Upcycle Progress / Design Process
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Here is a block/bubble diagram representation of my upcycle project design process. The rectangular blocks represent more defined portions and the round bubbles are more obscure. I’ll walk you through my journey so far. The assignment. Pretty straightforward. We are tasked with creating something out of something less good. It must be reasonably sized. Frugality…
Upcycle Progress: 3D Product Design Sketch
To recap my ideation process so far: I started out with no idea what I wanted to do. In an in-class sketching brainstorm, I decided to think ideate with toothpicks in mind as a material. I started coming up with ideas related to toothpicks, teeth, icepicks, and trees. Of the 3, I liked the idea…
Upcycle progress: Helmet Decoration
I didn’t know what I wanted to do for this project until today, when I saw my friend’s abandoned helmet in my garage. My friend was into racing his car when he was studying at CU he eventually graduated and went back to China. The helmet is still in OK shape but the mechanism that…
Upcycle Progress 2019
A lot of my project so far has consisted of paying more attention to my surrounds and available material. We have a program at my work where we take the hard to recycle materials and bring it to the CHARM facility here in Boulder. Because of this, I’m currently loaded with charger cables, plastic bags,…
Upcycle Progress: Fabric
Brainstorming an idea for this assignment was one of the hardest processes I’ve done in the past few years. I have abandoned my creative parts of my mind for a long time. One of the reasons that made me enroll in this course is to nourish my creativity. I was lost, I didn’t know where…
Up-Cycle Progress: Power Line Insulator Lamp
When considering what material to use for my up-cycle project, the first thing to come to mind was a power line insulator. During my grandfather’s career in the power industry, he acquired a decent sized collection of retired insulators that have yet to been put to use. Additionally, I have always been intrigued by the…
Upcycle Progress – Wood Veneer Scraps
For my upcycle project I’ll be using scraps of wood veneer from a custom ski shop I used to work at in my home town of Telluride, CO. Wagner skis creates custom designed skis, and customers have the option to have a wood veneer as the top sheet for their ski. About 12 – 16…
Upcycle Progress: Cardboard Lamp
For this project I knew what object I wanted to create, but I did not know what I wanted to make it out of. To determine what I was going to make it out of I used my go-to design-process. This process always begins with an initial idea and I then ask other people for…
Upcycle Progress
My upcycle project is still in the works design-wise, but a great deal of my design process has centered around the materials that I intend on using. My cheap-o wooden IKEA bed frame recently gave up the ghost, and with its passing came loads of recyclable materials. Primarily, I’m interested in its plywood slats and…
Upcycle Project – Colorado Flag
Being born and raised in Colorado I have always had a general obsession for the Colorado flag. I love its colors and the uniqueness of it compared to many other states. Ever since I’ve lived in my own place I’ve had at least one Colorado flag hanging on the wall so my idea for an…
Upcycle Progress: Miniature Landscape
I have always been interested in miniature-style art. I have seen it a lot in both movies and in real life. One thing that I always been interested in is when major companies have 3D models of miniature cities. This really caught my eye because it is really interesting that those companies use these models…
Upcycle Progress: LEGO Mosaic
Originally having no idea on what to do for the upcycle project I struggled trying to figure out what to create. While thinking about this I was focusing on the final product, what do I want to make? Then the idea of using LEGOs was brought to my attention. LEGOs are a very versatile material…
Upcycle Progress: Leftover Cardboard
It took me a while to decide what material I was going to use for my upcycle project, but I think I have finally found the material I am going to use. It is abundant and easy to work with, and it’s my leftover Blue Apron boxes I’ve been saving for the past few months.…
Up-cycle Project
The biggest challenge in starting the design for my up-cycle project is trying to figure out what material I want to use to create the project and what it is that I want to make. I began by walking around my apartment trying to figure out what material I had that could be transformed into…
07 Process and Sketching
We talked a bit more about individual design processes, and looked at traditional industrial design sketches; how they vary through the design process. Ended with a bit of sketch practice, starting with straight lines, circles and ellipses. 07 Process and sketching lecture notesDownload
Upcycle Project: Zoetrope
