At this stage in my life, the words I use to classify myself are constantly changing. However, there are a few titles that are simply a part of who I am no matter what.

Maker – I’ve been a maker my entire life and have the ugly hands to prove it. Also, during my time in the School of Building Arts at SCAD I was able to take my interests further and fell in love with everything from woodworking to digital fabrication.

Designer – I consider myself a designer because the intention of most of my work is to solve a problem, and to create a symbiotic relationship between form and function.

Learner -. I may not have realized it until college, but learning is awesome. Whether it’s from a book, a TED talk, or experience learning is invaluable to me.

Fixer – If it’s broken call me and I’ll fix it!

There are many tools that on any given day I consider my favorite however, I always have a bottle of Loctite Super Glue Gel Control. I have tried almost every kind of glue out there and this one is by far the best. It dries quickly, but you still have a small window to make adjustments. It is completely clear, and doesn’t get cloudy. It’s very strong, and I’ve yet to find a material that it doesn’t work well with. Unlike traditional super glue it’s a gel, not a liquid, therefore it doesn’t run in places you don’t want it to. This combined with the bottle’s side squeeze design make it extremely easy to control.

In a nutshell….it’s amazing.

The new craft project was a great experience. Not only did I enjoy learning how to crochet with Max and Bina, but also from the other group presentations. I particularly liked the repetitive nature of crocheting and how fast it is, especially when compared to knitting. This makes the overall process very soothing and satisfying. Next time, however, I would use wool yarn, as opposed to cotton, because the strands have a tendency to unravel making it hard to pull the hook through. I would also use a crochet hook with a longer shaft because it would be easier to hold and keep proper tension on the yarn.

Though I really did appreciate all of the group presentations, I found sewing the most intriguing. I grew up seeing my mother sew and have a bit of experience myself, but I always get annoyed with the machine and give up. I have never seen a machine like the one used in class, and look forward to trying it out.

Identification:

• First of all, I am a Learner, I’m open-minded and ready to learn anything and are not afraid to explore and try out different things. We came into this world knowing nothing, I am who I am because of the things I’ve learned throughout my life.
• Artist: I’m a artist. I perceive the world through an artistic lens. I started interacting with the world with a brushstrokes when I was 4 and never stopped expressing myself through art ever since.
• Maker: I like making original stuff. Creating things are fulfilling to me. For example, I like transforming waste materials (trash, cardboard, plastic) into decorative artworks. I make gifts for my friends and family. I’m interested in making visually appealing artworks or everyday use objects to make my daily life more enjoyable.
• Designer:  Design is innovation. It is stuff created by innovative people to bring changes into the world they live in. It is an output of people’s creativity. The core identity of Design is change and improvement. It is the results of un-satisfaction toward the way things are around you and the urge to be part of that change. I’m just entering this field to become a professional one day. So I’m starting to identify myself as Designer.

Favorite Tool:

Currently, My favorite tool is glue gun. It glues everything and lasts! It can easily add on different materials to my project, which gives my work different textures. It glues cloth, button, wool, feather, wood, plastic, stone, etc. Basically anything. There’s no smell and it is see-through! The only downside is that it can only be used indoor.

Learn a New Craft:

I’m a visual person. I learn better while someone is demonstrating how to do a craft instead of reading about how to do it. I think that is why I like crafts so much, because seeing how things are done with my eyes reflects in my brain better. My brain works faster with graphics. Just like the Economist E. F. Schumancher said “The human being … enjoys nothing more than to be creatively, usefully, productively engaged with both his hands and his brains.”. My hands and brains coordinate better with visual instructions.

I like making stuff. Using my hand to create things is very fulfilling. And each time I look at the things I’ve made, the memory flashes back. I feel happy and content to look at what I’ve accomplished.

Max

I’m a designer and engineer. I have an engineering degree in industrial design. I’m also a storyteller. I tell a story in every project. I think the story telling methods are very important in design projects. And I’m always finding new possibilities to tell stories.

My favorite tool is paper. The fastest way to organize my thoughts and ideas is writing them down. I also love doing simple sketches and folding paper, not only for the design process but also for fun.

