Update 021.
EXPERIMENTAL.
Last month I teased a secret project I have been working on behind the scenes - this month we take a deeper dive. Working on this new project has reignited my creativity and brought a real sense of purpose back into my practice. From modelling in VR and 3D printing iterations to traditional craft, folded sheet metal, and sourcing beautiful local hardwoods - it’s all on the table. Got the hint yet? This month is all about furniture - a bucket list project for me.
Since starting this project, chairs have very much been on my mind - I see them in my sleep. Outside of work, I love to build “stuff” with my son - he’s an out and out maker and master lego builder at only 5! His unfiltered creativity and the joy he gets from seeing his ideas realised is infectious. This was a chair we built together at our local Science Centre which we were pretty chuffed with… who knows, it might even compete with the actual chair I am designing!
Set yourself up for 2025
As a designer that was taught to reduce friction, I am now passionate about adding friction back into our lives. Too often we find ourselves in autopilot, trying to complete the never ending to do list we really don’t stand a chance of ever getting to the bottom of.
By focussing on producing beautifully crafted products that don’t compromise on quality and prioritise heightening everyday rituals, I aim to encourage more opportunities for disconnect.
I’m actively exploring ways to digitally detox and would love to hear what successes you have had - let me know in the comments and let’s start the conversation.
As a thank you, you can use this discount code at checkout (available site wide): SubstackCrew (20% off).
Last months most clicked link: Mara X
My top 5 pieces of content I have found helpful/inspiring:
1.
Humane Pin…Dead. Less than one year after releasing the AI pin, all sold Humane AI pin’s will stop speaking with the server (and essentially be bricks) on February 28th. Yet more tech failures stacking up in landfill. This was probably the most poorly reviewed hyped product in living memory and will be used as a classic case study in a product without a market - pure tech push, no market pull.
2.
A real Pixar lamp! Developed by Apple, this AI driven robot explores human response to an expressive (over pure function) robot. Expressive robotics is something I can get behind and having modelled Luxo Jr during the pandemic, I always had ambitions of making a real world lamp… maybe now is the time!
3.
Caamp - somewhere. Caamp’s new EP has been my go to this month for chilled out vibes when working or making. Folk/Country is my go to when needing to loosely concentrate and Caamp is treating me well.
4.
AirPods made from a pistachio. Yes your read that right… and now you need to see it right? Sometimes “because” is a good enough answer.
5.
Jony Ive - Desert Island Disks. I couldn’t resist putting this one in. The one line Ive said that stood out more than any other - “I struggle being present in the now because I spend so much time in my head in the future”.
Last month I teased a new project I have been working on. Today we unveil the details and share a little behind the scenes on the development process. This project has reignited my creative spark, letting me tap into just about everything I love about being a product designer.
I was hugely fortunate to be one of the lucky makers to get funded through the Tallships Makers Program, which ties in with the Tallships coming to Aberdeen later this year. Aberdeen (where I am based - a small city in the North of Scotland) has a rich ship building heritage - something I wanted to celebrate.
DISCOVER
My pitch? Honour the past whilst inspiring the future. Develop a range of furniture inspired by foundational wood joinery techniques rooted in Aberdeen’s shipbuilding history. Leverage local industries to celebrate the craftsmanship still thriving in Aberdeen.
When I discovered the story I shared last month about the fastest sail ship (the Thermopylae) in the world being built in Aberdeen I was blown away by how little I knew about this history, the incredible craftsmanship and innovation involved in bringing this ship to life.
During its time, the Thermopylae was considered “experimental” because of its innovative design and composite use of metal and wood. While being innovative was celebrated at the time, being labelled “experimental” was not. Throughout this project I sought to embrace the qualities that made the Thermopylae “experimental”, wearing this as a badge of honour.
DEVELOP
As a designer with a thirst for embracing new tools, I jumped at the chance to explore 3D modelling in VR when COVID hit. Armed with an original Quest headset, I quickly saw its potential—not just as a playful sketching tool but as a serious design tool. Gray’s, where I teach, became one of the first UK universities to join Gravity Sketch’s educational program, and I’ve been teaching students in immersive virtual spaces ever since. Now, with my new furniture project, I’ve finally found the perfect fit. Designing at a 1:1 scale, testing seating positions and exploring over 50 concepts—VR has unlocked a whole new level of creativity.
This approach led me to a design direction I’m not sure I would have come across otherwise and having refined it through more traditional CAD software I have been able to test iterations over the last few weeks. Alongside this, I have been working closely with industry partners to fine tune it and make it’s production ready. Below you can see one of the latest chair designs with a good number of iterations behind it!
Alongside what has been quite a tech forward approach to development, there is always a need to go back to basics to test the fundamentals. With a design developed I needed to understand how comfortable it would be to actually sit in. I pulled together this rough and ready prototype within an hour and got the confidence I needed to push the button on production.
(my home workshop… which I use almost exclusively a night, when the full time job has wrapped up for the day and the kids are in bed)
Timelines are tight with this project and production orders have been placed. If you’d like to see more behind the scenes to see how the pieces turned out, let me know!