I have spent sometime thinking of what I wanted to make for my upcycle project. What I knew was that I wanted something which involved something I learned here as a mechanical engineer. I remembered seeing a toy which had a small circular platform, had evenly spaced slits on it’s top with still images of…
Wine Bottle Holder
I was throwing a lot of ideas around about what I should create for the upcycle project. I knew I had and an old wood palette in my backyard and I thought that would be a good idea to put that to use. The wood has a dark color to it, it looks kind of…
Upcycle Progress: Beer Can Furniture
It took me a while to come up with an idea for this upcycle project. I looked around my apartment trying to find a lot of unused material that I could use to make a project with. I came to the realization that I have a lot of trash. More specifically, I have a ton…
Aesthetic Exploration: Steampunk
Steampunk can be most closely described as a mixture between industrial steam-powered machinery and 19th century British Victorian style. It is a very striking and recognizable aesthetic often envisioned coming from an alternate timeline in which the modern era never made the switch from steam to internal combustion engines. Credit: Omar BrentCredit: Getty ImagesCredit: ILeatherCraft…
Upcycle Progress: Mechanical Countdown Calendar
For my Upcycle Project, I am making a device that will allow the user to countdown days, much like an advent calendar or a countdown clock, but with far less utility. The basic design will have a spring, similar to the leaf spring on a vehicle. This will be bent back and connected to a…
Upcycle Project: Wooden Paintstick Mirror
For my upcycle project, I was doing some research online and was also looking around my room for inspiration. However, as I was looking around my room for some inspiration, I realized my walls are kind of empty. I don’t have much decoration around my room. From there, I looked up decorations and was thinking…
Upcycle Progress: Plastic Waste
Plastic waste has a significant impact on the environment. Since most plastics are not degradable i’ve decided to use this material for my upcycle project. I’ve also been inspired from companies like Parley and Adidas who created products from plastic waste in the ocean. These types of products satisfy customer demands while also helping the…
Upcycle Progress: Pennies
It took me a while to figure out what I wanted to do for this project and a couple ideas were bouncing around in my head. I was originally going to make some sort of plant based project that would grow within a glass bottle, as seen in the picture below. However, after contemplating the…
Up-cycle Project Progress : Paper Dress
For my up-cycle project I decided to make a dress out of paper recycling bags. These bags are provided at grocery stores and are also handed out at the dorms on campus. The reason I wanted to make this dress is because I am attending a time travelers ball in mid February. Last time I…
Upcycled Skyline
http://www.designturnpike.com/pop_soda_and_beer_bottle_cap_art_and_maps.html I found two upcycle ideas that I was truly torn between. One of them was this idea of using bottle caps to create some crafts. I figured that since we are in a college town, bottle caps have to be one of the most abundant items that can be used for upcycling. Also, the…
Up-Cycle Progress: Book Ends
We spend a lot of time reading and I’m sure everyone has that one shelf of books that is either held up by another book or a different random object. Rarely do I see a stack of books held up by the very object that is made to fulfill this purpose and provide an aesthetic…
Drawstring T-Shirt
My upcycle project is based on the t-shirt design above. I felt inspired by the design because when I was in high school I would wear a shoe lace belt instead of a normal belt. A regular belt holds up better but I liked the style of the shoe lace belt more. It gave more…
Upcycle Progress: Cardboard Fire Pit
For my up-cycle project, I am making a fire pit out of cardboard. The idea is to laser cut pieces of cardboard and put them together such that they have some structural integrity while using little to no adhesives. Right now, the design is pretty basic, with no real artistic elements added onto of the…
Upcycle Progress: Cork
The appealing look of a cork caught my eye instantly. I found cork projects all over google images, pinterest, and my friends houses. Corks can be used for apparel, furniture, jewelry holders, and decoration. The cork gives a house a very unique down to earth feeling. There are also associated unique wine and champagne labels…
06 Ideation and Process
Since a good fraction of you are still unsure of your Upcycle project, we practiced a couple of ideation techniques, and then talked about the design process. 06 Ideation and Process lecture notesDownload
Upcycle Progress: Tin Can Candle Holder
