MIAD Industrial Design - Cat Coffee Table
Title : Cat Coffee Table
Medium : Craft foam Date : December 2021 Exhibition Text :
My intention with this product was to create a place for pets, specifically cats, to feel safe and happy. Seeing my own pets interact with the things around my house inspired me to make something that could also double as something practical, in this case a coffee table. I used the brand Myzoo as inspiration for something that holds practical use for both cats and their owners. My model was created using craft foam, but I imagine it would be made with a darker wash wood.
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Inspiration :
I had an idea for this project before I found my inspiration, but finding something to base my actual design on ended up being very helpful. I only had a couple initial thoughts about what I wanted, but seeing the deigns on the Myzoo website helped guide a lot of what I wanted to do. Myzoo is a brand that sells furniture for cats, including shelves, tables, and beds. All of it is designed by one industrial designer, which I feel like helps guarantee everything within the brand and website works together and makes sense to be sold together. One thing that initially caught my attention was the geometric shapes oftentimes used in the designs. This gives it a very modern and contemporary look, while also being functional for their intended design. I also like the simplicity of the designs as a whole, both how they are designed and the materials that are chosen to be used. The lighter colored pine wood goes with a lot of different styles, and is just appealing to look at in general. I definitely want to pull on this simple but effective look for my own piece. Another much more obvious feature that inspired me a lot was the way cats use the furniture in their own way. For example, the floating cat shelf (bottom left), is functional as both a decoration piece and something cats can climb in and around. I especially like this because the pieces are designed so that you can buy multiple and build around each other, creating a wall of shelves the cats can explore. The clear cat bed (bottom middle), is another example of something being both decorative and functional. The bed is small enough to be placed somewhere like a desk or table, and give the cat an opportunity to stay in a safe and enclosed space while also being able to look through the clear dome at the things around it. The piece that I found the most interesting though, was the enclosed cat litter box (bottom right). In this piece of furniture, it functions are a little box, which is clear when it is open, but looks just like a cabinet from the outside. I really like how it has the doors on the outside for the cat to get in, and that is something I'dd like to incorporate into my own design. I also like the multiple "floors" inside the cabinet, which give the cats the chance to stand on something other than the litter. Overall, the pieces from Myzoo work as an inspiration for my own piece through their use of form and function, pushing the limits of what both looks good and works well.
Planning :
When I began this project, I had a couple ideas, but nothing that really stuck out to me as exciting or something I really wanted to do. We were tasked to look at the things our pets did and come up with a product that could be a solution to a problem they might have. I had a bunch of small ideas, but none of them seemed practical or like something that would actually help anything. At one point while I was sitting in my living room, I noticed my cats laying underneath a coffee table in our living room, and thought that that was something I could play off of. I thought of possibly creating a table that could double as a sort of play pen or pet bed for cats. My first idea was just a hollowed out round coffee table with some doors in the side that the cats could get into. From here, I began to build on this and come up with new ways that could make it better. I thought it would be helpful to have some sort of storage inside that could hold toys or treats. This sparked the idea to make a smaller version of the same shape on the inside of the table, and this could have a lid that could come on and off to store things inside. I also wanted to create something that can be easily accessible by people, so a removable top or something. With this, people can get inside the table to open the storage box, play with the cats, move stuff around, etc... Something else I wanted to include was interactive elements for the cats to play with. Some things I thought of for this was a hammock on the inside walls, string/toys that can bat at hanging from the top, and cushions they can lay and sleep on. Keeping a lot of these elements, I did eventually change the shape to a rectangular table, as opposed to the round one. I thought that this might be more practical, and have much easier shapes to work with. After changing and improving upon my original sketches, I moved onto creating the model!
Process :
STEP ONE
The first thing I did to start this project was cut out the main pieces that I would need to create it. This included the top, bottom, and all four sides. I cut out the top and bottom first, measuring them to be the same size. After cutting out these bases from the foam board, I realized that the remaining piece was about what I wanted as far as height went, so I used them as the two long sides. To make the shorter sides, I measure the height of the others and the length of the base and cut it out accordingly. I did have to cut a little off the sides, since the board is pretty thick and in creating a box, the long sides took up a couple millimeters of space from where the short sides would go. Cutting them that smallest bit shorter helped them to fit snugly. |
STEP TWO
My next priority was making the doorways and putting the walls together. For the doorways, I measured the middle of the wall made this the center of the opening. I marked out the two sides and the top, then freehanded the sketch of the archway shape. I used a craft knife to cut it out, and the traced it onto the other three walls, cutting those out as well. I used hot glue to attach the longer walls to the base. To make sure they were straight up, I used a set square and held the walls against it to make a 90 degree angle. Once they were in place and dry, I did the same with the shorter sides. I made sure to put hot glue on the edges as well to make sure they were as sturdy as possible and connected with the other walls. |
STEP THREE
In order to make the little boxes on the floor, I measured from the edge of one doorway on the longer wall and the edge of one on the shorter wall. I cut out pieces that were about this length, and then just played around with how they fit inside until I found something that worked. I made two copies of each piece, and glued them together. Next, I put them into the table with hot glue. Next I had to make the lids. To do this, I roughly traced the outlines of the boxes onto a piece of foam board. I cut this out, leaving some room so I could eventually make it more exact. I slowly cut it down until it was the perfect size, and made a second one for the second box. I wanted to make sure the lid fit on the box without sliding around, so I traced the thickness of the foam board onto the edges of lids. from here, I took thin pieces of foam board and glued them inside those lines. I only did this on one half, as the box is attached to the sides of the table and the lid doesn't touch the top of those sides.
