Makeup Organizer
Intention
I have always found it difficult to sort my makeup tools. I lot of time the brushes and sponges are wet after I put on foundation. But I couldn’t keep them exposed in the open air because of dust. So I have always been looking for some organizer that have some air for the tools to dry while keep them away from the dust.
Research & Context
For my organizer, I searched for multiple resources to check out previous designs. Originally, I was thinking of a design similar to the brush bag. But such an approach requires a 3D printed large board with ring holders, which is not approachable. Then I saw a picture of a paintbrush holder. The paint brush holder has two-layers of support where the first layer holds the brush body vertically and the second layer serves as a resting plane. This design inspired me and I decided to do something similar.
Aesthetic Inspiration
Then I realized that the paintbrush does not prevent dust so I need to add a lid. I came up with two ideas: a revolving lid and a removable lid. I discussed the pros and cons of both designs with my professor. For the revolving lid, I need to glue a 3D printed nontransparent rod with my transparent acrylic piece, which is less aesthetically appealing. On the contrary, the removable lid is easier to model, as shown in the prototype.
Prototype and Sketches
As I made the cardboard prototype, I decided the height, width and length of my organizer. For the prototype, I first cut out the middle two layers for the brushes and the two side pieces. Then I realized that the space beneath the second layer is big enough for a drawer to store lipsticks, eyelashes, etc. So I added a drawer in the bottom. For my prototype, the drawer sat on the bottom of the organizer. However, the friction to slide the drawer in and out is very big. My professor suggested that I could cut two gaps on the outer side of the organizer and slide the bottom piece of the drawer within the gaps. Such a design has less friction. I liked the idea and added this feature in my final product.
Process & Procedure
My organizer is fabricated by two methods: laser cut and 3D printing.
To cut all the transparent acrylic pieces, I first drew the shapes with Fushion360, added connect teeth between pieces, and added a 1mm fillet to all edges. Then I projected each shape onto a new sketch plane and saved each sketch as a DXF. One difficulty I encountered was that I needed to pad a 3mm material thickness. For example, my inner length of the organizer is 200mm, I have one back piece and no front piece, then the bottom piece needs to be 203mm and the teeth position needs to be 75mm from the front and 78 from the back. Such calculation was confusing. There was one time I used 30mm instead of 3mm for the padding and I made three wrong acrylic cuts.
For both handles, I drew the model with 3D fusion, saved the model as STL, and asked Ideate to print it for me. For the handle, I tried two types of design, the first one I had a support bridge in the middle, and the second one I removed that bridge. In practice, I found out that although the second design is more aesthetically appealing, it is less rigid to lift the lid. Moreover, the soluble support material of the 3D printed second part is more difficult to remove.
Final Product
So finally, after three weeks of research, sketch, prototype, model, and fabrication, I cut and 3D printed all my parts. I glued the acrylic pieces together and used screws and nuts for both handles. I tried this organizer with my makeup tools and it was very successful. My organizer size also fits well on a normal desk.
Reflection
After I finished the fabrication, I showed my organizer around and got some feedback from my friends. My organizer could be even better if the handle is also 3D printed with transparent material. And it would be better if I use lighter material. Unfortunately, 3mm acrylic is the lightest material I could find that is transparent and suitable for laser cutting.
From this project, I successfully made an organizer for myself that can help me sort my makeup tools. I applied my knowledge from my digiTOOL class on Fushion360, Laser Cutting and 3D printing to model and fabricate this organizer. This is definitely a fun experience and I am glad that I successfully get through it.
