Engineering
Salt and Pepper Shakers
Our first project in Engineering was to create our very own salt and pepper shakers. I choose to make cats. My first process was to make blueprints in which I drew out my cats with labels dimensions and a clear plan how to create them. I designed them as a cylinder with a sphere on the top as heads. I quickly ran into my first problem and design flaw. Making straight cuts is relatively easy however making wood round is extremely difficult. I took two by two and cut it into two small squares and two larger rectangles. Then came the challenge: the sander. At first I started with the electric sander. After having to bring my fingers less than an inch away from the spinning sand paper and the wood being flung out of my hands a few times, leaving me to believe my fingers had been sanded off for a microsecond with the loud slam of the wood against the tool I was done. I finished my work by sanding it by hand. A long, labor intensive process, that took most of my project time. After 3 days (6 hours) of sanding it actually worked out very well. Although it took a while I was left with very nice spheres and pretty even cylinders. Running out of time I brought them home to paint. I painted the salt cat white with pink accents and the pepper cat black with hints of grey. Lastly I drilled completely through the body of each cat and half way through their heads. I blued them together and finally drilled the little salt and pepper holes on the top. They were nearly finish however they had no ears. I had to get creative with only 20 minutes left of class on the last day of work time. I took paper and cut little triangles. Then cut slits on the bottom. I folded and glued making them a curved triangle that had a flat bottom to glue to the heads of the cats. Then I painted them to match and volia! They were all done.
I am most proud of my innovative thinking to face problems in my design. Im proud of my dedication to hand sand to make smooth professional curves on my work. I am proud of bring them home to paint. and painting over the oil paint with tempera paint to allow to dry faster! I am also proud of my quick last minute idea for the ears.
Next time I am going to try to correct these problems while i'm still in the brainstorming process. This will make my work easier and help it look flawless and more professional. This is my first project in the wood shop and I have learned sooo much about the tools, practicality, and safety.
I am most proud of my innovative thinking to face problems in my design. Im proud of my dedication to hand sand to make smooth professional curves on my work. I am proud of bring them home to paint. and painting over the oil paint with tempera paint to allow to dry faster! I am also proud of my quick last minute idea for the ears.
Next time I am going to try to correct these problems while i'm still in the brainstorming process. This will make my work easier and help it look flawless and more professional. This is my first project in the wood shop and I have learned sooo much about the tools, practicality, and safety.