In order to make the little boxes on the floor, I measured from the edge of one doorway on the longer wall and the edge of one on the shorter wall. I cut out pieces that were about this length, and then just played around with how they fit inside until I found something that worked. I made two copies of each piece, and glued them together. Next, I put them into the table with hot glue. Next I had to make the lids. To do this, I roughly traced the outlines of the boxes onto a piece of foam board. I cut this out, leaving some room so I could eventually make it more exact. I slowly cut it down until it was the perfect size, and made a second one for the second box. I wanted to make sure the lid fit on the box without sliding around, so I traced the thickness of the foam board onto the edges of lids. from here, I took thin pieces of foam board and glued them inside those lines. I only did this on one half, as the box is attached to the sides of the table and the lid doesn't touch the top of those sides.
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STEP FOUR
After the main structure was complete, I moved onto attaching the top. I cut the top in half the short way, and used two hinges to allow each part to open and close. I had originally tried to hot glue the hinges directly onto the foam board, but I found that the hot glue would peel off the metal of the hinges as soon as it dried. In order to fix this problem, I super glued paper around the part of the hinges that would be glued on. This way, the hot glue would have something that it could actually stick on. I had thought about using super glue directly on the foam board, but I wasn't sure how well it would hold up, so I found hot glue was the best option. After gluing the paper on, I used hot glue to attach one side of each hinge to a lid, and the other side to the wall. I did this to both lids, and they were finally able to smoothly open and close. |
STEP FIVE
After having all of the main components complete, I only had some details left to finish. First I make the hooks that would go on one of the lids. To do this, I glued a piece of armature wire I had bent into a hook onto a small piece of foam board. I also glued some paper over the wire attached to the board to make it more secure. I made a second hook, and glued the both to one of the lids. I made a little "yarn ball" out of string as an example, and hung it from one of the hooks. After this, I made the storage piece for the lids of the boxes. I had originally planned on using some sort of fabric or net, but I couldn't find anything that would work well. Instead, I took think pieces of string and glued one end to each side of the other lid. I made a few more of these, and then tested it. The string was able to hold both lids at once, and they held up pretty well. The last detail I wanted to include was shelves that the cats could sit on or under. This was pretty simple, and I just took two rectangle pieces of foam board and glued them in the empty corners. From here, the cat coffee table was complete!
After having all of the main components complete, I only had some details left to finish. First I make the hooks that would go on one of the lids. To do this, I glued a piece of armature wire I had bent into a hook onto a small piece of foam board. I also glued some paper over the wire attached to the board to make it more secure. I made a second hook, and glued the both to one of the lids. I made a little "yarn ball" out of string as an example, and hung it from one of the hooks. After this, I made the storage piece for the lids of the boxes. I had originally planned on using some sort of fabric or net, but I couldn't find anything that would work well. Instead, I took think pieces of string and glued one end to each side of the other lid. I made a few more of these, and then tested it. The string was able to hold both lids at once, and they held up pretty well. The last detail I wanted to include was shelves that the cats could sit on or under. This was pretty simple, and I just took two rectangle pieces of foam board and glued them in the empty corners. From here, the cat coffee table was complete!
Experimentation :
In this project, I did a lot of experimentation. The final model I created was actually my second attempt, as I had made the first one but was not happy with the results. I had originally tried to make something based off my first sketches, which showed a round table. As much as I tried to improve upon the design, I was never really happy with the outcome. I eventually restarted, and it ended up being much better than the first. In my first attempt, I found it very difficult to work with the round shape of the table. It was very difficult to cut out perfect circles, and even harder to measure anything when it was all on a curve. Aside from difficulty in creating the model, it was just overall less practical in a real world setting. Having a round coffee table doesn't fit in many living areas, and a rectangular shape is easier to fit into smaller spaces. I also found that the material I used in the first try to be difficult to work with for what I needed. I used craft foam as opposed to foam board, and it was extremely flimsy and bendable. While I was trying to make the model sturdy, I couldn't achieve this without layering the foam, which made it much thinker than what I wanted. Foam board on the other hand is very sturdy and doesn't bend at all. Although the board was a little bit thinker, it wasn't nearly to the extent of what I would've needed to do with the craft foam. Overall, I just found my second try much easier to do and much more practical. I think having already practiced making a model with my first try definitely helped me to make the second.
