Those of us in the United States saw a lot of American flags today, most of them fabric, which require maintenance. But an Ohio-based gent named Brooks Hazelbaker produces no-maintenance flags that are meant to hang on a wall, and won't be flapping in the breeze. That's because they're constructed out of the key piece of equipment from America's favorite pastime.
View the full content hereMuista is a new approach to a work-chair in the current computer era, when chairs have to not only support but keep our working bodies active and healthy.Muista's design offers interchangeable sitting positions, balance exercise and muscle stimulation—all ingredients needed for boosting creativity and health at work.
Jerry Miculek is a professional competition shooter who holds world records for speed and accuracy. To create the latest video for his well-trafficked YouTube channel (510,000-plus subscribers), he commissioned an impressive-looking replica of Captain America's shield. Miculek went with titanium since the "vibranium" it's made from in the comic books is of course fictional. Then he decided to test it out with live fire:
View the full content hereLong popular in Europe, modular storage took a while to catch on the U.S. Festool, Bosch, and DeWalt have offered it for years, and now Milwaukee is entering the category with its soon-to-be-released Packout Modular Storage system.
Like other modular systems, Packout offers contractors the ability to stack and connect components—making them easier to store and transport. Its most unique and significant feature is the ability to integrate soft-sided totes with hard plastic boxes and parts organizers, which will be a boon to the many tradespeople who carry frequently-used hand tools in open top bags. No one has offered this feature before.
Packout relies on short interlocking channels molded into the tops and bottoms of boxes and bags. Milwaukee refers to this connection system as Mod-Lock. Connecting a Mod-Lock component is a matter of placing it on top of another and sliding it towards the hinges. To prevent them from sliding apart a spring-loaded dog pops into a slot on the box below. Detaching a component is a matter of pulling up on the dog and sliding away from the hinges.
The boxes and organizers are plastic with extruded aluminum corner protectors. The handle pivots, screws, hinge pin, and latch bales are steel. The corner protectors can be used as tie-down points and for grasping units and dragging them out of a vehicle.
Like DeWalt ToughSystem and Ridgid Pro Series tool boxes, Milwaukee's are strong enough to stand on and can be transported in the rain without excessive leakage. As nice as they are, you would not want to try that with Festool Systainers,Bosch L-Boxxes, or DeWalt TStak.
Packout boxes and organizers have gasketed lids and are rated IP65—meaning they have undergone testing and proven to be protected against the ingress of dust and the ingress of water when subject to low-pressure jets (a test akin to the box being transported in the bed of a pickup truck in the rain). IP65 is two steps short of being watertight when temporarily immersed.
The ballistic fabric totes have plastic bottoms with the same interlocking channels as boxes and organizers. Fabric tool bags see a lot of wear so plastic bottoms are good—even when they are not part of an interlocking system. Veto Pro Pak, a maker of high-end tool bags, has used plastic bottoms for many years and competing brands have emulated that feature.
The Packout system is made in Israel—probably by Keter, which produces storage products under its own label for Husky, Ridgid, Craftsman, and others.
Scheduled for release in September of this year, the system will initially include 3 tool boxes, 2 parts organizers, and 3 soft-sided totes. The largest tool box has wheels and a telescoping handle, which allows it to function as a dolly for the other components in the system.
Yesterday was July 4th, a day when Americans see many flying flags. But one that environmentally-unfriendly industrialists might not like to see is artist John Gerrard's "Western Flag:"
To be clear, Gerrard is neither American nor is "Western Flag" a critique of America. Rather, the Irish artist is making a statement about modern civilization. "One of the greatest legacies of the 20th century is not just population explosion or better living standards but vastly raised carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere," Gerrard writes. "This flag gives this invisible gas, this international risk, an image, a way to represent itself."
