Intro to Making Project 2: Alicia Brechin

Process

    On the first day, we were given the practice box as usual, however, without a clear understanding of what I wanted to design, I struggled after finished the practice box. I kept brainstorming over the weekend because there wasn't an idea I actually felt inspired to create. Then after talking with my sister to come up with more concepts, we came up with the idea of a set of gift boxes for a group I am in. I really liked this idea, since at least 2 members are leaving at the end of this semester and one more at the end of next semester and it would be a great way for us to remember that we always have each other if we need someone to lean on.

    So before the next class period, I set up and designed a fairly simple box idea with space underneath in the front and back but not the sides because I thought it looked nicer. The box was also designed so that it would be 6" long, 4" wide, and 3" tall because I wanted it to be as versatile as possible while also not being super big. Once I made the base design, I attempted to work on the lid and how to make it functionally work. I wanted it to be able to rotate open easily so I attempted some designs on my own and then during class asked for help. The original design I made wasn't functional because I had put the holes for the lid on the back panel instead of the side panels so I made those adjustments and then spent most of that class period attempting to figure out how to create the lid so it would fit in the two side holes evenly. Once the box itself was finished, since the laser cutter was being used at the time I decided to work on the engraving aspect of my design.

    Now because I need to make everything complicated I decided that not only was I going to make a set of 5 boxes but also that I was going to do two engravings on two different sides of all five. So I created the logo of my group which was a fairly simple process of placing text on a circle and using the pen tool to add the inner logo and infinity loops to make a full ring around the words. Since the lid was going to be the same across all 5 boxes I imported the lid design and copied the logo onto all 5 lids. Then came the complicated part. I decided that for the front of each box, there would be a brick pattern, each member's name, and 3 designs below the name representing different aspects of each person. I was new to laser cutting so while the brick pattern was tedious and the names were simple, I didn't know if the logos I chose could be clipping masked/imported or if I needed to use the pen tool and free-hand draw all 15 images and if they needed to be a specific color or size. This process of not knowing and not finding people who could help me (because of the times I had free time), led me to struggle with the actual laser cutting of a test box let alone all 5.

    Similar to last time I ended up behind in my time schedule and had to make changes to the design when I was able to cut them out. The first design change I made was after the initial cutting without the engravings, shown below, in which I realized that I had been using .19" thickness in my designs and the material was .25" thick. So while my pieces were looking great they wouldn't fit together fully because of the size difference.

    After making this adjustment I then tried cutting the pieces again without the engravings and while the pieces now fit together, in the first image below, the lid would not fit or move comfortably in the holes I had designed. I attempted a lot of sanding to fix this problem however both of the holes on the side pieces broke off and I had to cut my losses. So for the box, I turned in I removed the lid feature and just put it together as it was, the second image. 

    

Result

    While I am not 100% proud of the design and how it does differ so much from my original designs, with no engravings and no lid, I am fairly proud of the design of the box itself. It fits together well and with the super glue held together very nicely. I have no idea what I will use the plain box for, but it is actually very visually appealing and could become a very useful little box. While the size surprised me because I thought it would be a bit bigger, I think the dimensions I chose to add to the aesthetics of the box and make it versatile in the small to medium objects it could contain. I might reconsider the cat toy holder idea as its use, but it one of its strengths is I designed it to be versatile since I was going to make a set of 5.

Reflection

    While I am proud of the design I turned in, I do know I will continue to work on the original design I had. One of the biggest changes I want to make as I continue working on the original design is turning the lid connection from square shapes that go into a round hole to at least a partially rounded design. I also want to keep the engravings as complicated as they are because it is not only a gift to my friends but a reminder that they have a community they can always return to. So probably after more test designs and more sanding, I will be able to give them this gift. For the next project, I want to actually keep to my timetable and turn it in early and not just barely on time. I was trained on Maya and am excited to learn the Fusion modeling for 3D printing so until the next project, goodbye!