March 2013
1 post
8 tags
tomii/aarn: available now: tomii + 44rn 1x 130#44...
The idea for this chainring started so long ago that I can’t even remember when it was. Nao Tomii was having a hard time getting his machine shop, for the now retired 3RRR product line, to make some necessary changes to the tooth profile that he had been using for his track chainrings. He came to me with a sketch of this chainring that made hearts with the spider pattern of the crank arms....
November 2012
3 posts
5 tags
available now: limited edition cuppow in color!...
Full press release is located here. Available at Cuppow.com. Click “Buy Now” for details about our product line.
4 tags
available now: 44rn 144#47 chainrings [bicycle]
In black and silver exclusively on Prolly Is Not Probably. Limited quantity available.
3 tags
geekhouse/aarn: road/cx dropouts for geekhouse...
The 2012 batch of Geekhouse Bikes CX frames feature a new custom dropout design that I have been working on for Marty since the spring. My goal with this design was to create a modern-looking dropout with very clean lines, to compliment the TIG welding process, and be consistent with the family of previous design work that I have contributed to Geekhouse.
I spent a lot of time trying to...
October 2012
2 posts
3 tags
aarn: e2 47.18 sunglasses [eyewear]
Numbering systems are way more timeless than names, but if I had to name this frame, it would be called “The Worrier” or “Elton John John John.” Now that that’s out of the way, let’s talk about the numbers, “e2” because this is the second pair of eyeglass frames that I have designed and fabricated, and “47.18” because that is the size of these frames.
With eyewear, scale is a particularly...
4 tags
luxe/aarn: luxe wheelworks custom skewer...
Sometimes when working on a project you have to give up on an idea with which you fell in love. Partly as a jab, and partly because it was perfect, I pitched the idea to Justin Spinelli, of Luxe Wheelworks, for a design that incorporated the setting of a Swarovski crystal into the skewer lever for his custom built wheels. How Luxe would that have been?
Anyway, after a few changes we came up...
July 2012
3 posts
3 tags
aarn: frame builder: teaser [eyewear]
This post details not a specific project, but one of the most important decisions that I have made recently concerning direction, work, and process. About two years ago I started working with a local eyewear company to help them develop a new production frame. I tried hard to learn everything that I could about the process, but at the end of the project I had a lot of questions. For the last...
4 tags
aarn: cuppow regular with straw-tek advertisement...
I directed, shot, and edited these three spreads as a part of the online ad campaign for the new Cuppow Regular with Straw-Tek product release. Illustrator Natalya Zahn did some additional edits and sketched some of the graphic elements of the product packaging over the photos.
3 tags
aarn: available now: cuppow regular with straw-tek...
Joshua and I introduced the second member of the Cuppow family earlier this month, with the birth of Cuppow Regular with Straw-Tek. Cuppow Regular fits on regular mouth canning jars while Cuppow Wide (what we are calling the original Cuppow now) fits only wide mouth canning jars. In an attempt to keep this product different from the Cuppow Wide, we approached the product with a different form...
January 2012
3 posts
5 tags
aarn: "prolly purple" 144#47 raidô contest...
Prolly Is Not Probably is doing a contest to promote a new category of content on his site devoted to photography (and maybe stories?) depicting cycling as a more spiritual/emotional journey. It’s a mature direction for John’s blog and we can definitely expect to see a new angle of well-developed content from him.
I sent John down three of these “Prolly Purple”...
9 tags
aarn: available now: cuppow [product]
It was probably right around the beginning of spring last year when my friend Joshua Resnikoff said that he wanted to talk to me about an idea that he and his wife Christine had been bouncing around. Resnikoff, who was/is finishing his masters of science in biomedical engineering at Tufts, wanted to make a to-go cup lid for a mason jar. At first I thought that it was a dumb idea, but the more I...
3 tags
fringe: now open: process by fringe [retail]
We over at Fringe in Somerville, Massachusetts, have a pop-up shop/retail experiment going on over at Grand at 374 Somerville Avenue. Jon and Wendy from Grand were kind enough to rent us half of their space for the entire month of January…so we set up shop.
The space is arranged with a little spot for everyone from Fringe who wanted to be involved. It’s kind of a hybrid...
December 2011
1 post
2 tags
aarn: tab desk lamp [furn]
For over two years I have been making sketches and designing a series of furnishings. As my interests and experiences expand, the designs have been becoming more complicated and their manufacturing has come to involve a greater number of processes.
Limiting myself more-or-less to the processes/capabilities available in my slowly growing office shop has allowed me to pick a few materials and...
November 2011
2 posts
2 tags
MWM graphics/aarn: 3d numerically controlled...