In the following video he explains why the virtual flag was "sited" at a particular locale in Texas, and explains how it was created:
As the Costume Designer for "Wonder Woman," Lindy Hemming had her work cut out for her. The titular character's costume had already been designed, by Michael Wilkinson, for her appearance in the earlier "Batman v. Superman," and now it fell to Hemming to reverse-engineer how that costume might have evolved from Amazonian armor. Hemming also, of course, had to design all of the more traditional armor worn by the Amazons in the more recent movie.
"So the costumes on Themyscira [the Amazonian island] are almost like sportswear in a way, archaic sportswear, because that's really that's what the Amazons are," Hemming said in an interview. "I researched a lot of modern sportswear and training gear and I called what they wear on Themyscira their 'training armour'."
While Hemmings doesn't go into detail about her research in that interview, costume designer Amanda Weaver (who is unaffiliated with the production, but an observant fan) did analyze Hemmings' designs and break them down nicely in this epic Twitter thread:
The Crane Lampis a playful, movable light by London-based design studio Animaro. The lamp changes dramatically in height and shape, with a form inspired by the shape of a Crane bird extending its neck to catch prey. At a time when so many mechanical devices are being replaced by digital tools, the Crane Lamp invites users to play with its materiality and expanding form.
The mission of the Kentucky Music Educators Association is to "enrich the lives of students through music." Each year they host a gathering of their All State Choir, where roughly 1,000 students from around Kentucky stay together at an 18-story Hyatt Hotel. At 11pm, the students all come out of their rooms and line the atrium, exploiting its acoustics to marvelous effect:
The KtraK rear-drive kit is a universal attachment that replaces the rear wheel of a mountain bike with a track drive system. The proprietary track design creates traction on previously “un-ridable” surfaces such as snow and sand, providing almost 25 times the traction and flotation of the average mountain bike wheel.
View the full content hereA small exhibit on Pre-Raphaelite art at the Met was an opportunity for me not only to take another gander at the lovely Jane Morris but also to revisit the Cabinet by Sir Edward Burne-Jones that, for me, epitomizes the early English Arts and Crafts Movement. The English A&C movement was founded based on ideas by John Ruskin, and William Morris was one of its most important proponents. While the movement was the inspiration for the American A&C movement, there is very little commonality of styles.
The American A&C movement as promoted by Gustav Stickley, The Roycroft Movement and others, was very much a machine-made movement. For all the accessibility of the designs for modern makers, the originals were designed and built in furniture factories. Stickley published his designs because he felt strongly that people should be able to make the work themselves; however, his fumed finishes, for example, were done with strong ammonia by professionals in a factory - a technique really outside the ability of all but the most determined amateurs.
Greene & Greene and Frank Lloyd Wright represent the high end of the A&C movement in the US. Greene & Greene and Frank Lloyd Wright were very much like their English counterparts in that their work was fancier than Stickley's and custom made. Both were also heavily influenced by Japanese styles.
The early English Arts and Crafts artists, Burne-Jones and Morris among them, were also part of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, a group of artists who wanted to roll back time and work in styles that existed before the time of Raphael. They also were stuck in a Dungeons and Dragons world of knights, shining armor, damsels in distress, and long tales of chivalry. J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis both were inspired by the long tales that Morris wrote (poorly).
This piece from 1861 of painted and gilded pine, painted leather, copper hardware, and painted iron hinges is called "The Backgammon Players" and was designed by Philip Webb and painted by Burne-Jones. It was one of the earliest pieces manufactured by William Morris' company, and one of the first pieces of the English A&C movement. Morris's furniture, and English Arts and Crafts furniture in general, very much reflect 19th century interpretations of what a knight would want in his baronial hall or boudoir. This piece, stripped of its paintings, is a fairly straightforward Victorian cabinet. With its decoration and painted scene, it becomes a masterwork of the Pre-Raphaelite era, and a really cool English A&C piece.
