The Portafilter- Why Baristas Love It

 Since I work as a barista I thought it would be a great idea to analize the portafilters we use at the espresso machine. Portafilters are the devices used on an epresso machine that holds the grinds and allows water to flow through to create a delicious drink. The portafilter has to be a device designed by coffee lovers who understood the importance of what was needed to produce the best espresso shots and who would be using them. There are five areas of research that makes the portafilter a design worth sharing.

When any product is being designed the first that crosses the designers mind is the products safety. The portafilter gets put into the group head which is part of the machine itself. The group head is where the water flows out and drops into the portafilter when attached. The water is hot which means the group head is also very hot in turn making the portafilter hot and that is what creates the best tasting espresso. In order to keep all of the pieces hot they had to be made out of metal, but that could cause a problem for the barista handeling it. In order to prevent hands being burned a rubber piece was added to the handle. Not only does this protect the barista from burning his or her hands, but it also gives the handle a better grip. Some portafilter handles are shapped with a thicker piece of rubber at the end to be sure that it would not slip out of the barista's hand and some, like the one I use everyday at work, are shapped with ridges to allow the fingers to sit inside the handle better. This idea of differnt handle ends also comes into the second area of research which is comfort. The rubber ends are soft and are easy to hold, but also gives balance to the whole portafilter. Also the metal grips on the sides allow the portafilter to be locked in place when placed into the group head and is also compatable with some automatic grinders. Inside the portafilter is a little metal filter which looks like a disk with little holes poked through it. This little filter allows the espresso to seep through while the coffee grounds stay inside and away from your beverage. Now, the fifth and final area of research, and one that seperates each variation of products, is the aesthetics of the product. The portafilter is a product worth looking at and anilizing because it does so much for our huge generation of coffee lovers and most of them do not know just how wonderful the portafilter is. The rounded shape allows the ease of taking the portafilter in and out of the group head so the designers must have used that main focal point throughout the entire design. The handle and rubber pieces are all rounded and smooth to complement the main piece of the whole design. The way that the handle is shapped to fit your hand makes the barista want to hold it and constantly touch it which is good if the barista is making drinks all day. These differnt variations of the portafilter are only to modify the comfort and ease of using it on a daily basis.

Image Links: http://www.jimseven.com/2007/01/03/want-a-teflon-portafilter/, http://www.partsguru.com/GaggiaAchilleLevermodel.html

some links to buy espresso machines: http://www.peets.com/shop/essentials_espresso.asp?cm_re=essentials-_-feature1-_-Image, http://www.starbucksstore.com/products/shprodli.asp?DeptNo=8100&ClassNo=0036&SubClassNo=0950&CCAID=SBPTPAHP1SHEQ&Redir=/products/shprodli.asp?DeptNo=8100&ClassNo=0036&SubClassNo=0950

Word and Image: Advertisments

Earlier today I watched a commercial for the new video game Call Of Duty: Black Ops that I thought was interesting as a visual image, but at the end of the video one line of words came on the screen that discribed the whole clip and provided a humorous closuer. If I had watched the commercial and not seen the words at the very end, it would not have made very much sense to me and on the other had, if I were to have just seen the words, but not the images I would have not had the same understanding as having them combined together. This commercial was a great way to advertise to all audiences because of how the characters were dressed. The basic message was that anyone and everyone can play this game and it doesn't matter how professional you are. The companey is already able to target a younger audience, so they took a different approch to include older more business type audiences. The visual aspect is able to cetch the attention of the professional business man or woman, and keep their attention based off of the actions each character is proforming. By the end of the commercail, all audiences are attracted to the interesting behavior of the man in a suit and tie and the chef walking around with guns in his hands that they have to read the last bit of information to make sense of it all. When I had finished watching this commercial it made me realize how much words and images rely on each other to deliver a message that one could not without the other. Important pieces would be missing from each other if they did not work side by side. In advertising this is very true because people don't want to read, so having images provided grabs the attention while the words finish the translation of information to the observer.
Image found here: http://geekcentricity.com/2010/11/call-of-duty-black-ops-not-your-fathers-fps.html
Here is the video for your viewing pleasure: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pblj3JHF-Jo

Word and Image: Business Cards

Business cards are a great way to promote your business and get important information to your clients and customers. A combonaion of words and images or a logo help give visual interest while also giving important information. Some desgins, however, are poorly designed and can confuse the consumer or potential client. Logos design and logo choice can also become confusing if used improperly. There are a few tips to help avoid these issues and give impressed feedback from the clients.
When trying to get the information of the business onto a little card, it can sometimes be difficult to fit it all together properly that gives a visual appeal and organization. When designing a business card it is important to remember to keep the lines with the address in close proxcimity to each other to show that they belong together. This tactic will avoid confusion of what the address is while being within the proxcimity of other important information, such as a phone number. Another helpful tip is to keep all of the text in the same alignment. If the lines of text are not aligned, whether it be flush left, flush right, or centered, it could cause unorganization to the point that the mind to feel stressed which is not something you want a potential client to think about, but rather how amazing the business sounds.
Logos are wonderful tools that help the public quickly identify a business or service. For example, a unique logo for a hair salon could be a dandelion flower made out of salon sissors. The public would be able to identify the sissors and get a general idea of the services the business offers. Other businesses choose to use more of a design approch rather than use a logo, which also works very well. For example, a business that provides waxing, facials, and other skin asthetics wanted to use an african theme for her business, so she decided to have brown zebra stipes with an orange squares. Her business has the same brown and orange colors painted on her walls along with various african art. Some businesses dont have very successful logo designs even though their intentions are sinser. For more information on bad logo design, check out my past blog post: http://ashleysworldofdesign.blogspot.com/2010/10/logosthen-and-now-good-and-bad.html. If these tips are kept in mind a bad business card desgin will become a rare occassion, especially if another person looks at the desgin and gives positive critisism. There are even books written to help avoid simple mistakes when designing.
Here is one book that has helped me in the design processes: http://www.amazon.com/Non-Designers-Design-Book-Robin-Williams/dp/0321193857
The two examples I gave are desgins that I have done for small businesses

