ANNE CHENBBA Design & ManagementSpring 2013 - PDF document

ANNE CHENBBA Design & ManagementSpring 2013 THE HANDBAG TABLE OF CONTENTS Brief overview of hiring company and internship project. Outline of semester’s work and skills learned. Project I: preliminary pencil sketches in moleskin notebook. Project II: first prototype, created from construction paper. Project III: prototype advancement - progressing to a nylon webbing version. Project IV: gathering and organizing accrued research.Project V: photographing prototype and Photoshopping images.Current status of the project and learning take-aways from the internship. forms. susceptible Pilot Projects: Co-Create a Better World“PilotProjectsDesignCollectiveLLCisadesign andconsulting firm founded on thebelief that smallthings,welldesigned, cancatalyzebigchanges.Thefirmismadeup of professionaldesigners,strategists,andcraftspeople,allskilledatcreatingconcretesolutionstochallengingproblems.”,Iwasassignedaspecial projectconceptualizedbyPilotProject’sfounder,ScottFrancisco.Myultimateresponsibilitywasto realizehisvision from sketch to store -that is, bringinghis productideatolife, with thepotentialof actually sellingthefinalresult in the real marketplace. &#xhttp;&#x://p;&#xilot;&#x-pro;&#xject;&#xs.or;&#xg/ab;&#xout0;1. “About Us.” Pilot Projects. 2012. Web. 28, April. 2013. But I dream things that never were; -George Bernard Shaw a linear process. INITIAL SKETCHESPROTOTYPE IPROTOTYPE IIMARKET RESEARCH COMPILATIONPRODUCT SHOTS PLANNED ROUTEONGOING MARKET RESEARCH COMPLETED MICRO-PROJECT project brokenprojects’ skills and learn new ones.from ‘micro-project’ required its own specific skills. and possibilities. It provided for the testing of multiple design trajectoriesThroughout this process, I developed skills in drawing conventions. I learned howdifferent means of visual presentation - such as orthographic, axonometric, andcross-sections, elevations, and plane -scale, consistency, and hierarchy in conveying a three-dimensional object from various angles. First sketches identified the core purposes of a handbag, aswellascurrentpopularstylesandcommon itemspeopleput into their handbags.MATERIALS: MOLESKIN, 2HB PENCIL Main Elements beltthick and approximately 3” wide - made from durable leatherbeltletsthehorizontalpiecesofthebasketshell-approximately3/4”wide - made from a thinner leathersuspenderstheverticalpiecesofthebasketshell-approximately1”wide - made from a thinner leatherpouchremoveableandattachestothebeltviaclasps - hangs insidethebasket- made from canvas,withthebottomreinforcedby leather in lengthandattaches to thebelt-madefromleather How It WorksBasketThe exterior of the bag takes on a basket-like form: a system of criss-whichallowfor sizeadjustment.Weenvision these piecesto be made offirm,durableleatherandtobecompletely removeable, such that the wearer canmix-and-match colors and play with spacing and alignment.removeablepouchcanbesecuredtothe“basket”shellbyattachingittothe stabilizing “belt”.Asweacknowledge thedifferentbudgetconstraintsofconsumers,the pouch willbeavailableinvariousmaterials, suchassoft leather, burlap,orcanvas.The pouch isideal for holdingcellphones, wallets,etc.,butthe space which falls betweenthe pouch andthe “basket”mayalsoserveas achamber tostorelargeritems,suchastennisracketsandyoga mats. Beltlet-Suspender InterplaySuspenders, which hang fromthe belt, have two layers whichare stitched together every 1”. The resulting gap provides aslot through which beltlets canbe slid easily through. sliding (as shown on from Scott - i.e. suspender.Exploring All PossibilitiesOn the left, consideringpossible results of how the bottom of the bag will look; on the right,considering the possibility of the bag taking on a morecylindrical form. 7 Like sketches, prototypes are used to communicate design intent. In Project II, the first physical draft of the design was created. Its main proceeding further. Prototype I, constructed from crude materials in Intern tasks included sourcing appropriate materials and translating hand-drawn sketches into an initial physical form. Regular critique sessions were arranged with the employer, during which the prototype was Evolving from a two-dimensional canvas to a three-dimensional one required “learning-by-doing” and utilizing both right- and left-brained thinking. I learned how the prototyping process reveals new design challenges but also leads to serendipitous discoveries. Upon bringing the design to life from rough pencil sketches, I realized that many of my initial 10 Prototype I was advanced to a nylon webbing version,or Prototype II, in order to provide designers with a more functional model, one that’s a closer representation of the envisioned product. Having such a working prototype at