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For this to work

What would you leave behind if you had to get up and go RIGHT NOW?
To get satisfaction from making something it has to be personal. If it is furniture then it has to have skill, craftsmanship, quality about it. Like a Chair hand carverd by a great granparent.

Design a range of products that are a reaction to the current economic climate. Produce a range or a product that develops a sence of satisfaction and well being.

i.e. When someone asks where you go it, you can reply that you made it yourself.

What?

1. watch     *
   
2. wallet     *
3. keys
4. phone
5. laptop
6. lamp
7. table     *
8. chair     *
9. bookshelf
10. bookend     *
11. candlestick
12. usb     *
13. jewellery
14. camera
15. camera case     *
16. laptop case     *
17. purse     *
18. clothes
19. keyring
20. keyholder
21. sidetables
22. glasses case     *
23. bag     *
24. clock     *

Can I make cheap furniture using every day, cheap things from a DIY store, with no skill required?

I set about designing and making a chair, a large relaxing chair. Ispired by the Tord Boontje one, but well designed "better" in my head.

Having worked out materials, sizes and costs. It was all going to come in at £4.93, for materials + a saw! (I decided some things can be ignored in costing)

Here are the photos of the chair being built:

Inspiration came in the form of furniture in Urabn Outfitters Glasgow. Very cheap, nocked togeather and restored furniture:

Designing furniture seems the easy option.

From the people at Ready Made Magazine comes the ready made book. Beautifully made, designed and constructed, the book shows you some great projects to play with from odds and ends.

The Kitchen Toolbox was selected to exhibit at this years Idea Home Show 2009 as part of the Inovation Nation exhibition.

PLEASE VOTE FOR ME  AT:
VOTE HERE

Here is some of the other work on display:

	Hamish Bigg

Today on the (18 Feb) was my final photoshoot for my D&AD boards.

Sent 4 boards down to London to be judged in catagory 22 - Furniture Design - Matthew Hilton

This blog post has been backdated as I could not display the boards before judging. And I won!!!

Over the weekend, I set about getting all the materials needed to make a Tord Boontje Chair.

I don't know, so I dismantled one.

Thinking Big!!

Growing own food is too small an idea...so what is bigger...
Following is Tord Boontje style...Furniture...but that has been done....
Personal effects - There will be more satisfaction in making them

Puma/Nike - Make your own shoes




















How can I make a watch? Tomorrows task.

Years ago I had come across the work of Tord Boontje. But yesterday I was reminded of the work.

The Rough and Ready collection comprises of furniturw which reflecra urban situations. It is made from materials which have been salvaged or are common place and cheap. The pieces, as their title suggest appear rough and ready.  They have a sense of imcompleteness, a feeling that things might change. They are utilitarian works, which acknowledge the beauty of imperfection and offers an alternative to slick objects. A chair for example can be made from found wood, a blanket and some string, tape or wire. It is made available through free drawings and building instructions, much like a DIY kit. The person who wishes to build a chair does so by collecting the materials and forming the components in accordance with the drawing. Constructions are basic, this makes it possible for everyone to build their own.

Presentation on 10/03/2009

Reviewed previous presentations slides and my latest plans and objectives.

• Good brief - Short and too the point.
• Remove identity from aims.
• It is topical because the government are jumping on the bandwagon of satisfaction and well being during the credit crunch.
• Creating a book, a series of books is a great idea.
• Need to speak to a nutricianist.
• Look at a project from 3 years ago at Napier, where a student did a project where people talked to plants.
• Think much bigger than plants.
• If it is just plants then I will fail.
• Look at Tord Boontje - http://www.tordboontje.com/
• Think up to 20 ideas.
• Think bigger than I can make.
• Think of putting a man in space with a tin can, then bring it back again, as thats too big.

Today I worked out a plan of action. I now have a title, an aim and a plan.

Feeling Good

Design a range of products/collection/item that is/are a reaction to the current economic climate.

Aim

Produce a range/a product that develops a sence of satisfaction, identity and wellbeing.

Correction - I don't want identity. I cannot make someone have an identity. Or can I?

Economy of Gift

How to get things in return.
The KUIA RING MALINOWSKI
-they trade shells, value of shells was in providence.

Plan

• HERBAL REMIDIES
• GRAZING ON HOME GROWN PRODUCTS
• NUTRIENTS - what do we get? Can these be drugs?
• GROW PLANTS/ROOTS/FLOWERS THAT WE CAN NIBBLE ON.
• THIS IS A BOOK, A PRODUCT, AN AID?

Growing my own drugs?

Is this legal? Well not if its illegal drugs. So lets just stick to legal ones.

Roots can be considered drugs in different cultures. Many cultures use drugs and herbal remodies as nutricion.