Pumpkin Carvings

Even though it is November already, I still wanted to show my Halloween spirit. Pumpkin carvings have been a tradition that many familys practice on or around Halloween. The idea of putting a silly face or skull on the pumpkin gives it character. Throughout the years many have made this tradition into a contest to see just how skilled these carvers really are. Some contests have restrictions on what to carve while others are open to the artist's creativity. When the winners are announced, you can see just how much work, thought, and design goes into each carving. Other meterials are used to create a unique design, such as paint or colored lights.

The details that go into the work show just how much planning goes into each design. The right pieces need to be carved from the right spots to give it a believable silhouette and some desgins, such as the werewolf, can give the illusion of texture.

Then there are designs such as this that give not only texture to a piece, but values to the whole pumpkin. When this little kitten is lite up, the light will illuminate different shadows and give the carving life. There are other methods to give shadow other than carving into the pumpkin to give it a three- dimentional look. These talented artists have used principles such as line, value, texture, form, and of course silhouettes to create an image that is beliveable and almost realistic.

Here are the links for the photos: (Day of the Dead pumpkin) http://www.illustrationmundo.com/wp/1947
(Three pumpkin carvings)http://www.charlesandhudson.com/archives/2009/09/enter-the-toh-pumpkin-carving-contest.htm
(Cat pumpkin) http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=104132&currentpage=All

Here are some carving contest sites with amazing and uniqe designs: http://us.blizzard.com/en-us/community/contests/pumpkin2010/winners.html

http://www.extremepumpkins.com/pumpkincontest.html

http://agoodson.com/pumpkin/

Industrial Design- The New iPod Touch

Apple has designed many versions of mp3 players called iPods throughout the years, but the one that sticks out the most to me is the iPod Touch. A few weeks ago Apple introduced the new iPod Touch with new features that the old version never had. The change in updates was so quick and drastic that it makes the older version obsolite now. They have designed the new version to have a camera able now to take photos and even video. This was a feature only the iPhone has had, but now brings appeal to those who do not own an iPhone. The new iPod also has the same micro chip as the iPhone 4 and the iPad, devices with much more to offer than a simple iPod. Right now Apple's biggest marketing feature for the new iPod Touch is the ability to have video chats with friends and family. By adding these new features to the iPod Touch's design the popularity will skyrocket for fans who want the features of an iPhone, without using AT&T's crappy service. This little device is everything you would want in a phone, but without the phone. Before all of Apple's updates to the iPod Touch, it was a popular product, but now it has become a product that iPod Touch fans will purchase to replace their previous Touch. This method of updating or changing already popular products gives desginers a way to improve the lives of the public. For example, with all the new features that the iPod Touch now comes with, there is almost no need for a computer for video chats and you no longer need to carry around a camera or video camera. All of these fetures are compressed into a slick slim device that can be easily carried to all of your favorite places.
Here is the site with all of the new feature information: http://www.apple.com/ipodtouch/
Image site and additional information: http://newtech.aurum3.com/tag/ipod-touch/

Objectified- Content vs. Form

On Thursday our Design 001 class watched a documentry film called Objectified which is about designers talking about design, howit works, how it effects the public, and even designs purpose. What makes this film so interesting and effective is not necessarily the content because any designer could talk about desgin, but the form. Each designer's imput and interpritation helped contribute to the content of the film. but small details such as camera angles and choice of images inhanses the impact of each statement that each desginer makes throughout the film. When they talk about the importance of design or even in the very beginning of the film the viewer is forced to see everyday objects such as a toothbrush or chinese toothpicks up closeand in a way that is different from the everyday. We tend to look at objects very quickly and dont usually take the time to look at how it was designed. Objectified's main goal is to show the problems desginers go through on a daily bases that the public takes for granted. By showing the thought process along with sketches of their designs and how they come up with their ideas to improve the lives of everyone. The viewer does not realize just how much thought goes into design until they hear and SEE it for themselves. For example, one desginer explained how their desgins don't last forever and will eventually end up being thrown away. The images of computers and other products being crushed and thrown away in a dumpster show the impact of the former statement. Any desginer can talk about design and the impact it has on society, but in Objectified they SHOW the impact.
If you liked Objectified check out this film: http://www.imdb.com/video/wab/vi2961047577/
Image above from: http://intothedustbowl.wordpress.com/2009/11/21/objectified/