Leather Project
Hydrangea
Introduction
Designed an upcycle leather product in collaboration with Semicolon.
Semicolon Works is about resource sustainability and socially conscious consumerism. They believe that through upcycling premium offcuts into fun, sleek yet functional everyday objects, people can learn something about sustainability, but also come to think about how they consume. They would realize that sustainable can be synonymous with premium quality. They hope that people create beautiful things for themselves, but also leave behind a beautiful world.
In response to their work philosophy, I created a nature inspired leather product, a hydrangea bottle hostler, perfect for the great outdoors.
Design Brief
How might we:
Design and create a leather product for outdoor activities which make it convenient to carry around for user
Plant braiding/Climber Plants :
My group’s Ideation is based of plant braiding and climber plants (nature). Where the stems twine round trees and branches for support.
Ideation
Inspired by the plant braiding and climber plants, our group’s main feature is the mystery leather braid. Similarly to the climber plants, leather braiding make it stronger and harder to break, enhancing durability.
I started out by using felt to make the braids. After I got the dimension of it I started to use leather but only to find out that the dimensions depend on how flexible the material is.
My product: Bottle hostler
Sketches
Final Product
Climbing Hydrangea
(name of my product)
Just like the Climbing Hydrangea that needs plenty of water, we human also need to constantly hydrate ourselves.
Learning Point
This project empowered me with better understanding of upcycling. Creative reuse, transforming by-products, waste materials, useless, or unwanted products into new materials or products of better quality and environmental value, which can really benefit designers, craft mans and consumers, without wasting new resources. Additionally, I improved on my drawing skills and gained a bit of craftsmanship as well.