Will a daily picking of drugs lead to feeling good?








BBC 2 - Grow your own drugs.








Episode 1 - Fruit
(link)
"Many people think of plants as purely ornamental, something to brighten up back gardens and window boxes, but in this six-part series, ethnobotanist James Wong demonstrates how to transform familiar plants into simple natural remedies that could help ease the symptoms of minor everyday ailments, as well as how to make some pampering beauty treatments.

In this opening episode, James reveals that there is more to some fruit than just the nutritional value. He uses figs to relieve constipation, hops for a good night's sleep, turns kiwis and papayas into a soothing face mask and uses goji berries in a soup that could help feed a cold - and all from things that might be found in any fruit bowl.

James tries out his remedies on members of the public, with some surprising results." - bbc website

Recipies

(follow the above link to more recipies)

Where do we get satisfaction from?

I presume:

A - growing
B - eating
C - general wellbeing from the ablove

What happens between the plate and happieness?

What happens after you are happy from eating?

• Can food be in our clothes?
• How would NASA be looking at the future of eating?

• Fat Kings
• Displays of food
• Food was entertainment
• Food was satisfying.

Can plants be embedded in the furniture within our homes, so we can graze?

Brittain has a grazing culture...can this be transformed into grazing on healthy snacks?

Leaves, beats, lettuces grow easily...

Been thinking for a few days about how can I grow plants indoors?

Been continuing to grow more plants...

Cannot wait to try them.

What kind of narritive could the project take?

Today I had to write a document on what I see from the future of my masters project.

As I shuffle back from the living room with my freshly picked carrots, I ask myself ‘what did I do before I was able to just pick up the freshest of fresh ingredients before, without going to the supermarket?’, my mind still wandering as I return through the hall to the kitchen with everything I need for tonight’s dinner. It all started 2 years ago: having just moved back to Edinburgh to return to university, I set up home in this small but spacious flat in Merchiston.

It all started in September 2007, the first of the British banks had to be bailed out by the government, and the UK slowly began to plunge into a recession. 20 years after the last recession, the GDP of Britain had dropped by 27%, 2 million people were unemployed, and in the coming months manufacturers were going to shed about 45% of jobs. This was not only a recession: it was generally depressing.

By the end of 2008 GDP had dropped by 41%, and each Britton was going to be £1000, worse off in the next year, yet Gordon Brown was putting a positive spin on the situation. The heads of the largest banks in the UK had resigned as the government ploughed millions of taxpayers’ money into the banks to save them.

How could we survive in this situation, working more, paying more tax, having no expendable income with no escape. Does the world turn to religion? Fresh carrots began by having no money: what would you do if you suddenly had no money? Steal, borrow, barter or be self sufficient?

With growing urbanisation, and less green space: we needed space to grow our own food, rear our own livestock. But how could this be done in a 60 square meter flat in the centre of Edinburgh, with two bedrooms, living room, bathroom and kitchen and no garden. The idea of hope, and the realization of some sort of satisfaction could be seen in the future.

Two months later as was sitting watching the world go by out of the window, the sun on my face, the first shoot of life poked through.

ITS VEG TIME!

I know it's only the 20th of Febuary but im heading out later to buy stuff to plant fruit and veg.

Been reading some gardening magazines and I think I can do it inside....we shall see.

Back from "Dobbies" now- so iv never been there before. What an amazing place, could spend a fortune if I had a garden. And I can't believe how busy it was.

There was a proper fight over "seeded potatos"

Carrots in a tub	Sand to grow indoors
Carrots	Pre-seeded pepers, basil and corriander
Courgette

So it's time to do something!

If we have no money what do we do?

• steal
• borrow
• barter

I have taken quick scans of my notebook with photos and some scribbles to show you what I was thinking.

Been reccomended a book to read:

"In the Bubble" by John Thackara

Some muesings from my sketchbook

What I have to do as a designer:

Find things I don't know I am looking for.

I am (me personaly) will always be on the search for the perfect project, and at the time I will not know it is perfect.


Social scientists don't research everything...Design doesn't do that.

Aims????

Well i really need to narrow ideas on what my aims are!

Ideas

·         Will history repeat itself? Like the recession in the 1980/90s

·         Does environment, global change etc influence human actions/economy

·         What survived the previous recessions?

·         What will ‘struggle through’?

·         Can I guestimate the future?

·         Can I design products for the future world as opposed to present problems?

·         Can I make up an analogy for the future to design around?

·         What is our relationship with economics?

·         What happens at the fringes – Banks, Barter, Greed, money Fraud....1

After a meeting today I have come out more clueless than I went in:

With the topic of  "Economy" I have to consider:

• My Final design may be asking more questions!
• I need to take risks
• Why am I going to do this research?
• Don't rely on others to see the blinding obvious

After a week to muse over what I am going to explore for my Masters Major Project, we are gripped by the biggest and deepest recession...

