things and stuff

Freestyle:

2012-01-30T12:48:00.001-08:00

2012-01-30T06:09:00.001-08:00

2012-01-30T06:08:00.000-08:00

2012-01-24T06:12:00.000-08:00

2012-01-12T12:35:00.001-08:00

2012-01-10T08:40:00.001-08:00

2012-01-10T08:40:00.000-08:00

2012-01-09T05:33:00.001-08:00

Covers

2012-01-09T05:31:00.000-08:00

2012-01-06T06:21:00.001-08:00

2012-01-06T06:21:00.000-08:00

2012-01-04T14:52:00.000-08:00

2012-01-03T11:42:00.000-08:00

Animals

2012-01-03T10:28:00.001-08:00

2012-01-03T07:58:00.000-08:00

2011-12-31T15:35:00.000-08:00

2011-12-31T15:33:00.000-08:00

2011-12-31T09:10:00.000-08:00

2011-12-29T17:48:00.001-08:00

2011-12-29T17:39:00.000-08:00

card holder

2011-12-13T11:15:00.000-08:00

what to do with left over leather (from Moving Bag handles) and eco-wool (from Moving Bag pockets)? Make cool business card / credit card holders. Please visit your local cool shop and pick up a few. I'll have to let you know where these local cool shops are...stay tuned.

2011-07-22T16:41:00.000-07:00

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2011-07-22T16:36:00.001-07:00

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TEXTURE

2011-07-22T09:22:00.001-07:00

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hoe

2011-03-03T16:55:00.001-08:00

hoe-table that is because the legs are ash hoe handles complete with a green rubber grip. wendy and burt, local friends, commissioned me to design a table for a small space in their kitchen. i am grateful that they trusted me and in the end i think it came out great and they seemed pretty happy. i do have a few ideas to improve it and a cool addition. see the last image, would like to make a hardwood top that tapers towards the ends and make a knit sweater runner, that would button on the bottom. cool right?

2010-11-10T12:33:00.000-08:00

small lamp/sconce

2010-09-12T18:07:00.000-07:00

Brand new lamp in process and, real soon, production: Yes, that's a plunger base! Unused of course. I had been planning on using wooden handles of basic plungers for legs on an occasional table I've been working on, and didn't know what to do with the rubber plunger parts. One thought was to use it for the bent lamp base, but the opening is too large. My gal, Jenny B, suggested we just put the fixture/bulb directly on it, no rod. Voila, neat and simple, and wicked cool. Can mount on the wall as a sconce (shown with chrome top bulb) or as a table lamp. Have a few kinks to work out yet, but hope to have it perfected soon.

another try at the wall lamp

2010-01-26T03:40:00.000-08:00

I have been slowly working on a better long wall lamp (see earlier post) and am proud to present version 2. I've been living with it for about a month and it's much better than the earlier option: less clunky, more elegant, doesn't need a cable, and lastly, it's better made (1" birch ply with a Danish oil finish with nicer joinery using a peg for a nice visual and super strength) with a much smaller metal wall hinge, using nice hardware. The only issue may be shipping it, if anyone wanted to buy it that is.

new chair

2009-11-21T03:54:00.001-08:00

chairs have to be the hardest thing to get right. or maybe just for me? i've been noodling with seating for a long time and haven't been able to nail it. i love Donald Judd's plywood furniture, it is so simple and beautiful, but looks a bit uncomfortable. of all the sketching i had been doing the versions i like most where the simple line drawings, as if a kid had drawn a chair. so i wanted a profile that is super thin, well, like a line drawing of a chair. i think it would be super elegant and 'light' feeling. here's a model with two possible cushion backs, one round and one wedge shaped (a nod to mid-century modern couches) i'll build it out of 3/4" birch ply and focus on the joinery. for the seat cushion i bought some light gray 1" wool felt it's amazing stuff.

See Page 60 Please

2009-11-17T07:48:00.000-08:00

Guess what? My Bent Lamp is featured in the current (Dec/Jan) ReadyMade Magazine. So run, don't walk, to your nearest newsstand and pick up a copy. Then turn to page 60, and read: "Using easy to come by chrome rods, wooden bowls, and a chrome-topped bulb, Chuck Routhier has fashioned a fixture that, hands down, beats almost any other table lamp we've seen." Almost? Please.

arm/wall/lamp: step 1

2009-11-02T03:32:00.000-08:00

Been too long since I posted, but here's why: been very busy on several new pieces. Here is one; the arm / wall / lamp. This is the first prototype, and it's not working very well, but making this version has been a good study in what not to do.

