My Design Works
- Kaisern Chen
- Aug 21, 2019
- 8 min read
Updated: Sep 22, 2024
Welcome to my design blog, featuring a selection of my original industrial design works. Since the early 2000s, I've explored a wide array of materials, manufacturing processes, and mechanisms. My creations cover a diverse range of functional objects, each reflecting a unique blend of innovation and practicality.
Here, you'll discover the evolution of my design philosophy, where functionality meets aesthetic appeal. From cleverly engineered kitchen gadgets and elegant furniture to cutting-edge titanium road bikes, each piece showcases my passion for creativity and problem-solving.
Join me as I delve into the inspirations and challenges I've encountered, offering insights into the world of industrial design and its endless possibilities.
Spring Lounge Chair January 2008
Before launching this blog, I thoughtfully considered which project to start with and ultimately chose the Spring Chair, designed in early 2008. "Spring" was the project name for a series of home furnishings in the SOTA Studio Collection, which included occasional tables and this lounge chair—my personal favorite. The chair was officially named "Spring" when it debuted at the October BIG+BIH Fair in 2008.
The project began with occasional tables crafted from a single sheet of SUS316 stainless steel, serving as both the structural framework and functional surfaces. This concept extended to the lounge chair, leveraging the material's properties and incorporating strategic welding points at three key areas: the "foot," "seat," and "brace." These elements allow the chair to flex with the user's movements, inspiring its name, the "Spring Chair." The 1.5mm gauge SUS316 stainless steel was selected for its strength, flexibility, and safe edges.
The Spring Chair boasts a seating angle of 11.2 degrees, a depth of 731mm, a width of 600mm, and a comfortable leg rest measuring 290mm. With a total length of 933mm, even a 179cm tall Lithuanian model, Margarita Radžiūnienė, found comfort in the first production chair. The Spring Chair is still available as a made-to-order piece of functional art.
Breeze Ice Bucket and Wine Cooler March 2008
In 2008, I designed a cast glass ice bucket and wine cooler, originally intended for Umbra, but ultimately included in the SOTA Collection. The design captures the lifelike appearance of ice cubes, fused together through the sand casting process. To achieve a polished, slightly melted look, sharp edges were delicately smoothed using a gas flame.
The ice bucket's key visual appeal lies in its simple and transparent design. Even when not in use, it stands as a decorative sculpture, reflecting my identity and vision as an industrial designer.
Pinna Wine Racks/Display March 2004
In August 2004, I began a series of wine rack designs with the original Pinna 12 Wine Rack, crafted from a single solid piece of Mango wood. This design became one of the early collections of Studio SOTA, achieving remarkable international commercial success.
Expanding the line, we introduced the Pinna 18 and Pinna L (24) models at the April BIG+BIH Show in Bangkok in 2005. These additions helped the Pinna series continue to thrive in the international market, although they represented a slight departure from the slim, balanced, and well-proportioned spirit of the original Pinna design.
Interestingly, the creation of the original Pinna 12 was not driven by market research or inspiration. Instead, it began when a wood manufacturer, a friend and subcontractor of SOTA, approached me with a unique inventory of Mango wood. He sought a valuable application for this material, leading to the accidental but successful development of the Pinna series.
The wood had dimensions suitable for creating objects with a diameter of about 200mm and a length of nearly 2,000mm. My friend, skilled in woodworking, wasn't equipped for large-scale laminations, as needed for furniture production. While the option to produce smaller wood accessories existed, it offered low margins and didn't fully utilize the material's potential value.
The idea for a wine rack came to me rather spontaneously. Perhaps it was inspired by a dinner the night before, where fine wine—a luxury in Thailand—played a prominent role. This niche connection to luxury sparked the idea.
During the meeting, I quickly visualized the design, sketched it on A4 paper, and considered the average dimensions of a wine bottle. My manufacturer friend confirmed its feasibility. I then had my assistant engineer convert the sketch into a CAD drawing, leading to the creation of the original Pinna 12. Within a week, the first sample arrived at my office and made its debut at the October BIG+BIH Fair in Bangkok a few weeks later.
The original Pinna 12 was designed to maximize material use and showcase manufacturing skills, leading to significant commercial success and leaving my manufacturer friend very pleased.
The subsequent Pinna 18 and Pinna L (24-bottle version) diverged from the sharpness of the original design, which was purely an exploration based on available materials and focused on achieving aesthetic beauty. These new models aimed to expand the market by accommodating more wine bottles, resulting in design compromises aligned with marketing strategy. While they transformed the Pinna into a product collection rather than a singular designer piece, they didn’t enhance what the original Pinna 12 had accomplished.
The 2006 introduction of the Pinna M (9-bottle, 6-bottle and 3-bottle versions) is my personal favorite, completing the Pinna collection alongside the Pinna E. The Pinna M features a symmetrical, well-proportioned design, reminiscent of a sports sedan. It shifts away from maximum material use, moving closer to being considered a piece of functional art, as one importer described it.
The Pinna M, with its compact size and reduced raw material requirements, expanded production to Hainan, China, using local Acacia wood. This was manufactured by my good friend, Topy Wood.
The Pinna Wine Rack series was the first product I designed to sell for hundreds of US dollars/euros, and on occasion, even over a thousand for limited run productions. In rare instances, they have been fitted on private jets.
In 2015, a decade after introducing the original Pinna M, I designed the Pinna MS6—a limited edition run of the original solid wood wine rack, now crafted in 1.2mm oxide-finished steel for a more contemporary look. A smaller batch of the MS3 (3-bottle version) was also produced and sold directly to collectors.
