IKEA Vrijdag: Lekman Bak/Box (Complementary Item for the Expedit Series)

We're back on the Expedit accessory kick for IKEA Vrijdag! Sometimes, you just need a box to dump a bunch of junk in, but you're dresser drawer isn't going to cut it, and cardboard boxes aren't practical or pretty. Little Man doesn't have a toy box in his bedroom, but he does have plenty of odds and ends that he cherishes at any given moment, and we have no desire to step on them when making our way through his room. Since we purchased the 2x2 Expedit as a toy station, we also decided to purchase 2 boxes for the bottom compartments to catch all of the treasures that wouldn't easily pile up on the shelves, and we bought the Lekman bak/box - one in red and one in blue - to take care of the loose items in the Little Man's room.

2x2 Expedit with blue and red Lekman bak/box

Lekman bak/box in blue and red

The Lekman is made entirely of SAN plastic and a bit of polypropylene and specifically designed to fit inside the Expedit compartments. It comes in a flat package, and you have to snap everything into place. IKEA also provides some strips to put along the bottom to make sliding the box in and out easy without scratching the Expedit. Putting the box together is easy enough (it's just a cube), but I will say that the plastic material feels like it's capable of shattering if dropped on a wood or tile floor. It's not the softer plastic you find in most plastic drawer sets, and it feels potentially brittle. Little Man's room has carpeting, so there's a little give, and he's not in the drawers every few seconds, so we haven't had any problems, but if this were in use by more children and/or on a hard floor, I think I would go with a soft box, like the Drona Bak/Box. But on the bright side, it's plastic, so you just have to wipe it clean with water (and maybe some soap) if you have to, and it holds a fair about of things since it fits the entire compartment.

Lots of treasure!

You'll notice on the website that IKEA only lists red, black, and white as the available colors. This was also the case when we were initially searching for the boxes, and we were happily surprised to find blue in the store. So it your heart is set on these boxes and set on the color blue, go ahead and take a chance by looking in the store. Because these are small items, they are available in the showroom/display area and not the warehouse - so keep this in mind if you want to make the purchase.

We give the Lekman Bak/Box 3 Swedish meatballs on our 5 meatball scale. Overall, it gets the job done, it's cheap, and it's easy to put together, but I'm not particularly impressed by the quality of the material.

Life in Dutch Rating for the Lekman Bak/Box: