Hi,
Welcome to what I hope will be a regularly updated collection of my thoughts and insights about my work, my life and my relationship with design.
I'm a designer.
And I'm a maker.
I design things, and I make things. It's what I do. Professionally and personally.
CNC machining, laser cutting, 3D printing, welding, scultpting, sanding, finishing, painting.. Anything goes in my workshop.
The latest thing I designed & made was this website. I had time to make it because I recently lost my day job as a product designer, but that's another story..
So now that I've had time to make a website, update my portfolio, speak to potential new employers and reflect on things a bit.. I realize how cathartic, and personally satisfying, it is to me that I make things. Now including bread.
The time I had spent for a month of unemployment has lead to me finding new ways to find satisfaction in what might otherwise have been a rather depressing time. What to do with all that time? Well.. Make some bread.
I had only read about Nathan Myhrvold, Microsoft's former CTO with degrees in physics mathematics, now turning his mind to the art of cooking as his obsession (among other hobbies like attempting solve some of humanities biggest issues, like eradicating malaria). But I didn't understand his food obsession. Now I am stumbling into embarrassing realization of how well the world of cooking gels with my world of design, and how addictive it can be.
As I type this, the dough for my next loaf is literally rising in the kitchen.. It requires 6h hours minimum before preparing to bake.
It is pure methodology mixed with attention to detail.
In my mind baking bread is like spray painting, for example. The skills translate directly. You need patience & timing, precise measurement mixed with feel for subtle textures (and their changing properties).
If you rush, you will ruin it. You cannot skip steps. It is a science and an art where you work with raw materials to form something new. And when it succeeds it's a rush.
I'm still spending a lot of time spare in the workshop.
But fundamentally, I think the main appeal is when you design in the kitchen, the results are usually instantly gratifying.
JM