For the upcycle project, I have decided to make a candle holder with a tin can. I will need an old soup can, soda can, or something similar. Additionally I will need paint, a hammer, nails, and a candle. I have all of these materials and am excited to get started! I have not decided…
Tinfoil Insects
Looking at the materials I’d have available to me for the up-cycling project, I decided to use paperclips and tinfoil. After some brainstorming with friends, I landed on insects as the subject-matter; I felt the wiry nature of the paperclips lent themselves well to the construction of limbs. I also felt it best to take…
Aesthetic Exploration: Android Jones
Andrew “Android” Jones is a U.S. visual artist. His art can be described as Electromineralism with an influence of Pop-Shamanism. He started his career with George Lucas at Industrial Light and Magic, he also worked as a concept artist for the Japanese gaming company Nintendo. In my opinion his artwork has a psychedelic tendency infused…
Upcycle Progress- Pop-up Book
Recently I noticed that LEGO just released this year’s IDEAS set- Pop-Up book. It’s really a impressive create! They also provide user manual on the website so I try to search the demand material in my house. Following picture shows pieces I found. After double checking with the building instruction, I had sufficient component to…
Aesthetic Exploration: Topology Optimized Designs
Recently I have been hooked by “Topology Optimized” designs I think their aesthetics can be very attractive and the engineering behind them is very interesting. Topology optimization is a branch of computer aided engineering (CAE) that seeks to mathematically optimize material layout within a given design space to sustain a set of loads and boundary…
05 Aesthetics Tour 3
We did polls for office hours: Mondays at 3 pm was most popular. Appointments are available whenever you need to talk, and drop in any afternoon when my door is not fully shut. Tyler has volunteered to curate our Movie Night. Monday at 6 pm was voted best. We did sketching practice, and then continued…
Aesthetic Exploration: ASAP Rocky
https://www.complex.com/music/2019/01/asap-rocky-janelle-monae-single ASAP Rocky is a person who is hip-hop artist. He grew up in Harlem named after the one of the greatest rappers Rakim. As his family is hip-hop lover, he has built his talent since a toddler. However, his financial situation was not so good that his family were vulnerable within the environment of…
Aesthetic Explorations – Biomimicry
Nature has been evolving structures for billions of years, constantly searching for better and better designs for the nearly infinite needs of living things. And it’s done and extremely good job. Biomimicry is the idea that we can imitate these designs created by evolution and use them for our own needs. The aesthetic of biomimicry…
Aesthetic Exploration: Calaveras
The Aesthetic for Calaveras first began appearing around the 17th century but has had roots in Aztec, Mayan, and Toltec cultures. Calavera directly translates to skull but has a certain style differing from the style more prevalent in American like Gothic, Biker, or Pirate themes. It stems from not only honoring the dead but creating…
Organic Design
Organic design is centered around using nature as your biggest inspiration. It has been around since humans first began making tools, as early humans were working with the forms that nature provided them. Organic design saw a resurgence in the 1930’s through the works of Frank Lloyd Wright(2). He wanted his work to “create harmony…
Aesthetic Exploration 2019: Water-cooled PC
In this day and age, technology is everything and everywhere. People can’t seem to avoid technology and it’s massive advances within the 21st century. With the development of computers and the improvement of data transfer rates within PCs, the capabilities of these machines seemed endless. Some people however, chased a different type of capability in…
70’s New York Punk
I came to the punk scene through bands like Blink 182 and Sum 41 in mid 90’s. The songs were well-produced, the lyrics were unnecessary, and the videos were intentionally childish. The trappings of traditional punk were present (fast rhythms, screaming vocals, and haircuts that were only appropriate in jobs that required hair nets), but…
Aesthetic Exploration: Product Design Sketches
Sketching by hand is not lost in today’s digital age. The ability to sketch by hand allows designers to quickly put ideas onto paper, make changes, and flesh out concepts. Hurricane Lantern sketches by Mike Serafin Early stages of design sketching often looks like this. Many simple images on one page. Often in a side…
Aesthetic Exploration: Minimalism
The aesthetic that I chose to explore is minimalism. Originating from the 1950s and prospering during the 1960’s and 1970’s, minimalism arose from the idea that art should not be limited to societal standards. Rather than being a luxury only affordable to the rich, minimalism demonstrates art in its purest form and is something that…