After I had completed the black and white Sharpie drawings for the Numerically Controlled Poster Series with artist Matt W. Moore, released over the summer [see MWM graphics/aarn: numerically controlled drawing series [misc]], I decided to do some experiments with some colors. I had one fresh red Sharpie and one blue on hand. I did one pass with a red marker at 100%, and then a second pass where...
3 tags
aarn: pre-order now: 144#47 track chainring...
I’m doing a reissue of the track bicycle chainring that I released back in September (see aarn: available now: 144#47 track chainring [bicycle]). The response was really great, and I sold out of the fifty that I had made in just over a week! This time, I have teamed up with Prolly Is Not Probably for an exclusive pre-order through his website. I will only make as many of these as people...
October 2011
3 posts
2 tags
geekhouse/aarn: raw oregon manifest custom...
Since there were so many custom parts and designed elements on with the Oregon Manifest design competition entry that I worked on with Geekhouse Bikes (see geekhouse/aarn: oregon manifest utility/cargo bike [bicycle]), I decided to put together a post with a few shots of the raw dropouts. I went by the machine shop the other day and the machinist had made an extra set of these for me.
On the...
2 tags
new black studio/aarn: studio sign [misc]
I cut a sign for Stebs (Paper Fortress Films) and Alicia at New Black Studio. New Black Studio is the photo studio here at Fringe that they have been revamping and outfitting for rental use, as well as for internal projects. They have a lot of gear that is available for rental (strobes, rigging, etc.) and the studio is looking pretty good. I am not a sign-maker, this was just a favor for some...
2 tags
royal h cycles/aarn: seat stay caps [bicycle]
Took me forever to get around to documenting this little bike bit. Months and months ago, Bryan of Royal H Cycles walked out of his shop, and over to my office (about 10ft). He placed the following items on my desk: a rusty old seat stay plug, a sticky note with some specs, and a drawing in pencil.
A month or so later, we had some of these dudes made in stainless and 4130. Turning a sketch...
September 2011
2 posts
3 tags
geekhouse/aarn: oregon manifest utility/cargo bike...
Back in March, I was walking around MoMA in NYC and I got a call from Marty from Geekhouse Bikes, wanting to know if I would be interested in submitting an entry to the Oregon Manifest competition with him. I guess that I said “yes.”
Marty, Greg, Brad, Robot, and myself sat down in April and started to hash out ideas for different functional details for the bike. Greg had put together a...
4 tags
aarn: available now: 144#47 track chainring...
This is my first self-branded product. Before I get into the details, these are available in black and clear anodized finish for $67 in my online store. Store is located here, here, and here. Quantities are extremely limited. I had 50 total made; 30 in black and 20 in clear. Other than the anodizing treatment, all of these bicycle chainrings are identical. The bolt circle diameter is 144-mm,...
August 2011
1 post
4 tags
aarn: lightweight custom drum harness [music]
I’m going to have to start at the beginning for this one… Two weeks ago, I was on the beach attempting to be completely off-grid for a week, on my first extended personal vacation in who knows how long. At the airport, on my way home, I checked my email on my phone and Kevin from Firefly Bicycles had sent me some information about an inquiry that they had received from a film maker about...
July 2011
3 posts
4 tags
MWM graphics/aarn: numerically controlled drawing...
This project is a collaboration between MWM Graphics, Paper Fortress Films, and myself. The process of creating a “drawing” using the numerically controlled Sharpie jig that I designed [see repeat press/aarn: project: wallpaper numerically controlled sharpie [misc]] is documented in an amazing little video (embedded below). Vector graphics, created by artist Matt W. Moore, are...
2 tags
PLR/aarn: picture frame doweling jig [furn]
Peter Reynolds is a good friend and talented worker of woods. Peter and I have worked together on projects ranging from the launch of T0001 and Union Foundry (which we have handed over to Peter as the sole-proprietor since the release of T0001) to copy for a cookbook (he has a way with words). Our most recent work together was in the design and fabrication of a custom jig for locating and...
3 tags
firefly bicycles/aarn: small parts [bicycle]
Firefly Bicycles are the jam. I started working with Tyler and Jamie back during their days at Independent Fabrication when we worked on a special machined seatmast attachment mechanism and custom rotary-lasercut lug package for the IF TiFLW (see post independent fabrication/aarn: tiflw seatmast clamp and styling [bicycle]). I have been behind the scenes helping them with little details since...
May 2011
2 posts
2 tags
aarn: boring 42th chainring v2 [bicycle]
In the last few weeks my beater bike has turned into a mechanical breadboard for some of these projects that I have been sitting on. About a year and a half ago I developed an improved tooth profile as part of a series of new chainrings that I designed/engineered for Nao’s project 3RRR. The 3RRR chainrings were prototyped and then I made some revisions to the tooth profile - so about eight...
