Although ready-to-assemble furniture first emerged in the late 1940s and early 1950s, the majority of flatpack furniture as we know it didn’t come until later when Gillis Lundgren, a Swedish draughtsman, wanted to design a table that he could fit inside of his car. Soon after, Lundgren had created a ready-to-assemble table that he presented to his employers at IKEA, who then slowly built the rest of IKEA brand around the concept of ready-to-assemble furniture. Sadly, Lundgren passed away on Feb. 25 at the age of 86. After starting at IKEA in 1953 as an industrial designer (and the company’s fourth employee), Lundgren went on to design some of the…

This week’s Spotify-powered SolidSmack Radio Playlist knocks you in the pop sockets with head-boppin’ groove tuneage to help propel you through the work week in style. Whether you find yourself inking markers until they’re dry, grinding material through a bandsaw or working that 3D geometry all day, consider these tracks as a tool for your process. This week we’ll start things off with “Where Do I Begin” from The Chemical Brothers and work our way through Badly Drawn Boy, Icarus Himself, Myron & E, The Beach Boys, Ruth and others before wrapping up with “Heaven’s On Fire” from The Radio Dept. Have suggestions? As always, let us know what you…

Mondays might not be your favorite day of the week, but the good news is that we’re all in this together ladies and gentlemen. As purveyors of prime Grade A web content, the SolidSmack crew has done some of the heavy lifting to make sure you get your Mondays started on the right track. Welcome to The Monday List. Each Monday, we’ll link you up with some of the most insightful, informative, and socially-relevant stories to keep tabbed, bookmarked, reading listed, pocketed, or what have you. Be sure to check in each Monday morning for a new crop of freshly sprouted words curated straight from the source of your favorite…

I know, the last time you thought ‘fully-animated 2 cylinder 4 stroke engine’ is right before you had one tattooed across your entire back. This one, however, is one you can admire without having to re-break a fused spinal column and has 100% less back hair.

Last time we looked at Opendesk, they were nestled amongst freshly cut timbers and the warm glow of computer screens, a new site with a few pieces of furniture you could download and make or have made locally. Since then, well, let’s just say they’ve grown. The founders of FabHub have constructed a site that include over 30 designs and a wider selection of digital makers as part of the Open Makers manifesto. Along with all of that, they’ve just introduced a look at the future of digital craftsmanship.

In case you’ve been sitting there staring at your new 3D printer for two weeks straight, wondering what to do next, and you’re badly in need of a shower, we’ve got some news for you. The sharp all-things-3D teaching team over at SolidProfessor has two new 3D Printing courses that are bound to get you churning out globs of 3D printed goodness.