Cool Coasters
Cool Coasters is the result of material research and development of cork, through the process of experimentation to test its properties and capabilities to drive inspiration to then design a product that can be mass produced.
The result is inspired by the whiskey tasting culture, this whiskey snifter glass is paired with a coaster that chills the whiskey without diluting it with ice or affecting the taste with metal or rock cube alternatives. Through the material exploration of cork we were able to make a coaster that can be filed up with water and then placed in the freezer until needed.
In collaboration with: Julia Nowakowsky and Will Rees.
Thanks to TUC for letting us take photos at their location.
Cork
Cork is a natural material that comes from the bark of the cork oak, due to its impermeable, buoyant, elastic, and fire retardant properties, cork is used in a variety of products that go from spacecrafts to wine stoppers.
Process
Collect
First of all we had to collect as much material as we could, just so we are able to conduct all sorts of experiments, putting cork properties to the test.
Share Ideas
Through conversation we stablished our parameters and direction for this project, we talked about the properties that we wanted to experiment with, while starting to think about the kind of product that could benefit from its properties.
Experiment
Wine Stoppers Grind. Which will bind better with the adhesive?
Adhesive
At the ideation stage, we shared the recipes of the adhesives we thought could be the most effective as binding material so that we can mold the cork into any desired shape. Most of the recipes contain ingredients that can be found at home.
Our best results came from the cork being used as a vessel, luckily the adhesive also had impermeable qualities which lead us to begin the design process of a product. Here we added our interests to give the project a direction.
Ideation and quick prototyping
How about a vessel for drinking whiskey.
We decided on designing a container to drink whiskey that can keep whiskey cold without diluting it. Part of the challenge now is to find the perfect shaped glass, we thought about a whiskey snifter or an old fashioned glass.
