Timeless Design Exploration - Metal Notepad:
Key take-aways:
The goal of this project was to explore what makes design timeless. I did this through analysing a pocket watch and then extracting properties from it to create this metal notepad.
Much like a pocket watch, the notepad its self takes a daily experience such as telling the time or taking notes and celebrates or even ritualises it. This action makes it not just functional but an accessory that can become a piece of fashion or a display item.
I took it from brief to first iteration in two weeks with a second iteration in an additional one week. I did this myself with slight guidance from my tutors.
Development:
Research:
As well as researching a pocket watch I had access to, I did research into iconic timeless designs such as mini coopers, pens, polaroid cameras and more.
I also explored the connection between minimalism and simplicity, coming to the conclusion that minimalism does not equal simplicity.
It has led me to believe that minimalism is often a lazy way to chase simplicity.
Goals:
The brief for this project was to take an object and create something in response to it. I chose a classic metal pocket watch.
This meant my main goal for this project was clear from the start; to explore what makes timeless design. Another goal that I wanted was to make it something I personally would like to keep on my desk and use daily.
Direction decisions:
My research led me to see that the best way to show my findings was to create a notepad that celebrates taking notes in the same way that a pocket watch celebrates telling the time.
Materiality was clearly a vital component in this project, that’s why I decided that I wanted to keep the number of them as low as possible.
Design decisions:
One key decision I had to make was using epoxy or rivets to join everything together. I decided that rivets were the best solution as a timeless design needs to have a long life, this option gives it not only great durability but also good repairability.
I chose mild steel with a wax coating and leather for the main materials. Then, a magnetic latch for keeping it closed when not in use. The pages themselves are post-it notes, this allows for them to be replaced when it’s finished. Being yellow was also vital as psychologically that’s the colour of notes for many people.
Feedback + Next steps:
Once the final iteration of the notepad was complete, I got some great feedback. I was told that it looked like it was a quality item and that it would belong on an exectives’s desk.
This is an indicator to me that it does a good job of looking like’s its primary purpose isn’t simply to take notes but to celebrate the action of taking notes.
If I were to take this forwards I would like to experiment with more cover materials, perhaps exploring an interchangeable/modular system for its users.