I really love the way that several people get together and learn something new. It’s a lot of fun to figure things out together. I may never be willing to learn weaving by myself. But in my group I enjoyed the learning process. The demonstrations and hands-on activities in class are really helpful to give a quick taste of each craft. By trying a little bit of everything, I quickly found out I don’t quite like knitting and love needle felting. Showing others what I have learned was very satisfying. The only frustration is that after a few days I started to forget the skill. I believe it takes more repeats to get really familiar with it. Next time I would probably finish a small piece beforehand and show the final result before the hands-on activity.

• How do you identify / classify yourself? Choose as many as you would like from the following and feel free to add to it. Briefly explain why you chose them.
  • storyteller
  • maker
  • engineer
  • coder
  • designer
  • artist
  • learner
  • hacker
  • research
  • educator
  • gamer
  • craftsperson
  • [other?]

•  What is your favorite tool and why? (I’m going to put one restriction on this – you’re not allowed to say computer:)

• Reflect on your experience learning a new craft (both independently and from other people in class) and teaching it to other people. Some questions you could address: What did you like about the process? What was frustrating? What insight did you gain? What would you do differently next time?

 

 

The process of learning how to knit had quite an impact on both myself and the class. First, it brought me back to my roots. Growing up with a grandmother who was a retired home ec teacher made my life interesting. Who could say most of there winter hats were made by their grandmother? or that they ate a 12 course meal? (this is half true). Second, being able to fully learn one of my grandmother’s craft reminded me of my appeal to traditional methods and crafts. That connection to the physical feels so visceral. Lastly, when teaching to the class, I felt a connection to each individual I was teaching. How I learned the craft was translated to them in a specific context and also through the lens of someone who is left handed. This was both amusing to watch and also a bit frustrating at times. The insight that I gained from this was more from the teaching aspect. Having this be hands was a key component in engaging the audience as well as reinforce my efforts in a positive of negative way. This was a great class in that I was able to not only learn a new craft on my own, but with the whole class as well. Unboxing the traditional crafts is best for use in order to understand our roots and make a real connection with the build and components of our projects.

I am a designer who loves sketching, drawing, making things, and conceptual thinking. My background is in graphic design, but I’ve always wanted to be an artist, and called myself an artist until I was an undergraduate. I know there is no strict boundary between art and design, but I think I became a designer because I had more opportunities to do practical designs in the aspect of business rather than expressing my feelings, emotions, and philosophy in design. I think I found that I enjoy doing practical designs to solve some problems or to create useful services, packaging, and products for people’s better life. I like helping people with creative designs. I believe that creative designs make people happy and help make their life better. That is why I love design and I identify as a designer.

My favorite tool is scissors because I can create anything that I didn’t expect, and it gives me a feeling of freedom and pressure at the same time. The reason I feel this way is because scissors are a very simple tool but it is never a easy tool because it is dangerous sometimes. The most interesting thing about scissors is that if I cut something with scissors, then I cannot go back to the beginning. It is a simple tool but should be used carefully. It makes me think twice about everything before doing something.

I really enjoyed learning a different craft last week. I think sharing skills by demonstrating and active hands-on was a very effective way to learn various new crafts quickly. I never knew there was a variety of fun hands-on crafting if I were not taking this class. It was fun and I also enjoyed taking orientation for wood working with my group. I wanted to try wood working before but I haven’t had the chance to do this because I mostly work with my laptop, even though I love making things, but thanks to this class I made it. Teaching what I’ve experienced was satisfying, but It was a shame that I couldn’t push more to do this for others because wood working was really fun. I liked active hands-on craft processes but the only thing I was frustrated about was that I couldn’t follow crocheting… I need more time practicing to get familiar with it.

This week, Cathy and I learned how to use the sewing machine that’s kept on D12 above Sven’s locker (to the left of the bathrooms – also, not sure if this is it’s permanent place, but that’s where it is now). The machine that we have is a Brother CS6000i….and it’s great. It’s computerized, meaning it comes programmed with a bunch of different stitches/patterns, and has a ton of features that make it super easy to use.