Pinna Wine Rack/Display Safe transit package
It's pointless to design a product, regardless of its price and quality, if it can't arrive in its original condition, no matter the handling or transportation. I created a compact package for the Pinna Wine Rack for its initial delivery, which has remained the standard.
The packaging combines recycled materials, using double-walled corrugated cardboard with rigid paper rails glued to the sides for stability during shipping. It also includes a molded paper cushion, a PE protective sheet, and a clear mounting template with soy-ink printed instructions. This design ensures safe transit and remains years ahead of the competition, making it my favorite.
Madison Teakettles March 2013
The Madison series of teakettles was developed for Kamestein/Lifetime Brands in 2012. I spent months envisioning a design with unique functionality deserving of a potential utility patent. However, I didn't begin any CAD work until a few weeks before my meeting with the client in Long Island City, New York, in March 2013.
My wife, Kanjana Chaiwatanachai, joined the project to contribute her expertise in styling, color, and finishing—crucial elements for the new kettle design. As an experienced industrial designer and leader of a design team since 2000, she has overseen the production and shipping of tens of millions of stainless steel and enamel steel teakettles.
My approach focused on crafting a feminine profile for the flagship model, featuring a novel auto-pouring mechanism—an industry first. Inspired by a lady's leather handbag, I aimed to design a handle that would conceal the functional elements, transforming the teakettle into a fashion statement without appearing overly technical. The project was codenamed "Iconic," aligning with Kamenstein's brief.
The design was completed just the night before the client meeting. My wife and I were in New York City, staying at Madison Green, a high-rise apartment at 22nd Street and Broadway, near Madison Square Park. This lovely apartment was graciously lent to us by our friend and mentor, Samuel Lebowitz, a renowned figure in modern teakettles, with whom we have collaborated on producing 20-30 million pieces for Wilton Industries, which owns the Copco brand. After finishing the CAD data and presentation materials, I decided to name the teakettle "Madison."
The presentation meeting the next day went exceptionally well. Peter Kamenstein, president of the Kamenstein brand of Lifetime Brands, loved the design and approved the direction. We scheduled a follow-up meeting in Hong Kong to review a prototype mechanism I promised to build as proof of concept.
A few weeks later in Hong Kong, I presented a handmade sample showcasing the gliding handle grip concept. With this validation, we embarked on designing a range that included:
Madison Luxe: The flagship model.
Madison Metro: A slightly more masculine version of Luxe with a simplified gliding mechanism.
Madison Rapide: An affordable version with a traditional flipper, targeting the mid-market.
Madison Vivace: A budget-friendly model for the mass market.
I spent the next three months finalizing all the design and mechanical details, while the international patent for the gliding mechanism was filed and later granted - WO 2015/137935 A1 WIPO (PCT).
This innovative mechanism uses the weight of the teakettle, allowing the whistling spout to open automatically when pouring and close when stationary. The Madison project remains one of my favorites, not only for the gliding mechanism but also for being the first to use a stainless steel sling instead of the traditional trigger mechanism. The kettles produced in early 2014 are still working perfectly today.
An special limited edition of titanium version of the Madison Luxe—Madison "TITAN." This model features 1.0mm cold-rolled steel plated with titanium, complemented by a hybrid non-stick interior coating. It boasts a carbon fiber kettle top and charcoal vegetable-tanned leather trims, with the handle wrapped around bent titanium tubing.
The original Lock-n-Roll for Copco August 2006
After many years of cooperation with Copco (a Wilton Industries division, it later became a brand under LifetimeBrands), the hydration project became one of the original designs I did that went into production, which I did 17 years ago (August 2006), still strong in sales.
The original concept was simple - to design a beverage carrier that is spill-proof and leak-proof with a quick-lock feature. The idea came from my morning duty to water my home garden, usually with a water hose, and from time to time, I bent the hose to stop the watering when my sons ran by. That idea became the foundation of a quick lock-and-release feature using the material property of silicon - one of the materials I utilized a lot in my designs during that time. And Copco trade-mark the design as Lock-n-Roll, and millions of pieces have sold after million of pieces since then.
18oz Thermal Bottle for Cat Studio June 2016
The 18oz thermal bottle design is a result of several business meetings with Cat Studio, which lead to the decision to develop a thermal bottle. It is a portable item carries the branding, for the growing line of Cat Studio products famous for their geography, Collegian art and licensed graphics.
The geometry of the thermal cup needs to allow an extensive line of thermal decals applicable to the new thermal stainless steel bottle with a soft carrying strap, making the cap a removable but inseparable part of the bottle.
The 18oz thermal bottle produce from 2 layers of SUS 304L stainless steel with a radiation-reflective copper liner sandwiched in between, vacuumed, allowing maximum thermal retention. The bottle started production in late 2016 and is still in production as of this writing (October 2022).
24oz Thermal Bottle for Cat Studio July 2017
The 24oz Thermal Tumbler for using the same size of decal art, non-skip "BUTTOMS UP!" with a new clear Triton lid with either a soft silicon locking tab or a locking slide with magnetic switch add to the Cat Studio thermal product following the success of the 18oz thermal bottle.
The original silicon soft locking tab design that is 100% leak-proof that is still my preferred version (patented). Perfect for city commute when the number is in the backpack or handbag.
The second version of Cat Studio clear Triton lid using a magnetic switch (patented), more conveniently use as a common car cup.
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