Super Computer
This is the Digital Storm Aventum PC. The design of this PC is very compact, yet it demonstrate superb performance. In addition, the layout of its components are aesthetically pleasing. The cooling system implemented on this PC is a water cooling mechanism that maximizes heat decimation in order to protect the critical components of the…
Rocky Mountain Underground
For all my life I have enjoyed skiing the Rocky Mountains. There’s something about the cold, fresh air stinging your lungs after hiking to the top of a fresh peak and looking down at all the fluffy white powder about to be carved up. It’s a freeing feeling that I will continue to chase for…
Aesthetic Exploration: Glitch
An aesthetic that I have fallen in love with is the Glitch Aesthetic. Glitch, in a sense, aims to reveal and enhance the beauty in mistakes that would otherwise appear messy and unwanted. It really took off in the mid-to-late 20th century. Malfunctions in technology that would otherwise be undesired are taken advantage of in…
Aesthetic Exploration – Mosaics
Mosaics are a style of art the creates a picture by using small pieces of colored stone or glass as the medium. The origins of this art style traces back to Mesopotamia, around the 3rd millennium BC. Later in the 4th century BC, they became popular in the Greek culture, usually depicting an aspect of…
Aesthetics Exploration 2019: CU Boulder Architecture
When driving into Boulder from the east, you reach the top of a hill and then a beautiful view of Boulder and the surrounding mountains opens up. It’s hard not be taken away by the view each and every time. Almost as hard to miss as the mountains is the grouping of red buildings. This…
Aesthetic explorations 2019
The ancient greeks were known to be one of the most influential civilizations to mankind and are known to have shaped the way we think about the world and ourselves. The ancient greeks dabbled in many things including art and pottery. Pottery was very important to the greeks as it was a means of storage…
Aesthetic Exploration: The Third Eye
The photographer has the chance to capture moments that not everybody sees and that’s the beauty of photograph. The camera is the third eye that captures memories with all the emotions with it. One of the most special days in our lives are wedding days. I can’t imagine a wedding without a photographer that’s ready…
Aesthetic Explorations 2019: Dieselpunk
The steampunk aesthetic is to steam as the dieselpunk aesthetic is to diesel. It is important to understand both aesthetics as they are considered to be close cousins. The steampunk aesthetic deals with industrial steam power found in the Victorian era mixed with attributes of Tesla and sustainable energy. Dieselpunk draws from the interwar period…
Aesthetic Exploration: A-frame Houses
A-frame houses are composed of slanted support members joined at one end to create thee image of an equilateral triangle. For added structural support there is cross member connecting the two main support at about the midpoint of the building’s height. This cross member is what gives these unique buildings thier name. While A-frame like…
Aesthetic exploration- Seal carving
Seal carving, also seal cutting, or zhuanke in Chinese, is a traditional form of art that originated in China and later spread to East Asia. It refers to cutting a design into the bottom face of the seal (the active surface used for stamping, rather than the sides or top). Also known as seal engraving.…
Aesthetic Exploration: Dress to Kill
Military inspired fashion Military inspired fashion explores a certain type of aesthetic that highlights firm structures, hard textures, metallic embellishments and earthy tones. They are directly drawn from classic military uniforms that used to be worn during World War I and II. The dusty colors that distinguish military clothing from other pieces began in India.…
Aesthetic Exploration: Chiaroscuro
Chiaroscuro, in its most basic form, is a contrast of light and dark without regard of color. It is commonly used to give subjects of a painting or photograph three dimensions with light falling on the subject from a particular light source out of frame. Though this technique has existed for a long time, it…
Aesthetic Exploration 2019: Beer Tap Handles
The aesthetic I have chosen to explore is the aesthetic of beer tap handles, and how they can range from incredibly minimalistic to functional works of art. Until the early 20th century, beer was typically served directly from the barrel, until artificial carbonation was introduced in 1936 thus beginning what we know as draught beer. …
Aesthetics Exploration 2019: Pyramids of Giza
Pyramids of Giza, Giza, Egypt [1] Pyramids of Giza are one of the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World and are the only one left standing. They were built from 2550 to 2490 B.C. for three different pharaohs and are located in Giza, Egypt. The tallest pyramid called “The Great Pyramid” was built for Pharaoh…
