This month we are proposing a very practical project called DIYI, Do It Yourself IKEA I am sure most of you have moved once or twice in your life, and some of you are chronic, so you are familiar with that endless pile of boxes waiting to be thrown out. Stop. Do not throw this ingenious material out just yet. Put it to good use by turning it into foldable chairs for your impromptudinner guests. Cardboard has been around since the 15th century and invented by the Chinese as a packing material. The official cardboard box was patented by an American, of course and improved upon in 1890 by another American who added a waving middle layer between two liner sheets on both sides. This is the corrugated cardboard that we know and love today.
In my search to find the best design for this project, I tested a few Internet finds made by a bunch of international designers. However, the winner comes from a book called Nomadic Furniture, by James Hennessey and Victor Papanek . It can be found in the Vancouver Public Library or in the “You Say You Want a Revolution” 60s and 70s exhibit in the Vancouver Museum.
This chair is completely collapsible, does NOT employ any glue, nails, or fasteners, and is NOT held together by sheer will; although, you may need some to get started.
Choosing cardboard that is big enough for this project might be hard. This is where big IKEA boxes come in handy. If you do not have any at hand then maybe your neighbour has some left over from their shopping spree that you could offer to “recycle” or you could purchase some, but that goes against the whole notion.
Cut out the pattern from single corrugated cardboard. Score the board along the —–x—–x—–x—-, but don’t cut all the way through. The scoring will help you get cleaner folds. All the slots are as wide as the cardboard is thick, and are 9” in length.
At this point you may want to add some personal touches by cutting out the shaded area into a shape or covering it with wrapping paper or adding a doily. Do whatever you want, but remember: if you want to hide the chair under your bed and reuse it at some point, keep it simple. Follow the pictures below to assemble. Fold part A in thirds and insert part B into the slots. Fold part C in half and lay on top of A and B. Add a cushion for comfort. Voilá!
Don’t forget to join us for our Diorama-rama
exhibition at the Seamrippers Space. October 8th
till 29th. 436 West Pender.
