The application of chelation to transition metal ions as a means of controlling the packing motifs of substituted catechols and of substituted malonates has been studied. Substituted malonates have been shown to be capable of solid state photo- or thermally induced decarboxylation or dehydration. It has been shown that chelation with different metallic cations (Ni2+, Zn2+, Cu2+, V5+, Cr3+ and VO2+ were used) led to differences in solid state packing, and thus reactivity of the benzylidene cyclopentanone framework. The ratio of organic moiety to metallic cations was varied for the copper and vanadyl species leading to solids with different properties to the stoichiometric adducts, leading to the possibility of charge transfer phenomena.