What I like about it is what bugs me: I wanted a thick, present arm, but it's a bit too clunky. I think I can make the arm thinner and I need a new hinge (where it swings from the wall) as it tends to bend down, which is why i had to add the wire tension. I'm pretty sure I can come up with a stronger hinge, and place it closer to the wall mount to avoid the wilting (or bending). Lastly, I really like the light quality (and the ability to direct it where you want it). I would use a contrasting cloth cord (the gold cord blends with the wood), perhaps white, and add a dimmer switch.

Two Wheels Good

2009-07-30T10:47:00.001-07:00

I am now reporting on the best experience I've had in recent memory. This past weekend I participated in a bamboo bike frame building workshop at the Bamboo Bike Studio in Red Hook Brooklyn. I am into cycling (and making things of course) and had been researching traditional frame building courses but those tend to be about two weeks long, and are expensive and are in Portland OR. This local workshop really seemed appealing to get the experience of building a frame myself in one weekend and then ride off on a super cool single-speed bike. Plus, the entire exercise is centered around the goals of creating self sustaining, entrepreneurial bike factories in Ghana and Kenya. So, I get to learn about frame building, end up with a lightweight, high-tech bike and contribute to something bigger than myself (they do a much better job of explaining this than i do-check out their site).

I showed up around 9:30 on Saturday morning and met my other workshop mates, Li and Jules from the UK, who actually worked their vacation around this workshop. Then for the rest of Saturday and Sunday, three young, idealistic, energized, dedicated, intelligent, super smart guys (plus a few other folks) showed us how to assemble seven pieces of treated bamboo into a lightweight, super-strong bicycle frame (members of this group include a Columbia engineer and several bike mechanics among other experts). There are several steps, of course, and it gets a bit complicated, but the gist is the joints are tacked together then wrapped in resin-coated carbon fiber. All told, it took about 12 hours on Saturday to finish the wrapping and wrapping and wrapping, so it could dry overnight for the next day.

The first day was exhausting, but incredibly educational. I wasn't expecting the science, engineering and exhaustive testing that this team had put into the project. We were about the 5th or so public group (family and friends had been helping for a while), so it was still trial and error a bit. But after hearing about how well thought out and engineered these frames were I had no misgivings about the performance and safety of the bike.

We showed up about the same time on Sunday and the team were already there doing some sanding and finishing for us. The first half of the day we sanded down any bumpy parts on the carbon (careful to not remove too much material and compromise the joints), remove all the masking tape and resin spillage, generally clean it up. This was followed by a light coating of resin over the entire bike. Bamboo absorbs silicate from the ground so it is naturally water repellent, but this extra resin coating helps to keep the bike protected (and shiny).

After lunch on Sunday, the frames were still a bit tacky, but ready to build up. This part also was entirely interactive and educational. These guys clearly wanted us to be self sufficient, which is, of course, the overall end goal. We learned about installing forks and bottom brackets, adjusting brakes and chains, so on. It was amazing. But the real thrill was seeing the frame become a bicycle. My bicycle that is - that I built - and i had the resin soaked arm hair to prove it!

They finished my bike first and every one piled outside, in the sharp 5 o'clock Red Hook sunlight, and I mounted my bamboo stead and gave it a go. Now, I ride a pretty high-end Look carbon fiber road bike. That bike has nothing on this one. The bamboo bike was super supple, stiff (remember all that wrapping, and wrapping, and wrapping?), yet very smooth. The bamboo frame absorbed any road imperfections and still fell connected to the road and oh so fast and tight. Lastly, this bike is light, a good carbon fiber road bike weighs about 16lbs, a good steel bike about 20lbs, this one is about 18lbs (carbon fiber is light and strong)! I can get it lighter with a carbon fork and better wheels, but for now, it's perfect. I am getting a different saddle, but otherwise, I proudly ride my hand make bike almost every day.

