How I created a solution to stop loosing my keys.

My name is Camila, I'm writing this text to summarize the design process behind this simple project I created.

The problem was that since I can remember, I was always losing my keys. It could be hidden inside a pocket, behind the sofa cushions, anywhere. I would spend a lot of time looking for them everywhere before I leave home and causing me more problems. I thought that just be more careful wasn't enough, I could have other tools, or a system to help me.

I thought that If I had a specific place for the keys I could manage to organise myself, this is what people do. But I didn't like any key holder I saw for sale online, and the ones I liked were to expensive. The solution to this problem had to be low cost and again I remember of Enzo Mari:

On Necessity
I am convinced that the low cost constitutes a safe perimeter for the quality of the design, if for no other reason because it forces the designer to eliminate any foolish ideas he might get: the solution of the form cannot be anything but necessary.

To get my keys quickly before I leave home I had to create the habit of putting them in the same place everyday very close to the door. This way I wouldn't have distractions between entering the front door placing the keys. 
That's simple to understand, but now let's go to the choices a made to create my own solution.

Solution

Wood because it's a durable material, it ages beautifully and it can be very pleasant to the touch with a good finish. I think it's important to use materials that can be biodegradable and will turn into soil soon. The Sycamore wood pale color looks good on light coloured walls, and had interesting grain patterns that look different in each side of the wood.

The truth, what really happened was: I went to the wood store and choose the sycamore inside a big box of assorted wood blanks because it got my attention and it was beautiful, I didn't do any research about it previously.

I made this small wooden cube to be attached to the wall, it fits in the palm of your hand. With a screw or an adhesive you can attach it very close to your front door, and high enough so it's close to your eyes high. Just enter, lock the door and put the key in place right away, with no distractions.

Usually the key comes with a metal ring to get more keys together. It's obvious but it's good to think about it again. Why people use keychains after all ?

Keychains come in so many different shapes, functions and purposes and it's such a personal object that people have many reason for having them. "My sister gave it to me", "because I bought it in Paris", "because it came with the keys", "I needed a bottle opener". But I realised that at least for me the main reason for having a keychain was to know which one was mine, and which one was my husband's key, since we have the same keys now.

Again, I needed something durable that could age beautifully but this time with a color or shape that could easily differentiate one from another. Even a keychain needs a meaning, why would you keep and maintain something for a long time if it's meaningless to you?

I made the monkey fist knot with red nylon cord, using some instruction I found online. It's made by human hands, and it sparks curiosity and questions like how did you do that, who invented this knot, what is it used for. It's always good to invite people to a dialogue with the object and I thought the knot had something to say about manufacturing, texture and human.

The knot made it easier to find it in my pocket, I could feel the little ball and grab it, and also spot it inside a messy backpack or bag quickly because of it's color (except if all of your other stuff is red too!).

If the key is there that means that person is at home like an analogue checkbox. The rounded corners make it more soft to the touch, and the pleasant to the eyes, and the knot is fun to play with your fingers. The wood is an interesting material, I never get boring to observe it’s grains and peculiarities and it looks timeless. The knot after being used for some time gets more soft to the touch and I realised that is useful to leave the keys inside the pocket of my backpack or jacket and leave just the knot out, so I can grab it easily and it also looks nice.

And finally I made the short video to show the basic use of the product. I know people don't have time to watch long videos, but a video was necessary to show the size, scale and the product in place. It took me a long time to write this text, probably because the process wasn't linear and I still consider it as a work in progress, but i'm sure that writing this will contribute a lot with the further developments specially if you, that read all of this could give me any feedback!

Thank you!