Many kids are told to never play with mud. In the case of a team of designers from London’s Royal College of Art, however, playing with mud is a foundation for making the world a better place. Bauxite residue, also known as “red mud,” is a byproduct of the creation of aluminum. By refining bauxite…

Remarkably resistant to water, acid, and in some cases, heat, lacquer—a natural plastic—has been used by East Asian craftsmen for centuries to create highly-detailed inlaid decorative boxes. Although it can take up to twelve months of labor to make one of the treasured boxes, the results are nothing short of stunning. It comes as little…

Considered by many to be “The Contemplative Man’s Recreation,” fly fishing is also a favorite for craftsmen who prefer to make their own equipment –– be it tying a fly on the side of a stream or making their own fly fishing rods altogether. But with well over 160 or so steps that go into making…

While nearly every material requires some sort of a process to bring it from a raw state to a finished design, few materials demand the attention of the creator quite like glass. From the heat to the constant movement, and the teamwork often involved in creating larger pieces, the process of creating glass objects is…

Centuries ago, the process of manufacturing wood objects such as bowls, utensils, and even toys involved foot-powered lathes that were powerful enough to dwindle rough chunks of freshly-cut wood into the usable items. While we’ve since replaced the need for foot power with electricity, the process of getting from wood block to finished object hasn’t…

While covering over 1,000 miles on a dog sled in only a matter of days in whiteout conditions is certainly awe-inspiring, designing and building lightweight carrying vessels by hand that can withstand demanding Alaskan winter terrain while transporting a human is equally impressive. As a builder of Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race sleds, retired Alaska…

Although we’re just as excited as anybody else about the future of manufacturing – particularly AR applications, Cloud-based CAD and improvements to digital fabrication workflows – our appreciation for traditional craftsmanship techniques is still shining as bright as ever. Among others who have taken manufacturing goods to the complete opposite end of the spectrum is…

Since being founded in the spring of 1906 by Charles Stewart Rolls and Sir Frederick Henry Royce, British car manufacturer Rolls-Royce Limited has always been known for superior handmade quality and superior engineering that has led to multiple land and air speed records. Even as more automakers continue to turn to automating their assembly lines…

Having been working together for over twenty years now, brothers Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec likely have what most would consider a solid sibling relationship. The brothers – who are five years apart in age and are known for carrying distinctly-different personalities – have been keeping busy during the last two decades working on product designs…

If you were asked to present a sketch for a new product design concept in the next ten minutes, there’s a good chance you would probably reach for a pen and paper versus your tablet or computer peripheral device. Why? While there has never been a better time to sketch and work digitally , the…