Better Homes And Gardens 8 Cube Vs Kallax

Better Homes and Gardens

Better Homes and Gardens are more than just a magazine showing off the latest in home décor. They have a line of furniture available in several places from Walmart to Wayfair.

Materials

The main materials are MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard) and particle board which contribute to its heavy package weight of 80 lbs. The sticker in front of the package stated this should be lifted with two people. Although this was well packaged with styrofoam and heavy cardboard, when it arrived, a couple of the shelves had dents in them. There is a safety strap with screws that come along with the product rather than brackets.

Right away I noticed the finish is very easy to scratch, although keep in mind, this was the only cube organizer that arrived in Espresso and scruffs tend to appear more easily on darker surfaces.

The BHG Cube Organizer comes in eight different finishes from High Gloss Black Lacquer to Pink, although most selections tend to be natural wood finishes. This is a standalone product with no other accessories.

Assembling the Product

This package requires both a Phillips and a flathead screwdriver for assembly.

The instructions are a combination of short written words to go along with diagrams, and while each panel may look crowded with information, it displays everything you need to know about each step.
Each board is labeled with a small, round circular sticker that corresponds to the diagram, so there is no mistake which piece connects to others. The dowels slip right into the openings without feeling loose, and when the partition matrix stands on its own, it does not feel like it will fall apart.

As far as the fixings go, this is the only package that includes washers in the assembly and a cam lock and cam bolt system to secure the structure.

The most challenging part is getting all of the dowels from three separate shelves to fit into all of the openings on the long panel because this has to be done on both sides. There is a bit of going back and forth on both long boards to make sure all the dowels line up, but once all these dowels line up, it feels pretty secure. When the cam lock system is tightened on both sides, then it is fastened for sure.

Assembly took about 50 minutes. Extra time went into making sure the panels lined up with the dowels.

Appearance

Aside from the product lighting that gives the cube organizer depth, the Better Homes and Garden cube organizer is a solid piece. It is a shame that the piece scruffs so quickly and as mentioned before, there is a certain amount of leeway when dealing with a dark color, this is a sturdy product, so I don't want to think of treating the finish delicately.

Who would use it?

Maybe because the brand is Better Homes and Gardens, the accompanying description (from Walmart) is that this cube storage organizer is meant to store curios, photos, and knick-knacks, suggesting that this was intended to be more of a display piece. The BHG is an attractive cube organizer, and I can see that a real estate agent would use this piece to stage a house they want to sell. A larger version of this can be used as a room divider in a college dorm with a place to store books; maybe not much for privacy with a dormmate, but still a useful piece.

Price

$68.00

Are you better off buying a stack of crates or cardboard boxes?

This is far superior to a stack of crates or cardboard boxes. This cube organizer is a solid piece of furniture for something that is RTA (Ready to Assemble). The cam-lock system is generally found in only the sturdiest of assemble furniture and is the most stable of all of these cube organizers.

Overall rating

4 out of 5 cubbyholes. The natural scratching and chipping are the reasons why this isn't a 5 cubbyhole rating.

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