2 tags
aarn: regular pattern cargo rack [bicycle]
About a year and a half ago I started mulling around the idea of making a bent metal cargo rack. I toyed with the idea of cutting a coffee cup hole into the rack and a long slot for a u-lock - but ultimately I favored the simplicity of just a fancy looking rack. Originally, the thought was that the metal of the rack would come up behind the bars and clamp into an integrated rack-stem clamp...
April 2011
1 post
3 tags
icarus frames/aarn: custom track dropout [bicycle]
Ian and I started making plans to design some custom track dropouts for his custom bicycle company (Icarus Frames) back in the summer of 2008. Since then, we would occasionally mention to each other that we should get that project in the works, and then a few months ago we finally did it. Long intro - spinning the yarn. I really wanted to put something together for Icarus that matched the...
March 2011
1 post
2 tags
aarn: turntable bounce lamp [furn]
I came up with the general form and idea for this lamp a couple of months ago when I realized that I could not operate my turntable that well in the dark (It’s hard to listen to all of my sick vinyl if I can’t see where the tracks are). The idea stuck with me and last Sunday I decided that I was going to attempt to design, fabricate, and document the light for my turntable within the...
February 2011
1 post
2 tags
aarn: kittinger desk drawer shelving unit [furn]
Three or four years ago, my friend, and neighbor at the time, Cecily left me a really nice Kittinger brand desk that had been repainted eggshell blue. The desk had a lot of character and was a tank. When it came time to move I didn’t feel like taking the desk with me, but, since I’m a jerk, I took all of the drawers out of it, leaving a 200-lb, completely useless, handmade skeleton...
January 2011
2 posts
3 tags
michael dacey/aarn: fringe circle sign [manf]
In the weeks leading up to our winter party, everyone at Fringe put in some long hours to get the space ready and refine the overall feel. A new website by Atedrake and a fresh identity by Michael Dacey of Repeat Press were unveiled at the event, as well as an awesome amount of aesthetic improvements to the space.
I had been wanting to cut some kind of sign for the space on my router, and...
2 tags
aarn: four degree of freedom vacuum fixture [misc]
This is one of the first devices that I designed and manufactured in-house. The challenge was to come up with an interesting, highly-adjustable, and aesthetically pleasing attachment to hold/position the dust collection system (read: vacuum) for my CNC router. The solution that I came up with has four parts: two unique interlocking machined delrin (acetal) clamp rings, a threaded insert, and a...
December 2010
2 posts
2 tags
aarn: this is definitely not art [misc]
This is actually a trap/joke. I made this print of the Insane Clown Posse using the numerically controlled Sharpie set-up. ICP is probably my least favorite music group in the history of music, so I wanted to figure out a way to force my friend Nick to hang artwork featuring Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope in his home. I used the live trace feature in illustrator to get the vector forms and contrast...
2 tags
repeat press/aarn: project: wallpaper -...
In early November we at Fringe got a call for submissions for “Project: Wallpaper,” a collaborative installation project that was being put together by Alex and Nerissa from Golden Arrows. In the letter they asked for strips of artist-made wallpapers with which they planned to cover a wall of Gallery 263, where they have a residency through February. I told Mike Dacey (of Repeat...
November 2010
2 posts
2 tags
aarn: tangible design at fringe [interior/arch]
A handful of small businesses moved into a 4,400sf warehouse located in the Union Square area of Somerville, MA, in May-July 2009. As the former home of a large commercial woodshop, the space was filthy and raw. Many of us were relocating from home offices, or taking the first step towards going into business for ourselves. For me, it was a chance to move the Boston office of Tangible Design out...
1 tag
aarn: recycled respiratory mask airplant...
I’ve been wanting to pick up some airplants for quite some time now. Originating from the same family of plants as the pineapple, the Tillandsia is unique because it does not require dirt and needs very little maintenance. I picked up a handful of them over at Greenward in Cambridge for a few bucks.
I was going to try and find a cool vintage colander to house the plants, but while...
October 2010
2 posts
3 tags
independent fabrication/aarn: tiflw seatmast clamp...
Tyler Evans and Jaime Medeiros approached me about some craaaazy Independent Fabrication special ops bike that they needed some support on back in April 2010. We sat down and they described the project; they needed a fancy seatpost clamp for their new super-secret race bike. Tyler described the aesthetic of the new bike as a “space age muscle car” or something like that and told me...
3 tags
aarn: regular pattern stairwell guard turned...
In late 2009 I was rooting through some books that a fashion designer at Fringe had checked out from the Somerville Public Library, and stumbled upon Peter S. Stevens’, “Handbook of Regular Patterns: An Introduction to Symmetry in Two Dimensions.” I had been looking to develop some tessellation-like patterns for some clean projects involving 2D manufacturing and this book had a wide range...
