Towards Metal
I'm widening my design practice into industrial design.
Years ago I got into woodworking because it was the most raw and immediate form to shape physical material and make something functional. This was a room divider I made to divvy up the living room from the workshop.
Now I'm going deeper — CAD drawings, manufacturing methods, material selection. The rigor that turns a sketch into something you can hold.
Some years ago, when launching a Kickstarter with my brother for a small habit tracker, we visited CW&T's home and workshop (so grateful for the warm welcome and all the generous pro tips). They both praised metals over woods. I found the preference not very obvious then. I get it now.
Wood is forgiving. It invites improvisation. Metal is the opposite — it demands that you know exactly what you want before you begin. Every radius, every edge, every millimeter. The material doesn't negotiate.
That constraint is what I'm after.
Millimeters Not Inches
I want to create objects that refine daily life. Home, car, wherever friction hides. Ambitious enough to matter, small enough to ship.
Recently I've been reverse engineering the shifter plate cover in my car. The bristles are partially missing. Modeling the original geometry, then finding a way to improve it — this is the kind of problem I want to keep solving.
Taking something that exists, understanding how it was made, then making it better.
An Endurance Sport
This is the work now — increasing sophistication in craft while sharing the things that elicit a feeling within.
Thank you for your energy and attention.
Towards fulfillment,
Hoyd