molded e-z-chair

2009-07-16T03:58:00.000-07:00

you know when you get electronics, or something fragile, it comes packed in either foam or some kind of material? I got something that was suspended in the box with molded paper supports. As I was unloading the thing (can't recall what it was) I noticed that the supports shapes were interesting and the texture was spectacular, but i also noted that if I modified it a bit it looked like a lounge chair. How cool would it be to mold a full sized paper chair? I bet it would be incredibly striking and comfortable. I had wanted to submit this to a Dwell chair contest, but I procrastinated, and missed the deadline. I also missed the deadline for a table contest that i actually worked real hard on (I'll post those sketches next)! shoot. okay. thanks for looking.

A New Desk Lamp

2009-06-03T18:13:00.000-07:00

Here's the latest lamp: an articulating plywood clip-on task lamp. So I've been interested in the concept of collaborative lamp design/building. That is, I would design a lamp around easy to find, common and cheap lamp parts, then supply the base-only with instruction on how to finish it, where to get the parts, so on. Not quite Sol Lewitt wall drawings, but his instructions on making his wall pieces is a (slight) inspiration (you can see some of these wall drawings at Dia:Beacon and Mass MoCA). This is something I've tried with the earlier floor lamp (two posts ago) that uses an IKEA cord/shade combination. I have had a bunch of these made and they came out great. Hope to sell these soon.

This new task, or desk, lamp is made out of 1/2" unfinished (you varnish, paint, wax, whatever) Birch plywood. I put a hole in the middle of the arm to keep the cord out of the way. The base slots together and the arm attaches to the base with wing nuts and a bolt. You then go to your local hardware store and get one of those cool industrial clip-on lamps. you can get metal shades, or keep the bulb exposed. I've modified mine with a nice white cloth cord and I deleted the shade, using a bare 40w rubber coated bulb.

New Thing (aka. been a long time since i posted)

2009-05-24T04:44:00.000-07:00

Work, life, so on, has gotten in the way of my minor activities, for example, this blog, furniture design, sleep. The lamp in the last post has been finally made (I had 4 built to test the water), I am having it photographed to post on Supermarkethq (where I sell some of my other stuff). So this is a quick note of update from Hastings on Hudson: I just came back from a trip to Palm Springs, CA. A mid century Mecca. My friend Stu lives there with his lovely wife, Meredith, and their 8 month old, Pip. While there we visited a great vintage furnishings shop called Hedge, run by two nice gentlemen (Thomas and Charles). They showed us around and as I'm an avid coffee drinker I was drawn to this coffee pot. Well, they had many in the process of repair and were so kind to let this go cheap. I love this shape, the streamlined vertical the opposing angles of the spout and handle, and of course the warmth of the teak handle contrasting with the pewter. It's amazing elegant. The only info I've discovered about this is it's a Royal Holland KDM and is part of a four-part set.

brand new lamp

2009-01-06T03:39:00.000-08:00

about 6 months ago I picked up this lamp shade/light fixture from Ikea, thinking I could do something with this. I liked the idea of a floor lamp with a hanging shade. I have several old butterfly chairs and a hanging lamp would work well for those. I tried several 'frames' from broom handles (a tripod, where the broom part is the stabilizer) to a plywood arm mounted to the wall. The arm would have a groove where the cord would sit and you could swing the arm to where you needed the light. there is a lamp like this in MOMA, I can't recall who did this. Prouvé? I'll look it up and report back. I then came across a neat small lamp in Dwell at the same time re-discovered the Mezzadro stool by Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni. It is basically a tractor seat mounted on a bent steal stem with a horizontal piece of wood to stabilize the whole thing. It's amazing. These guys are my hero's as they used found pieces frequently in their work. So I think I found a way to build a frame by combining the foot of the stool (like the Dwell lamp) and the swinging arm, and a unique way to join all the pieces.

I had some 1" plywood hanging around and I love the things that just snap together without hardware (my kids love legos and I love the paper models of fit tab A. into slot B...), so I made the joints to slip together without hardware, it's stable as ever. Here it is, there are three pieces that slide together and you go buy yourself an Ikea lamp shade and plug it in.