Brother CS6000i

There are three main things that you should know in order to start sewing:

1. The parts of the sewing machine
2. Winding/Inserting a bobbin
3. Threading the sewing machine

(and then, of course, actually sewing)

1. THE PARTS

These are the basic parts of any sewing machine:

• Spool/Spool Pin
• Bobbin Winder
• Thread guide
• Needle Threader
• Needle Plate
• Presser Foot

And this is a diagram of the specific sewing machine that we’ll be using:

2.1  WIND THE BOBBIN

In order to start sewing, you’re going to need a bobbin that has been wound with thread.

To wind your bobbin, put the bobbin spool on the bobbin winder pin on the top of the machine next to your main spool of thread. Next, follow the diagram at the top of the machine,  weaving the thread from the thread spool around the guide and back to the bobbin. Finally, turn the bobbin winder, turning it off when the bobbin is full.

2.2  INSERT THE BOBBIN

Once you have your bobbin wound, follow the diagrams on the base of the machine to properly insert the bobbin. Every machine is different, but ours makes it really simple by providing a clear guide.

3. THREAD THE MACHINE

Just like the previous steps, you’ll follow the visual diagrams printed on the machine in order to thread the needle. First, you’ll move the thread through the guides down to the needle. Next, you’ll use the machine’s built-in automatic needle threader (!!!) to actually thread the needle. Here’s a video that shows an up close view of this awesome feature in action.

Once you have your bobbin and needle ready, you can start sewing! This machine has button controls to control the speed and direction of the stitch. You can also change the type of stitch using the LCD display and inputs at the front of the machine.

This is just a brief overview of what we’ll be showing you tonight, but hopefully you feel a little less intimidated about sewing! Bonus: here’s a picture of the inside of the machine since we love hacking electronics

How do you identify / classify yourself? Choose as many as you would like from the following and feel free to add to it. Briefly explain why you chose them.

• maker
• student/researcher
• designer

I think this is a really interesting/important question to pose to us as students in this program. This was a question I had to ask myself when considering graduate school – when I wasn’t totally sure how to put into words what I enjoyed doing, how to categorize my work, or what I wanted to do when I “grew up”. That’s why I’ve always loved the word “maker” as a title: it’s vague enough to include multiple disciplines, but descriptive enough to emphasize the act of “making”, of creating new things that are tangible or material. I also consider myself both a student and teacher. I always try to learn new ways to make things or express ideas, and try to share my methods and ideas with others. Finally, I would also call myself a designer. I studied Visual Art and Art History in college, and always felt really dissatisfied with my studio art practice. I felt that I was creating things that were briefly shown in a gallery, possibly/passively experienced, and then archived, never to be seen or used again in the real, physical world. Because of this, I chose to study design – where my work would be not only aesthetically pleasing but also functional and purposeful.

What is your favorite tool and why? 

My favorite tool is tape. More specifically, I love two different types of tape: electrical tape and gaffer’s tape.

Electrical Tape

Electrical tape is great as a quick, easy insulator for conductive materials. I always have some around whether I’m using wire or conductive thread. It also helps to hold things in place temporarily while I’m testing circuits or making sure I don’t have any issues with short circuits.

Gaffer’s Tape (i.e. the best tape)

Gaffer’s tape has been my favorite “tool” since I discovered it in my high school photography class. It’s usually used for stage lighting or to secure cords to the floor, a task that it’s great for as it’s similar to duct tape in that it’s super strong, but it can be easily removed from materials without leaving sticky residue. It has a matte fabric backing, making it awesome to use when labeling things or when you want to use tape that looks a little more “classy”. The fabric backing also makes it really easy to rip with your hands (like duct tape). Basically, it feels like it should be this heavy duty, super temperamental / permanent tape, but it’s really forgiving: it doesn’t stick to itself, sticks to (and comes off of!) all sorts of materials, and is durable while also being aesthetically pleasing. I’ve literally used this tape in 20+ different ways and find new ways to use it everyday. 10/10 would recommend this tape to anyone who has never heard of it. It’s great. Go buy it.

Also, Wikipedia does a great job explaining everything that makes Gaffer’s tape the best:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaffer_tape

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