Critique :
For this critique, I will be comparing my own piece to the three from Myzoo pictured below.
Similarities May Include :
- Furniture that is interactive with cats. In my own work as well as Myzoo's, the product is both function for cats but also humans. Whether as a table, cabinet, or shelf, all of the pieces double as either furniture or decoration for people and something to play or lay in for cats.
- Functional designs for both cats and their owners. In both works, the furniture is fun for the cats while still functioning well for their owners, whether in the form of a cabinet or coffee table.
Differences May Include :
- The material of the product. This is made pretty clear in the fact that I used craft foam instead of wood, but I imagine that if it were to ever be made, it would be a darker washed wood, or at least have different options. On the other hand, Myzoo's designs are very consistently made of the same materials.
- "Open" vs "closed off" design. Other than the enclosed cat little box, most of Myzoo's furniture pieces are designed to show off the cat and how they are interacting with the furniture. In my own piece, I wanted to the cat interaction to be more or less hidden, hence the lid on top and minimal openings.
- The simplicity of the designs. Myzoo's furniture is much less complex, using simple shapes and forms to create their products, in comparison to mine, which has more details and components.
Reflection :
Creating this art piece helped me learn a lot, about both myself and how I adapt to create things in mediums I'm not used to. While I have used craft foam quiet a lot on the past, I had used it for much different projects. I had used it at one point to make feathers for a cosplay, and although the application was extremely different, I was able to use some of the skills I acquired in the past and apply them to what I was working on for this. In doing this, I was able to create a product that I was somewhat happy with. My inspiration for this project was the brand Myzoo, which creates furniture that is decorative and/or functional for people, as well as being usable for their pet cats. I tried my best to pull this idea of both form and function until I was able to find and create a design I was happy with. One of the biggest challenges I faced while creating this piece was mostly just finding what looked good in the scale I was creating it. When creating the planning sketched, I would be able to just erase or start over when I didn't like how something looked, but when creating the physical piece I had to be much more confident in what I was doing and if it was going to turn out the way I wanted. My favorite part, on the other hand, was the process of sketching and planning for the final design. I really liked being able to push the limits of what would and wouldn't work with the idea I had, and putting it on paper helped me to visualize this process. In conclusion, I hope others can look at my piece and see something that can be used in a practical sense for humans, in this case as a coffee table. But, I also want it to be seen as something functional for cats and other small pets in the way that they can interact and play with it.
ACT Questions :
Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause effect relationship between your inspiration and its effect on your artwork?
Using Myzoo as a focus, I payed close attention to the relationship between form and function when creating my final design and product.
What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
It is important for the owner and the pet to have furniture that can be beneficial to both of them.
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, culture, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
Creating a design that benefits multiple groups of people or animals can be very difficult. In order to create something effectively, you must observe how each group interacts with the world around them.
What is the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?.
Being able to create a piece of furniture that is functional and effective for both humans and their pet cats.
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
A lot of product design ideas come from observing what does on in your life. If you look around, there is always some sort of problem that can be solved though design one way or another.
Using Myzoo as a focus, I payed close attention to the relationship between form and function when creating my final design and product.
What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
It is important for the owner and the pet to have furniture that can be beneficial to both of them.
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, culture, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
Creating a design that benefits multiple groups of people or animals can be very difficult. In order to create something effectively, you must observe how each group interacts with the world around them.
What is the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?.
Being able to create a piece of furniture that is functional and effective for both humans and their pet cats.
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
A lot of product design ideas come from observing what does on in your life. If you look around, there is always some sort of problem that can be solved though design one way or another.
Citations (in MLA Format)
“=Buy 1, Get 15% OFF On 1 = Enclosure Cat Litter Cabinet, Hidden Litter Catcher, Included One Foldable Litter Box| Omega.” MYZOO, 2021, myzoo.design/collections/christmas/products/omega.
“Clear Cat Bed, Standing Cat House | Spaceship Gamma (Oak).” MYZOO, 2021, myzoo.design/products/clear-cat-bed-spaceship-gamma-oak-myzoo.
“Hexagon Floating Cat Shelves | Busycat-Pine.” MYZOO, 2021, myzoo.design/collections/floatingcatbed/products/busycat-burly-wood.
“MYZOO-Build A Climbing Wall With Floating Cat Shelf For Your Feline.” MYZOO, 2021, myzoo.design.
“Clear Cat Bed, Standing Cat House | Spaceship Gamma (Oak).” MYZOO, 2021, myzoo.design/products/clear-cat-bed-spaceship-gamma-oak-myzoo.
“Hexagon Floating Cat Shelves | Busycat-Pine.” MYZOO, 2021, myzoo.design/collections/floatingcatbed/products/busycat-burly-wood.
“MYZOO-Build A Climbing Wall With Floating Cat Shelf For Your Feline.” MYZOO, 2021, myzoo.design.