Just imagine the instructions.
IKEA is now in the business of making tiny houses. And luckily for triggered millennial furniture owners everywhere, you won’t need that disposable Allen wrench. It’s already built.
The Swedish furniture company is experimenting with prefab houses through their Ikea Tiny Home Project, designing a 187-square-foot abode on a flatbed trailer.
The tiny house endeavor was a partnership with Vox Creative and RV builder Escape.
Though IKEA’s design was a one-off, interested parties can still customize Escape’s Boho XL Wide model, which starts at $47,550. That’s about 368 POÄNG chairs, for anyone who’s counting.
Features in the IKEA version — which kept an eye toward neutral tones, sustainability and that certain hygge touch — included kitchen cupboards made from recycled plastic bottles, built-in furniture and a collapsible desk, according to Lonely Planet. The prototype was designed to be inspiration for tiny home aficionados. Escape’s XL has room for a queen-size bed, as well as living, kitchen and bathroom spaces, according to Escape’s promotional video.
A virtual tour of IKEA’s model shows the window-lined space furnished with the company’s cabinets and products.
“How I started was really listing out all the needs for the space,” IKEA senior interior design leader Abbey Stark said in a promotional video. “Like, how do you design around a wheel well and the mechanics of the home? I wanted to source renewable, reusable, and recycled materials when possible to make the space functional as well as beautiful.”
Tiny homes are all the rage among eco-conscious minimalist types, and have even managed to stay en vogue through the pandemic, when the last thing anyone wants is a smaller space.
But with perks including the trailer bed, compostable toilet and solar panels, IKEA’s tiny house has the work-from-anywhere appeal many have sought during the pandemic.
