Update 024.
Looking Ahead
🎉 We Made It — 2 Years of Monthly Updates!
A very warm welcome to the 71 new subscribers since last month’s update - you chose a good time to join!
This update is packed: design origin stories, a refined product relaunch, a deep breath in the Scottish Highlands, and a glimpse into where this whole thing’s heading next.
2 years ago I was feeling pulled in all directions and a little snow-blind. I had so much to do that I found it hard to focus on just one task or even figure out what the most important task was in that moment - never mind have the space to look ahead and figure out where I wanted to be. I started this newsletter as a means of finding that focus and moving the needle. By forcing myself to share a monthly update, I had no choice but to find focus.
Here’s what that foggy starting point has grown into:
🧠 Announced 15 new product ideas
🚀 Launched 8 of them into the wild
🏢 Shared 1 local commercial project
🪑 Developed a full furniture collection
🔎 Posted 120 of my top finds
✍️Written over 38,400 words! (some of you have read every word 😮)
Moving Forward
For the first 12 updates, I launched 1 new product a month. This was exhilarating and exhausting. For year two, I eased off and shared more behind-the-scenes work. Now, year three begins — and I’m switching gears again. Now, year three begins — and I’m switching gears again.
Each month, I’ll focus on one big theme in design — something worth chewing on. It might be mass customisation, digital friction, conscious consumerism, or the quiet decline of design education. Got something you want covered?
Next month we’ll be unpacking mass customisation: what we were promised vs what we got.
Who's Reading This, Really?
I started this newsletter with the hope that I would grow a closer connection with people with similar interests to me. The newsletter has grown a little since then and I’d love to get to know more about you.
🎁 The Giveaway Winner is…
To mark 2 years of running this monthly update I wanted to say a massive thank you to everyone who takes the time to read my updates. What better way to do that, then to run a giveaway and provide you all with an opportunity to get your hands on some of the products you have helped me to launch.
Thank you to everyone that took part, participation was high!
Congrats to Frances Plommer, our winner! You’ll be receiving some of the very products this community helped bring to life.
Your ID Origin Story ✍️
Last month I shared my design origin story. The idea of anyone discovering product design as a career still seems so unlikely to me and relies on so many strokes of luck. With subjects at school that allow children to discover this incredible discipline on the decline (42% drop in uptake of Design & Technology at A level in English schools), I want to shine a light on how others discovered product design as a career path so I went to the Minor Details discord channel (an amazing, worldwide community of product designers):
Brian Donlin - Freelance Industrial Designer
Studied mechanical engineering in College in the US for 3 semesters and through a fortunate conversation with a friend discovered Industrial Design and realised this was exactly what they had been trying to do through mechanical engineering.
Ryan Hume - Acid Rain Technology
Grew up constantly building “things”. Discovered Industrial Design when speaking to his Dad about College who had been to Art School himself (Art Center in LA) and spoke about students he would see walking through the building with models studying something called “industrial Design”.
Jason Palermo - Industrial Designer
Grew up with a father who was an Industrial Designer that had medically retired before they were born. Seeing their fathers design drawings as a young child stuck with them and lit a fire to draw at every opportunity and be a sponge to any related opportunity until they were able to study Industrial Design at University.
Alex Blondek - Product Designer at OMK
Was always hands on helping his Dad fix classic cars growing up. Alex had a love for technology and film and thought they would be studying animation at University. A lightbulb moment happened when designing and making a modern grandfather clock at school, leading to the realisation that this was the direction they should be taking.
Each of these stories has a moment — a conversation, a project, a parent’s influence — that unlocked the path to design. But what stands out most is how accidental it all feels. It shouldn't take a stroke of luck to find your way into such a vibrant, creative industry.
As schools continue to move away from hands-on, design-led subjects, the chance of young people stumbling into industrial design is shrinking. That’s a problem — not just for the future of our field, but for all the children who never get the chance to discover what they're truly great at.
Let’s keep sharing these stories. The more visible and varied our paths into design become, the more likely it is that someone else sees themselves in them — and finds their way in, too.
My Products, My philosophy
With what seems like an infinite number of forces at play making it harder than ever for small, thoughtful product companies to survive, never mind thrive - I find myself more driven than ever to put thoughtful, meaningful products out into the world that don’t compromise on quality. The type of products people want to own and help in some way.
I’ve spent the last few months reflecting quite heavily on what I want to focus my attention on for the next 5 years. Time is tight, family time is important but I am driven more than ever to add thoughtful friction into people’s lives.
I want to design products that intentionally take us out of auto-pilot.
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.
As a thank you, you can use this discount code at checkout (available site wide): SubstackCrew (20% off).
Last months most clicked link: Fellow’s first espresso machine.
My top 5 pieces of content I have found helpful/inspiring:
1.
How to stop being so phone addicted. I have shared episodes by search engine previously and this one really resonated with me. As someone that is deeply interested in adding friction back into our lives, I am constantly exploring options to establish a healthier relationship with my phone. Considering buying a brick - if you own one, I’d love to hear your experiences!
2.
The Watchmaker Apprentice. One of the most powerful documentaries I have ever watched. I enjoy watching documentaries but when I first watched this over 10 years ago, it totally changed the way I look at the world. An absolute must watch if you haven’t seen this already.
3.
Jony Ive X OpenAI. I was skeptical when I saw this first. Ignoring the ridiculous production value, there is a childlike excitement here that’s infectious. The same excitement that got me excited about design in the first place. I want this to be true but can’t help but feel skeptical.
4.
I tried to Master espresso in 30 days. There are only a few YouTubers that I actually stop what I’m doing to watch and Matt D’Avella is one of those. If you enjoy your espresso as much as I do, you’ll enjoy this one.
5.
Who Broke the Internet: Understood. Another podcast. Sorry. Great listen if you’re interested in how “enshitification” works. The act of actively making something worse to increase engagement.
CMF Dock Reborn
Back in update 015, I introduced an open source, 3D printed dock for the CMF watch pro 2 - a brilliant budget smartwatch with a terrible out of the box charger. I wanted to design something simple that could sit on a bedside table without taking up too much space and offer a better charging experience. I was never happy with the result though - it felt clunky and lacked the minimalism and refinement I seek in my own work.
I have long been a believer that some of our best ideas come when we’re not actively focussed on them. This frustration has been sat in the back of my mind, slowly cooking away, until a better version popped into my periphery. Less than 30 minutes later I had a mockup of version 2 and 1 hour later a first prototype in my hands. After quite a bit of tweaking to ensure the tolerances were dialled in, I’m happy to re-release the new and improved CMF watch dock, now taking up even less surface area. Made from two simple 3D prints, this design seamlessly hides the cable internally and snaps together without the need for any additional fixings.
I’m pretty chuffed with this one and it’s available to download and print yourself on makerworld.
Why I live in the middle of nowhere.
Aberdeen, my home, is tucked away at the very top of the UK - geographically isolated from a lot, including the design industry. It is never lost on me how privileged my family and I are to call this our home though. In less than 20 minutes, we can be in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by nature.
This walk is my wife and I’s absolute favourite and the first time we have been able to walk it together since having our children. A 6 hour hike up to the top of 1,150m Lochnagar through some of the most stunning scenery you could hope to witness.
What started off as a few short videos taken on my iPhone (playing with sport mode for smooth footage) quickly became the below video, drawing you into the beautiful Scottish landscape.
Music by Alex Productions
Having the ability to escape into nature in this way gives me perspective - we need more friction in our system to draw us away from our digital lives. One of the many themes I want to unpack across a whole update in the future. Watch this space.