There is a lesson to be learned here, of course. What would happen if you took a fairly simple cabinet, and painted it up? Wouldn't that be cool? It certainly would be a much more interesting piece of furniture than lots of the stuff we see today. But it also shows off a difference in the way modern designers view furniture. Today, we look at furniture as a form, and the interest comes from the way the form interacts with the surrounding spaces. Material and grain choices are used to amplify the form. Contrast this with what Burne-Jones did. He created a complete narrative in the work. The interest in his piece comes from the story in the painting and the rest of the decoration reinforces that narrative and the mood of the piece.
N.B. There are exceptions to the modern fixation about form, notably that of Silas Kopf, a master of marquetry whose work very much is about the story on the piece in addition to the materials used and form of the pieces. But he is a glorious exception.
___________________
This "Tools & Craft" section is provided courtesy of Joel Moskowitz, founder of Tools for Working Wood, the Brooklyn-based catalog retailer of everything from hand tools to Festool; check out their online shop here. Joel also founded Gramercy Tools, the award-winning boutique manufacturer of hand tools made the old-fashioned way: Built to work and built to last.
Yesterday some of our American readers watched people do extremely dumb, dangerous things with fireworks. July 4th is a busy time for ambulance drivers, ER doctors and YouTube camerapeople.
Miraculously no one was hurt during this particular stunt, where the guys from Hoonigan—"a motorsport-lifestyle brand with a penchant for automotive debauchery"—took what looks to be a '90s-era BMW 3-class, painted it up in the Stars 'n Stripes, and turned the car into a rolling fireworks show:
I'm sure you're thinking the same thing I am: A German car? These guys couldn't get their hands on, like, a '75 Plymouth Valiant or something?
Wilton Brands LLC (“Wilton”) has a portfolio of iconic brands and is the leading supplier in the U.S. Crafts Industry. These brands help families successfully celebrate life’s many occasions, express their creativity through crafts, encourage them to share with their families and friends, and capture their meaningful and lasting memories. Wilton operates through two divisions, Wilton Enterprises and Simplicity Creative Group, which are leaders in their respective categories.
View the full design job hereThis should be required viewing for all industrial design students.
The story starts off with the history of the modern pen which, fascinatingly, was prompted by spilled ink ruining a contract. What follows is a tale of clever design, mastery of materials, ergonomic considerations and above all, business savvy.
The second part of the story is equally instructive, covering both the successes and failures of an intelligent industrialist who sought to expand a pen empire into a product empire.
A design problem many attempt to tackle: How to get sunlight into an interior space. 3M does it with materials science. Dr. Diva Tommei does it with robotics. Ross Lovegrove does it with tubes and reflectors.
Product designer Leslie Nooteboom is trying it with technology. During her final year of studying Innovation Design Engineering at the Royal College of Art, Nooteboom designed Komorebi, an indoor lamp that visually mimics what natural sunlight would provide:
komorebi is sunlight filtering through leaves, creating a dance of light and shadows where filtered sunrays hit a surface. It is the reflections on pavements underneath centuries-old trees on a sunny day, and moving, framed lightboxes through windows of homes onto walls.
komorebi is programmable, this means that it can change shape, location and interact with its environment. The product exists of three parts. The first is a dynamic projector that is able to change the location of the light. This projector is informed by a platform where people can upload light experiences that can then be inserted in their living space. Thirdly there is the projection itself, which is a computer generated visual for which I've created artificial sunlight, but which could be any type of visual.
Lastly, here's a word of unsolicited advice (from someone who sits through dozens or hundreds of videos each week) for those of you releasing DIY videos of your designs: My suggestion is to avoid including avant-garde music. Music is such a subjective thing that what you might find pleasing to the ear, others may find distractingly dissonant.
Our friend Be Original Americas, the nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting original design, has recently expanded, welcoming Studio O+A as its first architecture and design firm member. As a member, Studio O+A joins design industry leaders in recognizing the value of authentic design from an economic, ethical, and environmental perspective.
