At the start of this group project, we came together around this quote. Outside looking in, our consumer rushed from the second they woke up before sunrise to work in the fields till they crashed late at night after homework. The hustle seemed too much for one person. It brought us to this overall question: How can we help ease their day and allow them a moment to breathe?
View PDF
View PDF
We created our consumer by combining people we knew and researching those that performed the labor intensive agricultural work. We noticed the fact that most of these hard workers were ripping up clothes or diy-ing their bags since there was nothing on the market available that spoke to their needs. Throughout the day, they would put on or take off multiple layers to stay warm in the early hours and fight the sun as it rose. There were certain tools they needed to have quick at hand, and no secure place to keep their belongings while in the field. Our consumer, Marisole, was young and vibrant. They went to school for graphic Design and worked in the early morning on the field with her father to help our their family. They did not have a lot of time in between work-school-play so we knew pieces that were easily transitional were important. We also knew we wanted the color pallet to reflect their culture and youthful artistic style.
View PDF
View PDF
We determined after extensive research that the 3 main concerns of our consumers day to day life was protection from the ever changing weather, have the appropriate amount of storage while working on the field or running off to school or play, and having pieces that can move and transition from one part of your day to the next without having to wrestle with layers or constantly change while still reflecting her personal style..
View PDF
View PDF
Here you can see my top 3 ideations from our groups brainstorming sessions. After discussions, we felt the far left option would have been too limiting as to which pants you could wear, the middle option felt too basic and didn't have the youthful feel we were hoping to emanate and had too many unnecessary pockets. We decided we loved the innovative clean design with the modern esthetics of the far right option. By bringing a curve into the zipper, it not only plays to softening the overal linear lines of the final group outfit but also has practicality. The curve allows the zipper to open up more thoroughly to easily access your items without the loss of pocket stability.
Through Illustrator, I rendered what the hip bag would look like open at the leg, in hip bag form and extended into a messenger bag while pointing out a few of the key features. I chose Yulex as the ideal fabric as it's an innovative sustainable option to Neoprene which will ensure the bag has all the features to resolve the problems our consumer faces in the field.
I created this usable prototype with a reused set of Neoprene waders to mimic the "Yulex" waterproof features and flexibility, but also to get a better feel of how this bag would have to be constructed with such buoyant material. The adjustable strap is an innovative feature with a magnetic belt clasp for secure closure and modern comfort. The magnetic strap can be extended to effortlessly be transformed into a Messenger Bag. The bottom Pocket is ideal for keeping your phone safe, and the unique curved upper zipper pocket is a perfect size to hold anything from snacks to tools in the field. It's held on the leg by magnetic snaps that are both comfortable and secure. The fabric itself is easily repaired if ever damaged, easily washable, and very tough..
Using both Photoshop and Illustrator, I hand drew what the final complete collection would look like based on our groups technical flats and colorway. With our combined efforts in creatively solving our consumers worries, I wanted to show in the image the youthfulness, comfort, versatility and durability of the design. The perfect bag to ease your worries on the job or at play....and let you BREATHE
View PDF
View PDF
gLike
Creative Problem Solving - Waterproof Hip Bag
This hip bag design was my contribution to a larger team project. We chose to look into designing products and apparel to better support agricultural field workers. We developed a complete outfit that not only would be weatherproof and transitional during the fluctuating weather we have in Oregon throughout the day, but also have the youth and versatility to transition into their everyday attire. This allowed the outfit to not feel like a uniform but rather an expression of them. If brought to production, this bag would use sustainable materials such as "Yulex" (a neoprene alternative), water-based laminating adhesives, magnetic closures in both the leg wrap around and the buckle for the adjustable army style belt. The fantastic versatility of this waterproof bag design is that it can be worn as either a hip bag, or with a simple lengthening of the belt, can be worn as a messenger bag. The mock up was created purely out of up-cycled materials.
Available
Freelance, Full-time
Annie Scriven
Apparel Designer/ Creator of things/ Outdoor Enthusiast
Portland, OR