Trip Reflection

The speaker that inspired me the most from this UN trip would be the Ambassador of Denmark that spoke about the sustainability in relation to design and architecture of Copenhagen. Her introduction and examples of what it meant to “copenhagenize” a place really led me to understand that sustainability is really valued in some parts of the world and how the architectural designs of Copenhagen reflect that. The aspect of her speech that surprised me the most was when she spoke about the construction of a biking bridge and how that went horribly. Her reference to the bridge really demonstrated to me how, as designers, we mustn’t give up just because of the initial flaws of our first attempt but should instead continue to revise and perfect them. Being inside the United Nations made me realize my responsibility as a member of not just this school, but the world. Due to the presence of microphones and electronic blacker on each individual seats in the conference room, I felt as if I serve as a representation of something bigger than just myself. Also due to the scale and atmosphere of the meeting, I felt as if anything was possible if we as a group of people work together.

Article Reflections

(1) A visitation to a repair cafe is definitely something I will most likely do in my lifetime because there will most likely be a time when I need something I truly love and cherish to be repaired. I feel like if my attempt to fix something I care about fails, this might be the next best solution. I think people are interested in repair mostly because of three reasons, which are sentimental values, financial reasons, or pure hobby. The financial aspect of my three reasons does not necessarily mean that the people wanting their things to be repaired are struggling financially but instead may be more financially responsible and understand the economic benefits of the repairing practice.

(2) It is always effective to encourage positive actions in the form of tax breaks. Despite the possibility of seeing this law being implemented, I do not think tax break with repairs is good for the overall economic benefits of Taiwan. With concentrated technology companies and factories, Taiwan is already a heavily labor and manufacturing based country. Implementing this type of tax cut can encourage the rise of ever more labor-based jobs, which is not the general direction I wish this country will take in the future. Additionally, I find the possibility of large corporations in Taiwan taking advantage of such law and receiving benefits from it more than others to be very likely. Given the current political climate of the United States, I am uncertain about whether it is possible or not. Based on my personal observation, people in the United States tend to favor any and all tax break or tax cut policies, which can potentially increase the likelihood of the law being passed. On the other hand, since a large number of people in the United States are indifferent or even unconvinced by issues such as climate change and sustainability, I find the likelihood of the law being passed to be less than I originally thought it would be.

(3) This article most definitely did not surprise me because my mother also has a large collection of quality coats and shoes that still serve the same purpose they did when before I was born. Not only did these coats and shoes remain the same over time, but they also tend to come back in fashion in cycles. With my mother’s example alone, I can see where the author was coming from and wholeheartedly agree. I do not think an object has to be expensive to be well made. Nonetheless, it would be virtually impossible for a well-made object to compete with the price with that of not so well made objects, because most not so well made objects are mass produced by large corporations. In terms of taking care of objects, I find that I only take care of certain objects that I benefit from using the most and will cost the most in replacing them. Some examples include my computer, phone, and my designer handbags. However, others may take care of objects because the objects have sentimental values to them or because they want to be financially responsible.

(4) I find this type of design to be very inspiring in a way that it demonstrates how clothing can go beyond the focuses of simply style and warmth. This type of design is innovative in the way that in transforms with the user, which to me personally opens up to the possibilities of clothing transformation according to other factors such as weather, moisture, and different settings. Other than size, I think designers need to start adding more functionalities to clothing. Some of the ideas I have thought about in the past include clothes that are able to transform thickness and/or breathability according to the temperature, clothes that are able to protect people from air pollutions, and clothes that can work with technology to serve the functions of social interaction and virtual designs.

REPAIR PROJECT: PART 2

Object: Forever 21 Oversized Leather Shorts & Broken Backpack

Originally, I wanted to repair a green jacket my best friend gave me as a birthday present. However, due to my lack of experiences with sewing and due to the odd design of the jacket, I decided that my choice of a Forever 21 oversize leather shorts would be more suitable to begin the repair practice with. In order to spend less money purchasing for materials, I also used the straps of a broken backpack as my backpack traps.

5) Overall, I would give the repair a 7 out of 10 in terms of success, because I managed to completely transform something I cannot use at all to possibly something I can use every day. The less successful part of this repair is how the sewing was done by hand instead of a sewing machine and how I wish I added more designs to it. Other than this, I am quite happy with my result. The repaired object is definitely more interesting than the original. Because the leather shorts came with side straps that can actually be used to stretch the size of the object out, I managed to incorporate that into my design and creates a bag that can be slighted adjusted with the side straps. Lastly, I think the bag is generally more resilient after my second attempt of sewing, but nonetheless still not as good as bags made by professional backpack companies.

(6) I learned from this experience that design takes a lot of effort. The actual time-consuming process isn’t the repairing phase, but rather the picking, purchasing materials, designing, and prototyping phase. In terms of durability, I think my design will at the very least last for 6 months without breaking and if I had the chance to do this project again I would choose to use the sewing machine instead of doing it by hand. Halfway through my project, I realized that my object can also be easily transformed into a computer bag. This is an idea I discovered later on to be even better because little to no computer bag designs are made of leather and have this style of straps. After this project, I definitely find repairing to be a more valuable skill in a way that I realized, as hard as it may seem, I like and am capable of repairing and repurposing objects. I learned how I can actually save money and/or even potentially make money with this particular skill set.

(7) Photographs

(8) I find the most important aspect of making a design easily repairable is how the design’s parts are put together. A design with many components from example can attempt to organize individual components in a way that when one part breaks the other parts will not break as well. Most importantly, a design should already include the possibility of the object being repaired and make sure that it is as easy as possible to repair an aspect of the design while having all other aspects of it remain intact.

(9) The object I wish to repair would be my own laptop. The screen of my laptop would sometimes go black after using it for too long. After multiple repairs conduced by Apple, the same issue still happens for my screen sometimes. Unfortunately, because as of now I do not have the skillset sophisticated enough to repair my own screen, I have to pay the professionals to do it and trust that they will do the best job they can.

(10) Besides an elastic rope, threats, and needles, I did not have to buy extra parts for my repair, hence I definitely utilized less materials repurposing as oppose to buying a new bag. If I were to buy a new bag, the bag would probably be designed here in the United States by the designers hired by the company. After the designing phase, the backpack manufacturers from countries such as China, Indonesia, or Thailand would have to purchase components needed to make the backpack. This can include zipper making companies, textile companies and etcetera, which are also concentrated in the very same countries. The component providing companies would then have to gather natural resources such as cotton and wool from India, Syria, and Turkey to create textiles. After the backpack is manufactured, the cargo company would have to transport these backpacks to America, where they will be distributed through retailers in many different locations. In comparison to the endless chain of systems involved, my repaired object  process only involved the making of threads and needles, as well as the shelf space in retail stores to sell them.