After finalizing the design of the Little Egret clothes rack, I realized there was no suitable hook to pair with it. The advantage of being a designer is that when there’s no perfect match, you can just design one yourself. I thought that it would be quite easy to create a simple hook. Ding ding!! Every time I think this way, things tend to go in the opposite direction.
At the beginning, the designer takes out a blank sheet of paper and a pen because this is the freest mode of creativity. Whatever comes to mind is sketched down, and it’s a truly joyful moment. Various ideas flow freely without any constraints. There’s no need to consider cost, feasibility, or market potential. We pour out our imagination, finding solace and enjoyment in the process.
The next step involves constructing a 3D blueprint. You might wonder, why engage with 3D modeling for a woodworking project? For a designer, 3D modeling is the bridge between imagination and reality. In the process of completing the 3D blueprint, the brain is forced to think through the procedures once, integrating actual scale and dimensions. Many impractical ideas are gradually weeded out, and the product begins to take shape. During modeling, the creative process continues, as new and old ideas intersect and merge, sparking even more design concepts. This video below showcases all the ideas that emerged during the 3D modeling process of the hook. As the video plays, it feels like the life of the hook flashes before the designer’s eyes. 😱
Before transitioning the design from the tabletop to woodworking, the final step involves discussion and compromise with partners. This is a crucial process because a designer, when engrossed in their own ideas for too long, can become blind to better solutions. Thankfully, partners can offer insights, allowing impractical designs to remain as cherished memories while refining the good ones further. At the start of building the brand, I often clung to designs born out of personal excitement, but I’ve learned that such stubbornness only leads to dead ends.
Even a simple hook requires thorough consideration and development, often leading to major design overhauls. And this is just on paper. Once the design is finalized, it moves into wood production, which is an entirely different story. Serious design work is never as easy to accomplish as it seems. (Yet every time, we think it should be a quick process, right? 😂)
Did you see a style in the sketches that you’d love for the designer to create? Feel free to leave us a comment and let us know!
