R2D2 Bin

Who says Wall-E is the only environment friendly robot?

This was actually my first project at this scale, two years prior to the Espresso Bar. This life size R2 droid is made from a large swing-top trash bin, foam board, duck-tape, spray paint, and other top secret materials. R2 is also equip with a voice box attached to his swing-top (balanced out by two coins).

Phoenix Tattoo

As usual, a friend approached me with an idea. She wanted to get a Phoenix tattoo on (or around) her shoulder. So I went over to my trusted friend Google Search, and asked it to tell me all about the Phoenix (definition, symbolism, colors... ).

A lot of the reference Google Images gave me was fairly straight forward. An Image of a flaming bird copied onto someone's lower back, shoulder, chest, calf, and so on. That got me thinking, how can I take it a step further. So I drew out a template of a human shoulder from the top, front, and back view. Here are the results:
Note that the template is drawn from imagination and is not a precise representation of female anatomy. 

Cut The Rope - Piggy Bank

I based this piggy bank off of the cute little green guy from "Cut the Rope". It is not a traditional piggy bank that you would fill with coins and then break it (it's too cute to break). Instead, I designed it with a lid to allow easy access to the content without having to harm the exterior body. The entire body is made out of a glue based paper-mache with green acrilic paint mixed into it.

please ignore my messy room in the background.

 Started off by modeling the basic shape using clay.

 Next, I covered the top half (lid) with paper-mache.

 When dry, I popped the lid off and carved out the mouth.

 After I was satisfied with the model, I decided to cut it in half before covering it with paper-mache.

I chose to do it that way so it is easier to get the clay out later.

After the paper-mache dried up, I cleaned out the inside of the model.

 Then re-assembled it, made sure the lid fits, and added the final touches.

And yes, that was Darth Vader guiding me through the entire process.

Espresso Bar

This project came about when a friend of mine needed a nice table to host her brand new espresso machine. She wanted a simple table, just big enough to hold her machine, that fits between her kitchen island and the wall. Since this was a piece that would live near the kitchen, I added a few perks to it. A nice bronze bar, in the front of the table,  to allow quick access to towels and other handy coffee making tools. I also added a bottom shelf for extra storage (coffee beans, cookbooks, booze... ) . The bottom shelf also strengthens the table, which is a big help when the espresso machine alone weighs 72lb (32.65kg).

I consider myself a newbie at building these sorts of things, and I have a long way to go before I can justify calling myself a furniture designer. So forgive me for any rookie mistakes here and there.

Here are a few design challenges and lessons learned from this project:

• Always double check the actual size and specifications when buying materials. I put too much trust in label descriptions. I got all the wood I required only to realize that when the table says 2x4 inches, it actually means 1.75x3.80'ish. Luckily, I was able to adjust the design on the fly to fit the slight differences.
• Use the right tool (or materials) for the job. I depended on some leftover screws I had in my toolbox, that I thought were wood screws (rookie mistake). They were very stubborn to say the least, that slowed down the project which made me sad. A quick run to the hardware store made all the difference.
• Give yourself room to breath. Earlier in the design stages, this project seemed like a very quick and simple build. Although I planned it well, I still fell short of my deadline. While I can give you a pretty accurate estimate of how hold it would take me to design a logo, I'm still adjusting to how it translates for manual labor.

Thanks for reading. Please leave me a comment of any questions, suggestions, or just pain comments.