While working on prototypes and doing study models for the utensil itself, I was also diligently working on my brand and packaging. Here's some of my inspiration:

I divided the different graphic styles that seemed appropriate for my cutlery brand into three main categories: geometric, whimsical, and a sophisticated 'blended' (both geometric and whimsical)

Using the thorough material research, I decided on five general directions I could develop further.

1. aluminum
* it bends/flexes
* it’s recyclable
* it could be easily die-cut and flat packed
* simple!

2. kerfed wood (a process of taking away material from one side of a piece of wood to allow for it to bend)
* the lines scored into the chip board prototype were an attempt at kerfing without knowing it
* can still use bamboo or birch or some wood
* this is the closest to the original design
* this would push it past something that looks (and probably feels) like a throw-away item (like aluminum or thin plastic)
* would hopefully be able to easily un-bend and be ‘flat-packed’ again for trips, picnics, etc.

3. DIY at home kits for bending wood
* a craft project that the user gets to participate in (choose your own adventure)
* could use steam or heat or both
* it wouldn’t un-twist that easily (or at all)
-> wouldn’t be very portable anymore; becomes an at-home keepsake

4. plastic
* unoriginal
* plastic can be colored and recycled and washed
* lots of fillers can be added to plastic for different end results
* some interesting “plastic origami” projects already exist

5. something woven
* this is the most “out there” because it involves things that don’t exist yet
* a really tightly woven fabric would be flexible and strong
* lots of opportunities with different natural fibers that haven’t been utilized yet

Numbers 2 and 3 were my favorites and stayed closest to the original prototyped design, so I worked more on them.

The target audience for Seedling Silverware is varied. People that would use the utensil includes:
- young, hip, modern, city dwellers aged 20-30
- families that are teaching children a ‘green’ lifestyle
- already ‘green’ people (that recycle, compost, etc.)

Seedling Silverware can be used in daily situations OR for special events:
- parties, banquets, weddings as an alternative to plastic cutlery
- picnics
- to-go food (could be used at fast food places?)
- lunch away from home (at the office or school)
- novelty gifts

*Need to make sure that this product is pushed past the “usual” alternative cutlery i.e. cutlery that looks like traditional stainless steel variety, but simply use a different material like starch or bamboo

Initial Design
- flat-pack design
- the utensil needed to be “assembled” by the user
- to create a 3d ‘spoon’ area, the utensil was twisted in
towards itself
- the material had to be scored to achieve the right spoon
shape after twisting
- the fork had rounded points; more of a scooping device
- the whole utensil served as the plant tag
- the prototype was laser-cut out of chipboard

Why re-design, anyway?
- find a practical material
- refine the design as needed due to the new material constraints
- take the project from concept to market-ready product

Re-Design Criteria
utensil
- ergonomic
- user-tested (i.e. it actualy spoons and forks food)
- plant tag is less bulky; some punch-out or ‘leave behind’ of whole utensil
- practical and cost efficient
- eco-friendly/sustainable material
- has the same aesthetic qualities as the first concept
- market-ready and realistic

packaging
- readability for both utensil & wrapper
- re-designed for target audience
- fasteners/closures/glue that are eco-friendly
- each individual utensil, but also package as a whole

branding
- company branding/message
- overall packaging and shipping
(i.e. how many to an order, how many in a pack, different herbs offered, etc.)
- where it would be sold
- pricing, cost of manufacture and specialty materials

I really like green, but only certain shades of green. Green represents freshness and newness to me, and I find it to be a cheery color - but I didn't want to have a vivid green that screams "eco-friendly" product. This is a collection of the different colors I looked at for the refinement of my product packaging and brand.

I did some pretty serious material research - highlighting the pros and cons of each - along with some important criteria to keep in mind

What is “eco-friendly”?
An “eco-friendly” material is any material that is acceptable for humans to take from the environment and use, that doesn’t hurt the humans or the environment
This would include any material that is recyclable, re-used, re-furbished, fast-growing, easy to grow, easy to maintain, naturally occuring and flourishing, doesn’t hurt the soil or environment when grown or harvested, doesn’t pollute the environment when refined or used, and/or biodegrades

What about eating?
- needs to make it through the entire meal
- consider temperature of the material while interacting with hot or cold food (i.e. metal being too cold with ice cream)
- different food textures - wet, dry, crunchy, hot, etc.
- material texture in mouth
- should consider food absorption
- odor of material while eating
- process of cutting out material & if that affects eating
(burrs from cutting metal, burning smell from cutting wood)

What is ideal?
- can bend & give without breaking
- feels smooth in hands & mouth
- is durable enough to be used as plant tag
(or at least a remnant)
- is food-safe

After this initial chipboard prototype, this project was shelved for about a year. My biggest criticism from the first presentation was that the idea was great, but what would need to happen to make it a reality? As a senior, we were presented the opportunity to work on something for an additional 3 weeks, and I wholeheartedly dived into material research to find some sort of solution that would make my idea a real, marketable product.

The initial protoype of the spoonfork was done in chipboard, cut on a laser-cutter. The chipboard allows for a lot of twisting and flexing, but isn't a very good indicator of what would happen with something a little more rigid and useful over time - like wood. As shown in the storyboard, the utensil would be kept flat, and just twisted and held in place by the knotches; using elements from tab-and-slot furniture construction and origami.

The concept of adding value to the spoonfork with well-planned packaging is probably what makes this product an over-all winner. Spoonforks made of other materials, like wood, aren't a new concept - but encouraging the user with an added bonus right in the package is what sets it apart! The packaging for the spoonfork is a paper-like material made from cotton remnants - NOT recycled paper, since that wastes one life-cycle of the paper and would be difficult to make due to regulations (essentially, you cannot recycle certain paper products and then use them for food-related packaging because it is considered unsanitary, so it would be pretty difficult to find the right kind of paper to recycle to create the packaging in the first place). Herb seeds would be embedded into the cotton-remnant packaging so that the user could 'plant' the packaging and grow herbs to season their food with. The spoonfork could then be used as a plant tag after use. Cotton is a local material to the South, so it wouldn't require additional transport to get it here, and crafting the paper by hand would create jobs in the local economy.

Here is the packaging in all of it's immature glory! I mean that in the nicest way to myself. This was the first (seriously, first ever) time I had wrangled with the concept of doing packaging.

Two of the things that I stressed the most as being 'sustainable' for this project initially were the materials and the concept of easily replacing things that get broken. I wanted to make this out of a material that was easily renewable (corn, wood, and other plants that can grow quickly).