The Year Of Peak Waste
“The year of peak waste” - that’s what inventor and entrepreneur Saul Griffiths called 2009.
Reading about the presentations on sustainability that Griffiths makes worldwide to commercial designers has set me reflecting on the new Millican products that we’re developing for 2010, the start of a new brand-new decade.
At the heart of Griffith’s presentations lies a single, emotional statement. He states that as a recent father, he wants to give his young son a Rolex watch and a Mont Blanc pen with the intention that they may be his only timepiece and writing implement for the next 100 years.
Griffith is big on what he calls “heirloom design” - that is, products which last so long that they will be handed down from grand-father to son to grand-son.
Photo courtesy of Pingu1963
Our culture has prided itself on creating the disposable and the ephemeral, blitzing us with generation after generation of new consumer products.
Enough of that. Let’s get back to vintage design with a focus on elegance, utilitarianism, and long-lasting quality.
Heirloom design has been a watchword for us here at Millican as we continue working with fellow Cumbrian, Adam Atkinson on sustainable designs for our 2010 range of products. Our bags and other products need to function extremely well, but they also need to be second to none in their quality, thus ensuring that they can guarantee a lifetime of adventure.
In recent years, it seems that our culture and ever-accelerating rate of technological progress mean that we are only be satisfied if we have the newest, brightest and the latest of everything. But is that really what we value in life? I know that Nicky and I love the vintage bags that we have stowed in our loft and around the house. Timeless artefacts that have been passed down from generation to generation and many of which are still usable.
Moreover, while much heirloom design began as a counter-cultural movement to get back to qualities of classic design and durability, it is now rapidly becoming an ecological necessity. As the root meaning of the word ‘sustainability’ suggests, we need products that are going to ‘sustain’. The world is full of enough consumer junk as it is, much of it rapidly decaying and cluttering landfill sites.
To that end, Griffiths has pointed out that for any designer or producer, the client is no longer the client. The planet is the client. Griffith insists that designers must work with their clients to do everything responsible to reduce energy consumption and prevent further global warming. We also need to develop a share economy, he says, where we give up our attachment to ownership and personal property and get used to objects that can be co-owned or borrowed from a central source.
Our own commitment to sustainability at Millican means that we have to ensure we design products without an Achilles’ heel. Every type of material, every design element, needs to be chosen with its continued use in mind. Only in that way can we be sure products will winningly survive years of use.
Our first collection went through nine rounds of sampling before we felt comfortable with, and confident of, our designs. The process taught us a lot.
Our three or four new products, for launch in spring 2010, are going through the same rigorous sampling process. First, we use our samples ourselves, then re-design and re-tweak them until they feel fit for launching. We’re also updating existing products where we’ve had feedback on how we can further improve their function and lifespan.
Heirloom design relies upon a cycle of activity – designing, testing selling, receiving feedback, and making changes. Which is not dissimilar to the teaching cycle that any teacher knows about – devising teaching courses, facilitating them, and working with peer, student and self-evaluation, before modifying courses and beginning the process all over again. Like good teaching, heirloom design takes time and is costly but it’s also a tremendous learning process and a great personal journey for us.
And if we can hand one of our used bags with pride to a grand-child in thirty years time and know that it could be their trusted companion for many years of adventure… what more could we wish for?
Reading about the presentations on sustainability that Griffiths makes worldwide to commercial designers has set me reflecting on the new Millican products that we’re developing for 2010, the start of a new brand-new decade.
At the heart of Griffith’s presentations lies a single, emotional statement. He states that as a recent father, he wants to give his young son a Rolex watch and a Mont Blanc pen with the intention that they may be his only timepiece and writing implement for the next 100 years.
Griffith is big on what he calls “heirloom design” - that is, products which last so long that they will be handed down from grand-father to son to grand-son.
Photo courtesy of Pingu1963
Our culture has prided itself on creating the disposable and the ephemeral, blitzing us with generation after generation of new consumer products.
Enough of that. Let’s get back to vintage design with a focus on elegance, utilitarianism, and long-lasting quality.
Heirloom design has been a watchword for us here at Millican as we continue working with fellow Cumbrian, Adam Atkinson on sustainable designs for our 2010 range of products. Our bags and other products need to function extremely well, but they also need to be second to none in their quality, thus ensuring that they can guarantee a lifetime of adventure.
In recent years, it seems that our culture and ever-accelerating rate of technological progress mean that we are only be satisfied if we have the newest, brightest and the latest of everything. But is that really what we value in life? I know that Nicky and I love the vintage bags that we have stowed in our loft and around the house. Timeless artefacts that have been passed down from generation to generation and many of which are still usable.
Moreover, while much heirloom design began as a counter-cultural movement to get back to qualities of classic design and durability, it is now rapidly becoming an ecological necessity. As the root meaning of the word ‘sustainability’ suggests, we need products that are going to ‘sustain’. The world is full of enough consumer junk as it is, much of it rapidly decaying and cluttering landfill sites.
To that end, Griffiths has pointed out that for any designer or producer, the client is no longer the client. The planet is the client. Griffith insists that designers must work with their clients to do everything responsible to reduce energy consumption and prevent further global warming. We also need to develop a share economy, he says, where we give up our attachment to ownership and personal property and get used to objects that can be co-owned or borrowed from a central source.
Our own commitment to sustainability at Millican means that we have to ensure we design products without an Achilles’ heel. Every type of material, every design element, needs to be chosen with its continued use in mind. Only in that way can we be sure products will winningly survive years of use.
Our first collection went through nine rounds of sampling before we felt comfortable with, and confident of, our designs. The process taught us a lot.
Our three or four new products, for launch in spring 2010, are going through the same rigorous sampling process. First, we use our samples ourselves, then re-design and re-tweak them until they feel fit for launching. We’re also updating existing products where we’ve had feedback on how we can further improve their function and lifespan.
Heirloom design relies upon a cycle of activity – designing, testing selling, receiving feedback, and making changes. Which is not dissimilar to the teaching cycle that any teacher knows about – devising teaching courses, facilitating them, and working with peer, student and self-evaluation, before modifying courses and beginning the process all over again. Like good teaching, heirloom design takes time and is costly but it’s also a tremendous learning process and a great personal journey for us.
And if we can hand one of our used bags with pride to a grand-child in thirty years time and know that it could be their trusted companion for many years of adventure… what more could we wish for?
posted by jorrit at
11:02
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