hand allowed for further validation ofpreviously proposed design solutions.Intern responsibilities included sourcing materials, positioning and attaching suspenders to belt,stitching suspenders, weaving beltlets through suspenders, attaching buckles to belt and beltlets,and revising versions of Prototype II.This project was especially illuminating to me, especially as a strategic designer. Ilearned how to use a leather sewing machine (threading the machine, winding awebbing works to support weight of great extremes; the different types of fasteninghardware (such as double-D rings, belt buckles, and seatbelt buckles) used withstores. To complete my responsibilities for Project III, I had to know how to budgetmy time while juggling various tasks and learning entirely new skill sets. Learning How to Use a Sewing Machine: Learning how to wind: The greatestthe bobbin thread over the spool thread!Three layers of nylon webbing had to bestitched together to create the 2” wide belt.intervals. The resulting gapswould be through whichbuckle securelybeltlets were guidedthrough the gaps : 12.5 feet of 2” wide nylon webbing; 37.5 feet of 3/4” wide nylon webbing; 76 feet of 1” wide nylon webbing;one 1” buckle; nine 3/4” buckles; twelve 1” buckles; nylon thread; needle; leather sewing machine; scissors; masking 11 12 the intended aesthetic apperance of envisioned product.: Testing the ease at which beltlets slide throughsuspenders in order for size adjustability to be quickly : Critiquing the relationship between the bag and a human form: here, beltlets and suspenders were arranged to give the bag considering how it holds large objects - and the unique, ‘semi-”see-through” nature of the bag’s exoskeleton. in place along the belt - how would we solve this problem in the final product? 13 14 SURVIVAL IN THE CAPRICIOUS LUXURY GOODS INDUSTRY requires the maintenance of a sustainable There’s nothing quite like our product out there. We took a well-known commodity - the handbag - and took it a few steps further, injecting the familiar with aHow can we tell this unique story to consumers..?: Moodboards of well-known fashion brands were first constructed to better understand these brands’ promotional strategies and the type of customer who favors their products. This allowed us to consider whichdirection we wanted to take brand’s image. Would the young, urban, grunge-loving shopper be someonewho’d buy our product? Or would it be the professional, middle-aged jet-setter, who favors the both functionaland stylish sportswear collections of Michael Kors? Or maybe our product would attract an older and wealthierclientele - the sophisticated, affluent customer who is drawn to the classic designs of Chanel, for instance.Image Sources: alexanderwang.com, michaelkors.com, chanel.com (respectively): Different brand names cater to different lifestyles and personalities. I remember from my months spent interning at a design house that buyersfrom different retail stores would rarely select the same assortment of stylesfashion aesthetic, but also their income range, age group, ethnicity, andmaybe even their personal beliefs. Above is a shot of a thorough Exceldocument that explored major retailers with New York locations -categorizing them as either “Department Store” or “High-End Boutique” - are designers designing? As the majority ofhandbag will be constructed from high-quality leather, we focused our research ondesigners who offer leather handbags intheir product assortment, such as Phillip Lim,Ann Demeulemeester, and Belstaff. through ideation and prototyping, the next step was to deliver value - that is, to consider pricing, product placement, and promotional tactics, respectively. Theresult: a marketing strategy which (a) thoroughly examined the current marketplace setting; (b) createda profile of our target customer; and (c) provided a blueprint for the possible trajectories ofprofile of the target customer. A potential final advertisment for theI’d juggled many roles throughout this design process, and Project IV now required me tofrom fashion news platforms to e-commerce Web sites - as a research tool. I also learned consider social, cultural, and demographic trends when designing a marketing strategy for a new product. It was especially important, for instance, for me to acknowledge 15 16 THE ADVER MATERIALS : watercolor pencils, watercolor paint, watercolor brushes, watercolor paper, watercolor pencils, charcoal, graphjte pencils, tracing paper, Adobe Photoshop TISEMENT The goal is to communicate in a visually stimulating The ad invties the viewer to guess: Is this the same bag? found in the way the multi-functional abilities of our product. by hinting at such a possibility through the symmetries two scenes. 17 18