NEW 'FOUND' LAMP, SORTA

2008-12-14T16:20:00.000-08:00

This past summer I bought an Eveready flash light for $1 at a yard sale. I didn't really need another flash light, so I considered what else it could be used for. Flower pot? Bird bath? Fish tank? No, a light perhaps? Yes. So I drilled a hole in the end (opposite the light part) and wired it with a new fixture and a cloth cord (I retained the original switch).

I had it up in my hallway for a while. In the end, it was small for the space and the light is very soft (and very yellow), it glows more than lights, so it needs to be in the right place. I tried to coat the interior with white paint to direct the light more, but it all flaked off. I could 'wrap' the interior, but I worry that it could be dangerous (perhaps catch fire - maybe that's a feature?). Anyway, I may make a bunch and give them away, they are pretty cheap and come in different colors. I think what makes these work for me is the contrast of the beautiful cloth cord and the totally cheap flash light, and, of course, the common object used for different purpose, sorta (it is still a light).

2001

2008-12-11T04:14:00.001-08:00

I think the single biggest benefit of Netflix is access to movies that you seldomly consider watching again. I decided to give 2001: A Space Odyssey another watch, it had been 15 years at least since i last saw this giant of a film. Watching it today (or last night that is) I was incredibly surprised by it's timelessness. Not many films age that well. Today films are paced so much quicker and 'look' different (film stock, digital, so on), but not 2001 (however, I admit that 2001 was paced a bit generously) . The effects are amazing and the sets are killer. For example, the astronauts walk in a circular bridge and the camera follows them as they walk upside down and around (a rotating stage). Yes the fashions are bit dated, but the furniture and interiors are totally modern and inspiring. I think if you want to be a furniture designer, step one is watching this film.

O and Dad and license plates

2008-11-08T15:01:00.000-08:00

Liking all things cars, I have a decent collection of old license plates, some less old (NY 2001) some very old (CT 1936). Other than the obvious connection to vehicles, I like the typography (interesting letterforms) and the tactile phsicialness (you get an interesting soft edge with embossed characters). You may have noticed recent plates have more detailed 'designs'. The new New York plates for instance, sport an illustration of Niagara Falls and tall buildings, it's very complicated for a 12" x 6" metal sign that is meant only to identify your vehicle. These have become very small billboards advertising the state you already live in. You can imagine the creative meeting for that: client: what we need here is to represent ALL of New York (the previous design was the Statue of Liberty, clearly it did not represent upstate NY), can you do that? Well, they did it alright and it's almost illegible and certainly most distracting. It may be interesting to do an audit of plates, perhaps even a coffee table book? I"m on it.

O, my 7 year old, also likes the plates, so we just hung a few on his bedroom wall. He chose the sequence - big-small-big-small - and here's what he says about the plates: "sometimes you notice, or don't notice some of them are the same" and "i like the metalness and what they feel like and I like the colors and letters."

Finally, check out the 1956 CT plate and how they displayed registration for that year. The red metal field with punched out numbers looks amazing against the golden field of the plate. You don't see that interesting color combination driving around more anymore. One last note, O wants to make these hanging combo-plates and sell them, any interested parties?

Two BMWs before new job and does it have anything to do with design (a descriptive title) .

2008-10-18T03:35:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, I traveled to Rhode Island for a mechanics day with my brother Brian. We both have BMW 2002s. His is a '76, mine is a '69. I had a few days off as i was changing jobs (more on that later) and this seemed like a great opportunity to unwind and get my hands dirty. Owning an old car requires somewhat frequent maintenance. However, this is really a choice - I love to fix (and make) things and i also like it when things work right. The joy and satisfaction of figuring out the problem, and taking your time to fix it creates a connection to your car (and saves scratch). That may sound a bit twisted, but you know that the job was done right and you can re-fix if needed and ultimately you become more familiar with your car. I dare anyone with a '08 vehicle to open the hood and identify something familiar. These new cars are so complex, the manufacturers do not want you to touch them. There is an Audi that has a fixed hood, you can't even open it. The rationale is that you don't need to, this creates a distance between you and your ride. In the good old days, you were expected to know what a dwell angle is, how to change a spark plug, and how to adjust your valves (what's a valve?).

