Sleeping in cars sucks
In 2016, my industrial design studio at UC was putting on a maker fair as part of our semester curriculum. The parameters were to create something that was going to be designed, produced, and sold all within one semester. Right before school, I went on a road trip from Cincinnati, OH to New Orleans, LA, which was at least a 12 hour drive one-way. With a car packed full of people and things, the last thing we were capable of doing was sleep in the car. After driving for 24 hours over a span of 6 days, I found something I really want to address.
I wanted to design something that will ease a traveler's ability to take breaks and rest in their car on extended road trips.
Idle Brand
I realized an opportunity in correcting sleeping posture, providing storage for pocket contents, and using high-quality materials that won’t damage the earth. The IDLE pillow uses retired climbing rope from local Cincinnatians that wanted to give a second-life to their safety line, recycled materials that are easy to clean, and an aesthetic that matches an explorer rooted in tradition.
Golden Sample for Production
For our studio’s maker show, I created 13 travel pillows to be sold in a pop-up shop down in Cincinnati’s Over-The-Rhine neighborhood. The process of making all the pillows (from cutting the pattern pieces to the final seam) took about 12 hours.
Each pillow used 95% post consumer waste materials. 100% Recycled rayon, Retired climbing ropes, !00% Recycled thread, 100% Recycled Synthetic insulation. Brand new invisible zipper tape and pullers.
Idle Car Pillow
Homegrown Maker Show
My classmates and I put on a maker faire in the Over-the-Rhine District in Cincinnati, Ohio. I made 13 pillows to be sold during the pop-up shop over the course of the weekend. I ended up selling all my pillows over the course of the show! After everything was said and done, our maker faire ended up making $5,200 in profit over the course of 3 days.
