Fed up with clothes racks, IKEA launches discreet solution for drying laundry without cluttering space

 

A palm sized contraption is quietly reshaping a tedious household ritual in America, doing more with less space. Could the simplest thing in your home be the one that makes everything faster, tidier, and oddly satisfying?

In small homes, the drying rack claims more real estate than it deserves, yet socks and underwear still pile up damp. A compact hanger with clips tackles the crunch, making it easy to air dry the little things inside or out without hogging floor space. It rides a wider trend toward simpler chores and smarter storage on a wallet friendly scale, aimed squarely at the everyday bottleneck of laundry day.

A common annoyance solved

Laundry day in a studio apartment can feel like Tetris. Bulky drying racks swallow precious floor space and slow everything down. Ikea’s new clip-on hanger, nicknamed the “pieuvre,” promises relief for tight quarters. It turns dead air above radiators, windows, or showers into usable drying space. Setup is instant—no assembly, no tools, just hang and start clipping. When space is tight, every inch has to do double duty.

What exactly is the pieuvre?

French for “octopus,” the pieuvre lives up to the image with 8 arms and several integrated clips. It gathers socks, underwear, and other small items on 1 compact hub, keeping them off crowded lines. You can hang it on a doorframe, a shower rod, or a balcony rail, indoors or out. The circular clip layout spaces items evenly for airflow, which shortens dry times without a machine. A central hook swivels, so you can spin the hanger to clip and unclip quickly. It’s sturdy enough for damp denim shorts yet gentle on knits and elastic.

Compact, practical and space-saving

Compared with a traditional rack that occupies 50 percent of your living room, this hanger uses vertical airspace. After use, it folds flat and slides into a drawer or basket. For roommates, students, and micro-apartment dwellers, that kind of flexibility feels like found square footage. By lifting laundry higher, you reduce tripping hazards in tight hallways and kitchens. It also pairs well with a standard rack, freeing 1 entire tier for bulkier pieces. Open-plan studios benefit most, where a drying corner often competes with a workspace.

Affordable and accessible

The appeal is also financial. Priced around 3.99 euros, the pieuvre underlines Ikea’s habit of turning small pain points into low-cost fixes. 2 of these can separate delicates from towels, and they travel well for vacations or laundromat runs. Because it’s small, shipping and storage footprints stay low, which helps keep prices stable. Buy 2 and rotate loads: 1 for activewear, 1 for baby clothes or dish towels. If you’re counting energy savings, air-drying smaller loads on clips can cut dryer cycles dramatically.

What are you waiting for?

Tired of stepping around a sprawling rack every wash day? Try a tool that consolidates the fiddly pieces and gives back room to breathe. You’ll still dry everything you need, just with fewer compromises and more control over your space. That’s the promise of the pieuvre: less clutter, faster turnover, same clean results.

Daniel Brooks
Written by Daniel Brooks

Daniel Brooks is a home and garden writer with a passion for practical living and outdoor spaces. He writes about gardening, home improvement and everyday solutions, helping readers create functional, welcoming homes and healthier gardens.