Now, Chuck, you ask, what does this have to do with design? Good question. A book that influenced me in a profound way was Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (can you see a thread here?). Now, Chuck you ask again, what does this book have to do with design? Another good question. Robert Pirsig essentially tackles the question of aesthetics and quality and the search for how to define 'good'. He does it through the lens of a long motorcycle trip and the need to maintain his Triumph. The dilemma of identifying what is good plagues the designer and the design/client relationship and will continue to do so until the end of time. How do you define good? It's not easy, and something that I continue to work on. I highly recommend this book to any one, but especially to designers. If you can get past the specific motorcycle parts, it is a very interesting read. This book, however, did not provide me with answers, but like Better (see earlier post) it provided me with a framework to think about 'goodness' and how try to become 'gooder'.

SUNBEAM ALPINE

2008-10-08T03:45:00.000-07:00

"This do-it-yourself Workshop Manual has been specially written for the owner who wishes to maintain his car in first class condition and to carry out his own servicing and repairs."
from the introduction of Sunbeam Rapier, Alpine 1955-65 Autobook by Kenneth Ball, published 1970 Autopress Limited.

This is a repair manual for the Sunbeam Rapier and Sunbeam Alpine, somewhat obscure British cars. I had always loved the Sunbeam Alpine, it is a simple 4 cylinder sports car developed to compete with the no frills MG and Triumphs in the 1960s. Also, Roots Group (the parent company of Sunbeam) launched the Sunbeam Tiger, the car that Maxwell Smart drove in Get Smart (remember?). Well, I picked up this amazing manual (I don't have an Alpine yet) at a swap meet in the summer, the cover is brown vinyl - attractive and easy to clean - and the illustrations are beautiful (hand drawn, of course), the exploded views are detailed, informative and easy to follow. I drive a 1969 BMW 2002 as my only car, and I do work on it frequently (watch for upcoming posts), so having a good workshop manual is key. As a designer, I find these info graphics seductive. I wonder how I can use this in my work some day?

KASHIWA SATO

2008-10-03T08:49:00.000-07:00

this is a very interesting site. check it out.

///original bent lamp///

2008-10-02T18:59:00.000-07:00

this was the first version of the 'bent lamp' (click here to see current version), i used a found lamp base and bought off-the-shelf lamp parts, a ceramic fixture and a frosted cap bulb and installed an in-cord dimmer switch. i am still trying to find a better base as the wooden bowl version is quite nice (see image at my site), it is a bit unstable. so far i have sold a grand total of 3 (all to friends at work) and gave away 4. i still like this lamp a lot and hope to come up with a new version soon.

BETTER by Atul Gawande

2008-10-02T18:35:00.000-07:00

"better is possible. It does not take genius. It takes diligence. It take moral clarity. It takes ingenuity. Above all, it takes a willingness to try."
this was a very interesting read on the concept of, well, being 'better', striving not to be perfect, but just do better next time. i had read a few of these essays in the New Yorker and found them very inspirational in pushing to become better, just through diligence and doing better next time.

///the apt///

2008-10-02T18:08:00.000-07:00

i suppose i consider this filler, but here are some snaps of my new apartment. mostly mid-century modern pieces, a few of my own and a few industrial metal book shelfs and old medical cabinets.

ARAM SAROYAN

2008-10-02T05:04:00.000-07:00

Aram Saroyan's poems are amazing; typographic, clever, weird, thoughtful, and bridge the gap between concrete poetry (shape forms meaning) and language and visual typographic form.

I have never been one to sit down with a book of poetry and start reading. I just don't quite get it, but this volume startled me. Because that is exactly what I did - sit down and read poems.

It didn't hurt that they were a close cousin to graphic design, and I could appreciate the minimal gesture and the relationship of the letter forms and the forms responding to or enhancing the meaning of each poem.

This book remains one of my favorites, i wish, however, that it was letter press printed (to complete the formal elegance and attention to detail - this needs to be experienced with better stock and binding).

sketch book // 1

2008-10-01T19:33:00.001-07:00

working on another lamp. i have several plywood vases built but will try to turn them into lamps instead.
also liked the multiple M logo from the paper.

found design // 1

2008-10-01T19:04:00.000-07:00

some found design, a common fetish among designers. card board boxes have the best accidental graphics; they are crude, rough, a nice change from the perfectness of most design.