So what does the recession mean for a designer?

Explore....

What I presented today as a comprehensive, deep, thought out presentation:

Study/Research ‘The Economy’: investigate where a possible design intervention could be a solution to a problem or the research will develop a design intervention.

07/02/09

Simple.... a 1 slide powerpoint. Powerfull and too the point.

Major Project

Having been stuck on my major project for some time, with the idea that I want to create an "iconic" product.

Research Methodologies

We were set a 1 week research project to present any way we wish.

The Brief was 'Through the eyes of a designer"

I am verry passionate about how products are made, the materials they are made from and how these materials will cope with everyday use. So I went about looking at the materials in our world.

Went for a walk about to analyse the economy...how else was I ment to do it with no money!

Notes:

shops closing
snow and sun at the same time
graffiti in strange places - "what can I get away with?"
sunglasses in the rain
"SALE" in every shop
roadworks
people queuing
uneven pavements (i only noted this because i tripped)
people complaining
cold
take away sandwiches are expensive
dull and gloomy lighting
grumpy people on bus
foreigners not knowing where buses go
no signposts of where you are
no directions in Edinburgh city centre
bad parking
its cold-could we heat the air arround us while we walk?
heated clothes? hmmm
empty shops
timer broken on lamp in flat -flat in darkness




There was several pages...all the same kind of images....depressing.

Over Christmas and New Year been working on a 30 page book with the breif "My Home"






The book was written in a "Karen" style.

There was a Black Sandpaper cover, printed on 180gsm cartridge paper, with tracing paper overlays.

Here are some extracts:

I doubt this gets viewed regularly but

• Produce a book on "my home"
• Major project
• Ideal Home Show in London showcasing my "Kitchen Toolbox"
• Send off D&AD project
• ......whatever happens with my major project.
• Hopefully London again for New Designers
• Sometime near the end of the accidemic year - DISSERTATION HELL

After calculating that the sun rose at 6.31 today. I got up at 5 AM!!! So I could get to Portobello Beach.

(click on the image bellow to go to google to see where it is or here)

I was a little early...as the sun did rise at this time...it didn't get very light. Although it did begin to snow.


So after about 600 images, none of them worked for me!
Oh what we go through for that perfect image.

And a few images of the beautiful studio after I got into uni at 8am to give the cleaner a fright of her life, I tried to warm up by a fire as the heating hadn't kicked in yet. So thought I would update this...


Till another day...

Here are a couple of my examples of my D&AD concept models.

Don't want to post too much incase someone coppies.

Working on more D&AD Concepts.

Except these ones are looking like coffins....hmmm

Idea is a solid table, with a foot rest/movable stool. Sloping sides on the table to rest feet/perch.

Playing with the idea of all the pieces joining or stacking togeather. I began to wonder about the tables becoming shelves. A complete modular shelf and table collection.



more to come soon...

Been working on the D&AD breif for Matthew Hilton.

Here are some concepts on some table designs.

Sketching with CAD is my stong point when it comes to design like this.

Fast and Easy, don't spend any time on complex renders. Using Rhino 3D and Flamingo.

Making a start on the D&AD student breif for 2009

Choosing Matthew Hilton - Furniture Design

The brief
Design a beautiful and functional new piece of furniture to join the Matthew Hilton range

Considerations
- Successful entries will demonstrate an understanding of the core values of the Matthew Hilton Brand, this will be evident through their analysis of the range and identification of where there are weaknesses. The end design should help to strategically build the collection and be a commercially realistic addition.

- Matthew Hilton aims to produce beautiful furniture, which is inventive in design and production methods whilst remaining realistic, usable and functional. Innovative use of timber based technology are the main strengths but this can be augmented with the use of other materials such as metals and composites, ceramics, glass and fabrics either to add structural stability or decorative elements.

Further information
www.matthewhilton.com
www.delaespada.com
http://www.delaespada.com/UKnew/shoppingframe.htm


Initial Ideas

Based on Matthew's own admitions to being inspired by Sea Defences, I am going to use that as a starting point, as he is yet to design anything that I feel brings out the idea of a Sea Defence.

RSA Breif to save the post office!

After completing this project I decided to upload these boards a produced for the project even though I decided in the end not to submit them to the competition.

Service Design - it scared me to start with.


I woud like to thank the nice guy in the little post office who was a HUGE inspiration to begin with. Those images are at the end....turn the post offices into drug dens and brothels.

But seriously - I proposed closing more post offices and making them more prominent in a city. When you go abroad you know where the post office is...it's the big grand building.

#Servicedesign  #post office