"Years of designing work environments for some of the most creative people in business have taught us that innovative thinkers appreciate innovative design. The next generation of designers is coming into the profession at a time when their work will be recognized and valued. That's good for everybody because originality and authenticity—we just call it "good design"—makes every experience richer, happier, more meaningful." —Primo Orpilla, Studio O+A Principal and Co-Founder
With the addition of an architecture and design firm to their expansive list of members, Be Original Americas hopes that more firms will follow, creating an even larger community that openly supports original design. Congratulations to Be Original Americas on this expansion and also their fifth birthday... what a year!
Makerball is an affordable, stable, mutable, pure and simple pinball machine that can be upgraded digitally—an entertaining DIY toy/tool for adults. Makerball is sturdy and solid, and its design is pure and simple. It consists mainly of wood and works with simple, reliable mechanics that are easy to understand. You also have the option of upgrading Makerball digitally, and with a microcontroller and the free Make & Play score app on your smartphone, you can start playing for points.
It's been referred to as both the LCW, for Lounge Chair Wood, and the Eames Plywood Lounge Chair. Whichever you call it, it's a classic piece of 20th-Century design. This video is great because it not only shows you how the chair is made, but provides the back story on how Charles and Ray Eames both came up with the concept, and funded it with a little help from the military:
"What is the best beginner workbench?" is a loaded question, and one I get all the time.
I usually tell beginning woodworkers to hold off on building a bench right away because they don't know what they don't know yet and a workbench isn't actually needed to get started. For example, I've built a few things in the garage of my in-laws' place in Maine using a sawhorse and a rickety table. But the time has come to build a proper workbench in that space.
This workbench is designed to be possibly the first bench that a new woodworker would build. Though it could also end up being the workbench you use for many years as it is rock solid and highly functional. It is built using just construction lumber, seven boards to be exact, and just four tools.
The beginner's workbench should be simple to build, yet highly customizable for the future. It should be a rock solid, blank chassis that doesn't require a lot of lumber or tools to build.
Its a straightforward built that introduces the new woodworker to some key concepts while not sweating the details that could make this project drag on for months and months. While hardly a new design, I think the approach I took to it could enable the brand new woodworker with no tools and no bench to actually get started building, and come out of this experience a better woodworker.
The full build is coming up soon. Semester 5 at The Hand Tool School will be a back to basics course designed to speak to the brand new woodworker who has no tools and has possibly never picked up a saw or plane. It will consist of a few introductory lessons and then many applied lessons in the course of building three essential projects for their shop.
It's in production now and scheduled to be released this Fall. Watch this space or subscribe to my email list to be the first to hear about it when it becomes available.
_____________
This "Hand Tool School" series is provided courtesy of Shannon Rogers, a/k/a The Renaissance Woodworker. Rogers is founder of The Hand Tool School, which provides members with an online apprenticeship that teaches them how to use hand tools and to build furniture with traditional methods.
The votes are in! The time has come to announce the ultimate grand prize winner of our Core77 Design Awards Community Choice Prize and our 13 Category winners.
With this prize, our Grand Prize Community Choice Winner has much more to celebrate than just ultimate bragging rights: they will also be taking home a brand new Microsoft Surface Book laptop computer!
The Surface Book's innovative shape can be used in two modes: desktop for administrative tasks and sketch mode for brainstorming with your stylus, flipping over to allow for creativity in any environment. This small but mighty computer is also conveniently powered to support CAD and Adobe programs! We hope this prize leads our grand prize winner to their next award-winning design breakthrough.
So without further ado, here are the 2017 Community Choice Winners.
This social impact program designed by Grupo Tellus and his team to prepare first-time mothers and families for motherhood overwhelmingly won the most votes from our design community. Based in Santos, Brazil, the program run by Santos City Hall aims to contribute to reductions in infant mortality rates by tackling five subjects with participants: reproductive health, pregnancy, birth, postpartum and beyond pregnancy. Tellus and his team worked to design the Mother's School Project with clear, actionable guidelines to lead the program to success.
Hats off to Grupo and his fellow talented designers for a job well done!
Congratulations to all of our Community Choice Winners in the 2017 Core77 Design Awards!
