I came up with several problems, but the two I decided to focus on are related to reaching and painting. The first problem is that all the blinds in my house are the type to push up and pull down, so it gets difficult for me when the blinds are pushed too far up. This is especially a problem for certain windows in my house because they are behind furniture, so I have to climb the furniture to pull it down or get help. The second problem is a specific one and not an everyday problem, but I’ve noticed that sometimes when I paint I struggle to find a place to put brushes that I’ve used and need to use later.
Blinds Grabber
It was difficult coming up with multiple prototypes for this idea. This problem could be solved with a grabber tool, which already exists, so it was hard coming up with an original idea.
My first idea was to create a hook at the end of a stick, since all the blinds in my house has a loop where you could grab it. I was thinking it could be retractable to save space.
Another variation of the hook idea was to have a different handle type. This prototype ended up looking kind of like a tape measure.
The third one is my least favorite and will probably evolve into something else later on. I was thinking of doing a “clamp style” where instead of hooking into the loop it grabs it, kind of like tongs. But this style would need to be extra long in order to get the reach.
I had another extra idea where it would be like an “extra hand” where the thumb moves, but this is a basically a complex version of a grabber tool. I also looked at existing grabber tools and found out that there were some DIY versions made with cardboard, so I might rethink some of my current sketches.
Paintbrush Rack
I’ve noticed that (on the rare occasion) when I’m painting, I often leave my paint brushes in the water cup. While this cleans my brushes, it also destroys it because coating on some of my paint brushes have chipped away or the glue connecting the brush head to the handle of the brush weakens to the point where it detaches. Additionally, sometimes I switch between brushes without leaving it in the water cup, so I leave it on a paper towel on my desk. Sometimes it gets a bit chaotic and messy, other unfortunate times it rolls around. So I thought it would be nice if there was a sort of rack to hold my brushes while I’m painting and it can serve as a drying rack when I’m done.
The first idea was to have a box like rack to hold the brushes and have an extension for paper towels. I felt like this idea was bulky and later on came up with a triangular shape instead.
The second and third ideas are kind of similar. I based it kind of around test tube racks, where it’s for paint brushes instead of test tubes. The first one has peg legs that can pop out while the third one has legs that fold in. But I feel like one issue that I’ll run into with this design is how the brush can be taken out easily.