IKEA pencil

IKEA pencils are small pencils provided for free[1] in IKEA stores worldwide. They are found in small boxes attached to poles, together with maps, measuring tapes and shopping forms. The IKEA pencil has been known for the wide variety of designs.

IKEA pencil
Modern IKEA pencils.
ManufacturerIkea
AvailableAvailable
Old IKEA pencils

Through the years the color changed from blue, to yellow to the natural color of wood. Despite the different colors, its dimensions have always been 7x87mm (¼" x 3½").[2]

It is said that the IKEA pencil was introduced to rival the Argos pen, which was also given for free at Argos stores in the United Kingdom.[3] During this time, the competitor only provided six pens for each catalogue stand while IKEA offered them in large dispensers.[3] IKEA orders 5.2 million pencils yearly for its Canadian stores alone,[4] and the company does not disapprove of customers that put them to other uses such as craft projects or works of art. The Dutch artist Judith Delleman constructed a chair out of hundreds of them.[4]

Being disposable, the pencils are also used by surgeons to mark osteotomy cuts in craniofacial and maxillofacial surgery.[5][6][7] Another application of pencils is to draw electronic circuits, and IKEA pencils have been used in the fabrication of free chlorine sensors for drinking water.[8]

References
  1. Inter IKEA Systems B.V. 1999 - 2016. "Shop any way you like". Ikea.com. Retrieved 2017-01-03.
  2. "Mini potlood (IKEA maat)". benito.nl. Archived from the original on 2014-10-06.
  3. Ward, James (2014). Adventures in Stationery: A Journey Through Your Pencil Case. London: Profile Books Ltd. ISBN 9781847658715.
  4. Cross, Allison (22 December 2010). "A penchant for pencils". Toronto Star. Retrieved 11 November 2014.
  5. Eley, Karen A.; Watt-Smith, Stephen R (December 2010). "The IKEA pencil: a surprising find in the NHS". BMJ. 341:c6595: c6595. doi:10.1136/bmj.c6595. PMID 21148219.
  6. "A new surgical tool -- the IKEA pencil".
  7. Melnick, Meredith (December 10, 2010). "IKEA Pencils: The Latest in Surgical Technology". Time. Retrieved 10 June 2015.
  8. Hoque, E.; Hsu, L. H. H.; Aryasomayajula, A.; Selvaganapathy, P. R.; Kruse, P. (August 2017). "Pencil-Drawn Chemiresistive Sensor for Free Chlorine in Water". IEEE Sensors Letters. 1 (4): 4500504. doi:10.1109/LSENS.2017.2722958.
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