So far, my final project inspirations stem from a few different ideas and aesthetics. While I am still unsure if I will end up going with any of these I think that going a bit deeper into the ideas will help me brainstorm further and help me decide what to choose.
One of the main design inspirations that I have been looking into doing something with is fiber optic cables. I really like the look of the fiber optic cables with the lights and I think it could be really interesting to implement into some other larger piece. I think it would create a really interesting aesthetic to hide most of the cable in some sort of larger piece so that just the ends poke out and glow, and to have the lights change colors.
I recently saw a video where a girl did something like this for her car, and installed fiber optic cables in the ceiling of the car, and I really love the aesthetic that it created. I think that applying this sort of idea could turn into something really interesting. I even thought about applying it to my couch that I made for my first project. If I could somehow figure out a way to bring the cables through the foam so that just the ends are exposed, it could make the whole couch glow which could look really cool. Whether it was implemented into a couch or something else, I think that adding this kind of glowing lights to any sort of furniture piece could totally change the aesthetic of it and create a really unique look. Below you can see an example of a sort of package of fiber optic cables that are able to plug into a wall or car cigarette lighter.
I am not totally set on doing this for my final project, I definitely still have some other ideas that I would like to explore further before I decide, but it was definitely helpful to take this idea a lot further and expand on it. Some other things that I am still considering have to do with things like outdoor gear, as I have some ideas with my climbing and skiing equipment that could turn into something interesting too.
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Hi Maya, I think the concept of using fiber optics is genius and I can see the possibilities are endless for the application of them. I am interested to see how you will manage to fit thousands of fiber optics through the foam in your couch. However, if you do decide to do something more along the lines of outdoor gear, the fiber optics would work a lot better for that in my opinion. Whatever you choose to do with them, I think it will be a great idea. I am also intrigued to see how you will make it dynamic.
Hi Maya,
This is such a cool project idea – I love the aesthetic of fiber optic cables that are lit up by RGB LEDs. Integrating this into some climbing or skiing equipment is a great avenue for design since it has a personal connection to you. If you integrate this into the couch you made for the upcycle projects, how do you think you might go about doing that? I personally really enjoyed the minimalist feel of the couch, but it definitely could look amazing with some fiber optic cable additions! One suggestion that I have is to cut out several holes in the couch (that wouldn’t be covered by the crashpad) and fill in the holes with fiber optic cables that can be lit up with RGB LEDs, but then fill the hole with a resin of some sort so that it looks like the colors are built into the couch.
Hey Chris, I really appreciate the thoughts- I really like your resin idea; I think it’s something I’ll consider. I am definitely thinking about continuing with the couch and revising it, but honestly I’m not sure if that’s allowed with the project requirements to kind of continue on the same project. So, I was also thinking about upcycling some old skis as like a table or something too. Resin could help create a nice level surface from some chaotic kind of scrap pieces and lights could add a really interesting sort of glow.