Cubes within cubes

January 6, 2023 4:13 PM

There's a whole world of boxes and bins that fit in the Ikea Kallax shelf unit. What are your current favorites?

I'm most interested in removable storage containers in this vein but will accept cool ideas for built-in inserts such as these.

posted by doift to Home & Garden (14 answers total)

Tjena is paperboard, which I wouldn't necessarily trust for a box with handles like that. I have lots of Ikea paperboard boxes but they are all smaller and no handles except for one in the front like a drawer pull. But, i fill my boxes with paper and books, so I need them to be able to handle heavy stuff. If you are using these for socks or other light things, paperboard is less of a concern.

I have two Branas and two others that I can't find on their website. These are a metal frame with 5 sides of woven nylon lacing that makes it very sturdy. Mine are black or dark brown, which alternate with the lighter branas' and keep it from being a large black box full of black boxes.
posted by soelo at 5:08 PM on January 6, 2023

The dollar store storage cubes? $1.25 or $3.00 each.
posted by kschang at 5:49 PM on January 6, 2023 [1 favorite]

Cat tax
posted by Dashy at 5:53 PM on January 6, 2023 [9 favorites]

I've used the basket inserts for years (looks like they're called BRANÄS) and they've held up really well. Mine are white and teal but it looks like they're only selling grey and rattan in the US at the moment, although Canada still has the white.

And not removable, but I've found the drawer inserts working well and surpringly handy for small things.

I hated the fabric storage cubes though, I found they got dirty very easily.
posted by cgg at 5:56 PM on January 6, 2023

It helps to think about what you're storing and how often you'll be accessing it. Do the items need airflow? Or should the basket be moisture proof? Will it be heavy, like reams of paper, and thus need to be very sturdy? Will you remember what's in there so it can be opaque, or is it better for the basket to be transparent as a reminder of what's inside? Do you want the basket to totally fill the cubby so you have to pull it out like a drawer to access the contents? Or is it better for the box to have space at the top so you can use it without having to pull it open every time.

Personally I don't really like the texture of natural material baskets - they feel too rough and scratchy and pokey and flakey for me. I need one basket to store my "sometimes purse stuff" (spare deodorant, medication, tampons, phone battery - stuff I only need on long outings), and it's all an ugly jumble. So I got some Pottery Barn Sabrina baskets which fit the Kallax well and only go up less than half way, so it's quick to grab things. I'm not sure they make these any more but you can find them secondhand. The wicker is painted so it's not flakey, they're very tightly woven so they're not too scratchy or pokey, and they have a removeable washable fabric liner so the items don't snag on the wicker. They're just tall enough to hide my jumble, and the open part at the top makes it really quick to see and grab what I need - it's not deep enough for things to get lost.

For colourful kids toys that actually look nice (magantiles etc), I like large crystal clear acrylic bins. They're outrageously expensive but they really are the right thing for the job - they look great, are very durable, and make the toys totally visible. Plus they're just a bit too small for the Kallax cubbies, which means toys can also be crammed around them and overflow them for easier cleanup.

I also have one big Ikea Tjena white carboard box that I chuck all my receipts into for tax time. Receipts aren't heavy so it's ok that the box isn't super heavy duty. It's lasted me for about 5 years now.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 5:57 PM on January 6, 2023

The drawers are great.
posted by aramaic at 6:57 PM on January 6, 2023 [1 favorite]

Allow me to share my disrecommendation for the insert with door, which seems like a great idea on paper for stuff that just looks untidy. Unfortunately we've had ours for a few years (maybe 5 years?) and they are disintegrating one by one. Literally just gradually decomposing into little piles of hinges and sawdust. It's a hell of a thing.
posted by potrzebie at 7:34 PM on January 6, 2023 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: I forgot add that I'm most interested in third-party products, not just those sold by Ikea.
posted by doift at 7:34 PM on January 6, 2023 [1 favorite]

If you have access to a table saw, find a wine merchant that'll give (or sell) you empty French wine case boxes. Saw off both ends, sand off the rough spots, and you have an insert that'll split a Kallax slot in half vertically.
posted by dws at 7:59 PM on January 6, 2023 [1 favorite]

We have the IKEA natural finish wood boxes with the vertical metal edges. What increased their spiffiness was staining them a shade of blue that complements the room. This was an easy customization that we did several years ago and works well on blonde/natural wood.
posted by childofTethys at 8:10 AM on January 7, 2023

I have about 6 of these in various sizes, and like them a lot. They're not as tall as the official BRANAS baskets, which I find really helpful for peeking inside to look for things.
posted by little king trashmouth at 11:36 AM on January 7, 2023

I will admit from the start that buying these Container Store boxes as a replacement for the Sterilite boxes that I have on the Kallax shelves in my craft room was a bit silly, considering the Sterilite ones were in fine shape. But I just love how 2 of the Sweater Box from the container store fill up the whole cube, and allow me to store more of my craft stuff in one box. I bought 8, to fill up 4 cubes. The Container Store Deep Sweater box also fits the cubes of a Kallax perfectly. The Container Store now makes their boxes in fun colors, but I opt for clear for my craft room so I can see what is inside.
posted by momochan at 1:24 PM on January 7, 2023

Banker boxes fit almost perfectly, even with their lids on. I also hit on some removals boxes that I have no source for that fit exactly perfectly, so there are probably others out there somewhere. Neither of these is attractive, but both are useful.

The dollar store ones are about as cheap as a cardboard box these days but they are a bit floppy.
posted by How much is that froggie in the window at 11:40 PM on January 7, 2023

I have many of the Container Store boxes momochan describes and it’s ridiculously satisfying how perfectly two of them fit into a Kallax cube.
posted by bendy at 3:22 PM on January 9, 2023