I didn’t ever expect it to happen to me. I feel like it’s a clichéd mentality, but when it does happen, it sure does rock what I believed were the ideals of the design industry, specifically the small portion that operates (designed and made) within Australia. I assumed that if an idea or product was going to be copied, which I hoped it wouldn’t be, I thought the crime / impertinence would at least be disconnected by oceans and continents and not merely by states and a measly 1681 kilometers.

I produced the original ‘Plywood Milk Crate’ design in 2006 as a student at the Australian National University. It took me just under 6 months of design development, prototyping and refinement to perfect the interlocking system. It was a piece that was well received by my peers, but more importantly by my teachers and mentors. Since this time it has been published in a handful of magazines and blogs (including Inside Out magazine and Indesign Live) and it has even travelled all the way to London in representation of Noddy Boffin (my brand) for the ‘London Commonwealth Exhibition’ in 2012. Finally, if you Google ‘Plywood Milk Crate’ you’re sure to find my version easily and it is in its public exposure that I had false security in the assumption that others would respect my intellectual property.

So when I was perusing the July ‘Finder’s Keepers Market’ here in Melbourne (2015), I was shocked to be confronted by a knock-off of my very own ‘Plywood Milk Crate’ design. My product is an appropriation of a plastic Milk Crate, so granted, it is in a manner of speaking a copy already and the concept of the humble milk crate has been the point of inspiration for others, embraced by a number of Australian designers each putting a unique spin on the aesthetic and manufacture. ‘Like Butter’ and ‘Page Thirty Three’ are two such Australian companies that have both produced high quality, high integrity versions of the molded plastic milk crate used commonly in the transportation of milk.

Intricate examples of two different and unique versions of the plywood milk crate. Left: ‘Wooden MilKcrate’ by Page Thirty Three. Right: laser cut Plywood Milkcrate, stocked by Cotton On.

Minimal Plywood Crates by Like Butter

Beautiful Wooden Crates by WAAM Industries.

A very small (tiny tiny tiny 1%) part me is flattered that somebody feels my design is worthy to be copied, but mostly (99%) I feel appalled that somebody has stolen my design and decided to produce it, and what disgusts me most is that the ‘design thief’ has taken the idea, the dimensions, the system of assembly and put it all together using the worst quality pine plywood you can get, seemingly un-sanded and with plywood manufacturers print still visible. The five parts that make up the box are far-removed from crisply cut computer milled shapes and the joinery is physically and visibly poorly fitted, the entire unit has crudely cut chamfered edges, which looks more like it was attacked with a blender and lastly the product is sold unfinished, without a clear protective coating, left for the elements and with the pretense that a DIY savvy person to do themselves.

Brisbane based Catherine Roberts of ‘Showroom’ and ‘The Spring Blog’, falsely credits herself as the designer of the Plywood Milk Crate. I contacted her via telephone and she was quick to accept credit as the designer, until it was disclosed that it was a Noddy Boffin design and she had stolen it, at which point she passed the blame onto the manufacturer, pleaded ignorance and being unaware of the original product… which I find difficult to comprehend.

Catherine Roberts’ ‘Showroom’ slogan is ‘Where creative + design lovers meet’. I pose this important question to Catherine regarding their slogan… Does being ‘creative’ and being a ‘design lover’ mean copying and stealing from other designers? Which I would retort with, Theft of intellectual property is neither creative nor is it for love, it is clearly opportunistic and unmistakably motivated by money.

“Now let’s look at the real elephant in the room. Living designers are being ripped off every day. As soon as a design is successful it becomes a likely candidate for the copyists. Just when years of study and hard graft are about to pay some dividends, well received products start to appear as cheap unlicensed copies with no funds going to the designer and no return on investment by the original manufacturer”. (‘Design Daily’, The Wrecking Ball That Is Replica) 

We provide an affordable workshop environment, setup for industrial making and experimentation in modern manufacturing techniques. Handsome & Co will provide a creative and safety conscious environment, with the provision of equipment intrinsic to the manufacture of quality products. This type of workspace will allow novice designer / makers to turn skills acquired from study and training into industry applications.

The fully equipped workshop provides ease and convenience for students, machines are maintained sharp, tuned and presented ready for use. Our workshop facilities include workbenches and hand tools for each student and a separate machine room with all equipment required for the production quality furniture.