July 2010
1 post
2 tags
aarn: project ghetto blaster v2.0 [misc]
i found this awesome dedicated 8-track player in a basement in lower allston a year or so ago. i really wanted to hack it up and put an ipod dock in the actual 8-track part, and use a 30-pin ipod connector, and have some fancy push button controls mounted on the outside of the plastic case, and maybe it would trigger when the ipod was docked to give the unit power…but then i remembered...
June 2010
2 posts
3 tags
open bicycle/aarn: city bench from re-purposed...
i have been trying to help out open bicycle as much as i can with little things that would help to make the transition to the new space as seamless as possible. it was on a sunday a month or so ago and i was in kind of an off mood when i woke up. i went on a long solo bike ride and then spent the rest of the day in the basement of open bicycle crafting a bench from materials that they had...
4 tags
union foundry: T0001 "rotafixer" lockring tool...
about a year ago i approached the guys over at open bicycle about developing a simple and exclusive shop-branded tool. i thought that it would be a really good idea for the shop to have something with their name on it and figured that i could come up with a tool for them in a few minutes and have a handful of them manufactured and it would help to separate open from some of the other boston area...
May 2010
2 posts
2 tags
repeat press/aarn: old stock letterpress business...
last summer i found a box of heavy-duty half-sheet clasp manila envelopes at a yard sale and bought a box of one-hundred for a dollar. i decided that i wanted this to be my new go-to style for sending mail (especially since they can fit a CD, if i were to need to send one to a client). they collected dust for a few months and then i approached master letterpress printer mike dacey, of repeat...
2 tags
quiros/aarn: headbadge and logo design [bicycle]
armando quiros, man, what a good guy. everyone was really excited/scared when he said that he was going off to framebuilding school. we knew that he would be dangerous once he had the skills, just because the man has such an appreciation for gorgeous bicycles. for armando i felt like it was similar to when you walk alone into the woods to find something or other (what?). so anyway, we all packed...
March 2010
1 post
3 tags
geekhouse/aarn: nahbs 2010 components [bicycle]
this was my second year working with marty from geekhouse bikes on his entries to the north american handbuilt bicycle show (nahbs). he had three entries to this year’s show, and i helped with a few items on each bike. hopefully some of the components/features become production items. it’s always nice to see something that you have worked on/designed on a bunch of bikes. the black...
December 2009
1 post
3 tags
aarn: $120 thermal immersion circulator [kitchen]
i’ve been trying to figure out how to make one of these for a long time. the original idea was to use in-line style pumps and heaters for an aquarium or hot-tub to heat and circulate the water bath, but the hot tub equipment was too expensive and it was hard to find information on how it worked and how to connect the parts, and the problem with the fish tank heaters is that they...
October 2009
2 posts
3 tags
geekhouse/aarn: cx team headbadges [bicycle]
helped the guys over at geekhouse develop a headbadge for their new cyclocross bike. we went back and forth for a while and just needed to get something made in a very short amount of time that could go on the team bikes for the new cx squad. the headbadge is waterjet cut and polished stainless steel. the graphic was designed by dan st. g, i formatted it for waterjet cut and did some other...
1 tag
aarn/secondworlddesign/askdesignbuild: custom...
zack (second world design), TJ (ask design/build), and i designed these snowboard racks for the concepts shop in harvard square. the racks were delivered in time for the newest video premier for burton snowboards, this last friday. the tour included an in-store appearance by some of the sponsored riders from burton, which took place at concepts.
the racks are laser cut 0.125-inch thick 1018...
August 2009
1 post
2 tags
aarn: 42th prototype track chainring [bicycle]
let me start this post by mentioning that i have little to no interest in going into production of bicycle components, especially in something like chainrings. this was more of a study in manufacturing and design and something that i completed just to see how difficult it would be, and find out what goes into the design of a mechanical component like a chainring. i started my research by tracing...
June 2009
2 posts
2 tags
aarn: urban foraging solution [misc]
there’s a spot that i pass on my way to/from work when i go a certain way that has a pretty large patch of mint. occasionally i harvest some of it. poked the roots through the straw opening in the cover of a plastic cup. it seemed only appropriate.
3 tags
geekhouse/aarn: small parts - may [bicycle]
some small parts and prototype runs for geekhouse bikes. custom, extra-squatty crown races for the geekhouse signature segmented forks. these were made with a cnc-lathe. the material is 1018-12L14 steel.
also, trying to streamline operations over at geekhouse, these seatstay/chainstay caps used to be hand-cut. this huge bag of 4130 lasercut ss/cs caps will hopefully make things a little...
May 2009
1 post
2 tags
aarn: offset smoker restoration [cooking]
this thing was in pretty bad shape when i found it. i talked to at least two people from the neighborhood who were thinking about snatching it up from the side of the road a few blocks from my apartment…i’m glad they didn’t. upon removing the grates (which were all accounted for) and cleaning out all of the ash, i was pleasantly surprised to find that there were no...
