collection might be the most personal touch a person can have in the home. Some of it is vanity, you want to show people what you…

How can physical books be impractical to actually read compared to e-books when text looks so much better on paper than on screen?
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