Moomin Prototype
One of my sisters moved to Finland when I was young, and introduced me to Moomin. He still retains a magical quality and has already got an inviting plush figure. My son’s Moomin plush quickly became one of the few bedtime indispensables–so potentially even more magic than I was aware of.
After a few days, I came up with ideas that didn’t involve a beloved children’s character protected by Finnish copyright law.
Bedtime Balloons
Story and target users: My son love balloons. I thought this would be a fun way to let him be able to sleep with balloons, when the real ones have to sleep on the couch. He’s also getting closer to potentially wanting a nightlight, so, safety permitting, this might be a fun way to do that 🙂 I see this being a cute idea for helping bedtime be a little more fun.
Materials: Battery pack, LEDs (red, yellow, blue), Thin Felt (red, yellow, blue, white), polyfill, Buttons, or iron-on embroidered eyes.
Pilea Plush
Story and target users: I love plants–especially ones that trail. But some rooms just don’t get enough sunlight. Pilea Plush could be a charming way to incorporate a bit of flora into your child’s room (and mayyyybe the bathroom). Depending on execution, it could potentially work for adults as well. I’d need: A battery pack, LEDs (white), Felt (green, brown, tan), polyfill.
Pomodoro Pillow
Story and target users: Since we’re shopping for one now, I started with the idea of an ‘OK to Wake’ Clock for toddlers. I got the idea for a plush stoplight version, but then I saw that there is already an Elmo Stoplight OK to Wake Clock–so it looks like Elmo bested me again. So I thought about other use cases for a stoplight style plush, and thought about socks on doors that signal–among other things–”don’t come in.” But the product here doesn’t fit the target audience.
Then I remembered that for another class I’ve been working on a design to tackle task management for people with ADHD or who face challenges with their executive functions. So, slightly returning to the clock idea, I thought about the pomodoro method, of having a visual countdown. Personally, and having ADHD, I find a countdown to be a distraction from my intended task. But what if, instead of a clock, it was something more interactive? What if my pomodoro were a small pillow on which I would rest what distracts me most, until it’s light shut off to signifying I could pick it up again? I’m too invested now–I’m going to have to see if this works. I’ll need: A battery pack, LEDs (white), a timer module, plush fabric, polyfill.
Hey Josh, great brainstorm! You mentioned in class a preference for your pillow pomodoro idea, which is fine to pursue for this project as a form exercise– we will hold off on adding interactivity until future projects, so it’s ok to pick this one up again as your final project if you wish. Questions about this idea: How is the form of a pillow connected to the purpose of the device? is it a little bed for your phone? if so, maybe it can be tucked in, and light up when it’s time to use it again? I think a light turning off as an affirmative signal is a little confusing.
Your other two ideas allow for more creativity with the form! they are both valid and fun-sounding explorations that fit the spirit of the assignment well. Even if you think you want to do a pomodoro pillow for your final project, you might consider picking one of these alternate ideas for this project to get the experience with a more story-motivated lighting outcome.
Kids toys have a lot of safety features. Our projects will have very few. So while you are welcome to include your actual kid in the ideation and documentation, please do not leave your human child unattended with the projects you build for our class.
Finally, I want to challenge your assumption that felt will be the best fabric for diffusing light in your intended way. It’s generally got pretty fast fall-off in any color other than white. Check out Wini’s post to see some other good options. For the plant idea, I imagine some light green cotton jersey (t-shirt fabric) would work well because it’s stretchy and would look good both in daylight and dim light conditions with green leds inside.
Hey Josh! These are some really great and fun ideas, I really like how they are all adding an element of playfulness for children! I personally really liked the ‘Bedtime balloons’ idea. I feel that the form and structure would be really fun to see come to life! I also have a suggestion in case you go ahead with that idea – you could add some weight to the bottom of the plush light to give it weight to stand up straight. It would look really cool if it stood up like a lamp, while being a plush light! All the best, great ideas though!
Hi Josh! I remember we talked about the balloon idea last week and I still think it is really creative and cute. I love the emotional reasoning (it being for your kid) and I am sure it would resonate with other kids around the same age as well- if this were a product. I also think you could make this really visually strong by using three different colors for the balloon fabric and getting creative with the string or a “paper weight”. I think you could use curly ribbon or yarn (the kind that stays in a ringlet shape) to attach to the base of the balloon, so that it looks like party balloons! If you do not know what I mean by this, come ask me.