Aesthetics Exploration: Aesthetics of Modern-Day Music
The world of music has been constantly evolving throughout the decades, and the definition of what can be considered as music has been changing. When you first think of music, you think that it has to sound good for you to want to listen to it again. The reality of the situation is, that decision…
04 Aesthetics Tour 2
Today we shared design notebooks and ideas for tonight’s first post on aesthetics. Then we looked at a few specific design aesthetics: Industrial Chic, Biker Culture, Japanese motorcycles, Yakuza tatoos and speech patterns, Manga, Steampunk and more. Lastly we looked at a few examples of upcycling in preparation for the warm-up project. PDF of lecture…
Aesthetic Exploration: Soviet Propaganda
Propaganda designed to sway the public opinion has been produced and distributed by many organizations, usually nations, for centuries. Soviet propaganda existed for many reasons; to bolster ideologies, to evoke emotions such as national pride or hateful thoughts of the enemy, and others. Propaganda posters generally don’t extra frills, as conveying a message is their…
Aesthetic Explorations 2019: Aviation
There are two major manufacturers of aircraft since the 1950’s whose designs I will cover; Boeing and Airbus. Boeing was founded in 1916 in Seattle and started out making wooden frame aircraft. Airbus was founded in 1970 and is a major aerospace manufacturer in Europe. This post will focus on the design on airplanes starting…
Aesthetic Exploration: Sports Bike
The aesthetics of modern sports bike attracts me a lot lately, so I chose to do some research about it. Many motorcycle manufactures make sports bikes, these manufactures include: Honda, Kawasaki, Yamaha, Ducati, etc. Sports bike design prioritize speed and performance over comfort. This design priority, along with influences from competitive racing motorcycles, has given…
Aesthetic Exploration: Swimwear
[1] Thinking about the snow outside, getting into a hot tub becomes a relaxing thought. However, something that doesn’t cross the mind is what to wear. The general assumption is that everyone would wear a swimsuit. From this, my question became, how did swimwear emerge as a modern-day afterthought and is there an aesthetic behind…
Aesthetics Exploration: Calligraphy
[1] The aesthetic I have chosen to explore is calligraphy. I have always been interested in how people can use writing to create art instead of a picture. Calligraphy is defined as “fancy penmanship, especially highly decorative handwriting” by dictionary.com [2]. Historically, calligraphy dates back to before 500 BC and was used in a variety…
C’est Normal
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vk6jxg-t8dE C’est Normal owns the rights to all of these images and Jon Olsson the rights to his video blog. The aesthetic I chose was a brand called C’est Normal – this clothing brand was created in October of 2018. There are four creators behind the brand, those being: Jon Olsson Deler, Janni Olsson Deler,…
Sunn O))): From Amplifiers to Altars
Sunn O)))’s 2005 drone metal record, Black One(rateyourmusic.com) Sunn O))) (simply pronounced “Sun”) are a peculiar metal band from Seattle, WA, known for their punishing and monolithic drone releases as well as their ritualistic live shows. Their live audio philosophy reads as following: “MAXIMUM VOLUME YIELDS MAXIMUM RESULTS.” Walls of amps line the back of the…
Aesthetic Exploration: Snowboarding
Snowboarding is a popular winter sport that was first introduced to the United States in the 1960s [1]. It was introduced to the first Winter Olympics in 1998 at Nagano, Japan [1]. https://blogs.windows.com/devices/2012/09/17/how-mobile-tech-is-making-snowboarding-even-more-awesome/ The first model of the snowboard was created by Sherman Poppen, an engineer in Michigan, in 1965 as he attached two skis…
Ibrahim Alhajji
the Aesthetics of soccer jerseys in this modern age has been attractive to me and to many soccer fans. The designs are intended to to be unique, beautiful and to advertise the team. Here I posted some of the designs that I think achieved excellence.Source: https://www.soccer.com/shop/details/adidas-real-madrid-authentic-home-champions-league-jersey-18-19_RV7005492?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&adpos=1o3&scid=scplpRV7005492002&sc_intid=RV7005492002=utm_campaign=SC_Shopping-Brand_Top_Traffic_Desktop&gclid=Cj0KCQiAm5viBRD4ARIsADGUT2659Gz5rwimjWXGnKqcx4AWeDaZgDpuy48OsFCefB0_uwmaq-_0XKAaApnSEALw_wcB This is Real Madrid away kit. They wear it…
Aesthetic Exploration – Simulated
“Going outside is highly overrated.” ― Ernest Cline, Ready Player One Much of design is about conveying a message. As technology advances and the world becomes ever more accepting of tools to visualize object and events using computers it is important to value the aesthetics of simulations. This simulated by the internet artist Slam_nine that depicts, “the reaction-diffusion…