Handsome & Co seeks out and employs tutors that are professional designer/makers, who are currently engaged in their own creative practices. These tutors will bring a wealth of extensive technical knowledge in the methods and application of traditional and modern woodwork techniques. Most importantly, our tutors are role models, who can inspire students through their active industry practice.

Our tutors will provide demonstrations and knowledge in timber and traditional technique, but most importantly our tutors act as the vehicle to influence their student’s exploration of materials, ideas and processes.

Welcoming applications from anyone wishing to develop their skills in design and furniture making, previous woodworking experience is not essential, however the success in fine woodworking does require patience and an attention to detail.

read more here: Handsome & Co

They take the reader back to a simpler time, when children were allowed to roam free, parents trusted their neighbours and animals smiled!

These children’s books are are fun and and irresistible, with images you could simply melt into.

It is a collection of books that illustrate a time of innocence and a Huckleberry Finn-ish childhood, which I assume we are all nostalgic for and probably never had.

“Some collectors desire beetles, while others have divergent and decided propensities for empty bottles, full bottles… silhouettes, tea caddies… horseshoes, guns, stuffed owls, stuffed animals, stuffed shirts, candlesticks, trademarks, first editions… Although it is quite evident that collectors are not entirely “all there,” I have always found them to be nice, harmless people, whom any of my readers could invite home without danger of being disinherited.”

Check out some more cute illustrations at Piccoli Editions

Hoop pine desk with black resin inlay, supported on black powder coated steel legs. Inspired by traditional school desks, its surface hinges open to reveal one compartment of storage and the face slides out offering another storage area in the form of a drawer.

The simple shape is accented with the series of lines on desks uppermost surface, these shapes created by carving and filling with a black resin. The Silhouetted images is of powerlines that cross an urban intersection.

Recently I undertook  a project to manufacture an etching press. I started it for the challenge but also so as to experiment with wood block printing, to engage a method of branding and in it I hope to influence my furniture designing and I’m sure it will make an appearance in the manufacturing side of things too. I built the frame from Jarrah for its strength, affordability and dark colour, which I hope will darken over time. I certainly enjoyed the process of assembly and am happy to have finished this project, which now will only continue on into other processes as I utilise it as a tool.

This project reminded me constantly of feelings that I had when building a woodworking bench in my degree at the ANU Art School and how buy building a tool such as these you become aware of the amounts effort that have gone into the product and as a result guarantee the care and correct use of the piece of equipment.

I sourced the rollers from MES Presses, Melbourne, who were an enormous assistance and offered feedback on my design to ensure that the final result would function beautifully as well as tailoring rollers to suite a thicker (wooden) frame. So thanks to both Dolly and Michael from MES Presses.

“Printmaking is an art-form with a long history that includes a variety of ways a print can be made. One popular technique is relief print making using a wood block. Wood block prints have a unique character impossible to recreate with other techniques.

As you probably guessed, the block print process uses a block of wood. The block is carved and then covered with ink using a brayer in order to create an impression. Wood Block is so unique because the wood itself has the uncanny ability to take on a life of its own. The type of wood that is chosen to make a block can really affect the type of print it creates. A hard block will offer sharp lines and an overall cleaner look but requires a fair amount of strength to cut. A softer block is quite easy to cut, but because of that, fine details can be easily lost. Regardless of what type of wood you decide to use as your block, it is crucial to have a flat block free of any warps or bends and sharpened chisels. Though sharpening can be boring and tedious, dull tools will ruin your block due to their unpredictability while cutting. Just like it is important in drawing to keep your lines all moving in the same direction along the object, in wood block the same rule applies to your chisel marks. If you move slow and keep a steady hand, it is easier to create a block to be proud of.

The technique of wood block printing requires a great deal of work and preparation. Due to its hands on style, wood block has a character unmatched by any other relief printing technique. In the tech-heavy world we live in, it is sometimes nice to get your hands dirty”.

 Griffin Baker 

http://startstudioarts.si.edu/2011/10/wood-block-printmaking.html

After seeing some walnut spinning tops designed by Klein Reid, I thought I’d have a go at turning some myself. Originally thinking it would be a easy excercise, I soon discover that it was full of problems.

While it was easy to make beautifully turned objects it was another thing to maintain a perfectly symmetrical object for optimal spinning. Even more challenging  was the tops neck (or handle) which was prone to snapping on the lathe. Requiring a sharp tool and a delicate hand. As you can see by the pictures, my success rate was low, however an enjoyable process in which I am sure I will revisit later or subconsciously intertwine into a future project.