Cardboard Chaise Lounge

Recently my roommate and I moved into an apartment. We both lacked any furniture so we had somewhat of a shopping spree at the local IKEA. So with all that new furniture came lots of boxes. However, a box from IKEA does not equal the fun large box of my youth. They are flat and kinda boring. But as we was obviously in need of some furniture I thought it would be good to reuse all that material to get a free piece of furniture. Not just any piece of furniture though& a chaise lounge! Chaise lounge is kinda long and it feels funny to say it so we'll stick with "couch" in this Instructable.

In this Instructable we'll show you how to make a very solid piece of cardboard furniture. The basic components of the couch are a few large frame pieces that form the sides. These frame pieces hold the heart of the support, the cardboard beams. The beams are slid into slots that are cut out of the frame. Some cardboard padding/shims are positioned within the internal section of the couch, and then a nice long sheet is adhered to the top of the couch. After all that hard work you'll probably need to sit back and relax... on your new couch!

Step 1 Gather materials

Acquire lots of cardboard.You should ideally find several large flat boxes to use for the outside frame sheets of the couch. The boxes we used came from two bookcases, two desks, a small kitchen table, a bed, a coffee table, and some miscellaneous boxes we borrowed from friends. However, you can make due with lots of small boxes as well, though a few large pieces is recommend.

Hold on to any large pieces of styrofoam that come with the boxes. A packing tube can also be useful too. They can be used for internal supports. Finally, our design does use some tape. We tried to minimize tape as much as possible but some is useful in some sections. So have some packing tape and some double sided tape ready for the steps at the end.

See the schematics below for an illustrated guide but here is a parts list for the final couch:

Large Sheets
6 frame sheets: 57.0 x 28.0 (in) sheet per frame sheet.
1 cover sheet: ~70.0 x 20 (in) sheet.
1 bottom sheet: 57.0 x 18 (in) sheet

Beams
12 front beam sheets: 20.0 x 5.0
12 2nd beam sheets: 20.0 x 10.0
12 3rd beam sheets: 20.0 x 12.5
12 4th beam sheets: 20.0 x 12.0
12 5th beam sheets: 20.0 x 7.0
8 6th beam sheets: 20.0 x 10.0
12 7th beam sheets: 20.0 x 18.0
16 back beam sheets: 20.0 x 23.5

and

Lots of scraps and small bits of cardboard

Comments

[boredcrafter]

This is amazing. It's the perfect jumping off point for a cardboard playground for my two year old in this 103 degree Texas heat.

[k24tea]

This is good! I never thought I'd see cardboard furniture as in any way "elegant" but your design shows that it really can be! I agree with a previous comment that it probably would be more comfortable if it had a head or neck support. It reminds me of something I saw (and wanted) in a catalog several years ago. I think it was called a Whale or something like that -- you could lie on various parts of its curvature to stretch out your spine, but I thought it would also be good just to relax. I'd like to make something like this for use outside, from lightweight and inexpensive materials. I'm thinking maybe PVC pipe for the frame but the curves are a problem and I wouldn't like the chunky fittings. I wonder if cardboard could be sufficiently sealed to make it OK for outdoor use?

[Turnip123]

Major props from me. Last night I made a chair like this with my family. The little brother loves it, ultimate green comfortable jungle gym. If I might recommend something, mattress covers add a little needed plush and cleanliness to the chairs, you can get them at a thrift store for a couple bucks.

[sportsmangi]

cleanliness? thrift store? i don't believe those two are related. :)

[monique70]

They are if you launder or find some other way to sterilise what you buy there .It's what everyone should do for any item you buy at any store.If you think stuff that gets pawed over for weeks on end at upscale stores is any cleaner than what you find at a thrift store you should talk to my aunt who was a public health nurse for a few years.Since then she likes shopping at thrift stores better because she can clean the items she buys there without worrying about ruining an expensive purchase.

[sportsmangi]

I was only kidding i go to thrift stores quite often actually, some of the things I have found are unexpected buys every now and then. Plus if I ever need a radio most of them are no more then five dollars.

[monique70]

I thought you might be( because of the smiley face) but I wanted to comment just in case because so many people pay outrageous prices for items at regular stores thinking stuff in thrift stores is dirty when they have no qualms about wearing a dress or a pair of shoes that's been tried on by dozens of stangers in a boutique right out of the store.It only used to bug me because of the germ issue but after studying economics and finance I also see the strain they put on their finances out of an ignorance so I try to stamp out that false perception whenever I see it.I hope you don't feel I was being rude ,I just wanted people to get the right information .

[StumpChunkman]

Congratulations on being featured on ABC News!

[typenamehere_____]

This is a great idea; a great way to save money and stay green!  A chaise longue (the correct, albeit less common term (French)) is actually more like a low-backed couch with one end cut off... except prettier (the low back is not necessary for it to be one, but they most often have one.  I just have a problem with your's because it is shaped more like a modern-style chair rather than a longue; despite my obsessive need for correct information of others (sorry) I still think that it is a great design- the frame sheets are especially ingenious!)

[winkman]

This is great, really good pictures/ instructions, only thing is - it really doesn't look that comfy :) oh well

Thanks for the ible :)

[Truehart]

Great Instructable!  I like the innovation.  My only criticism is that it looks like you might need some sort of head rest.  It just looks a little not relaxed to have to hold your head up like that.  That's just me, maybe I'm lazy, though.

[j574sbi]

excellent illustration

[dobbylvr]

OMG THIS IS AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!! *starts saving cardboard*

[lemonie]

Wow, that's great! Makes me think about doing something with the cardboard I've got...
(chaise longue)

L

[DesignEs]

Thanks! We kept saving the cardboard until something just had to be done! Yeah, the spelling is confusing but wikipedia says it's an OK alternate spelling :)

[lemonie]

"OK" is a matter of opinion (Wikipedia doesn't say it's OK, but explains where it comes from) - Would you think "flourescent" acceptable because enough people use it?
I may be am pedantic, but I don't see the point in using chaise and spelling it correctly without getting the other half right...

(and anyway the whole thing is too good to be bickering over spelling - apologies!)

L