Hi, I am Fransje
I recently graduated from the technical University of Eindhoven with an Industrial Design Bachelor. I am currently further developing my sewing skills and looking for a job at an inspiring company. I am passionate about sustainability and would like to get get more practical knowledge on how I can set up a sustainable business.
About Me
Languages
Native Dutch
Advanced English
Little German
Education
Bachelor Industrial Design
Eindhoven University of technology 2020 – 2024
Comittees
LAPD – Promotion
First-Years Trip – Secretary
IDcate – Chairman
As a student, I have been refining my design skills and exploring various disciplines within the industry. I have done design and design research projects using all kinds of different materials and machines. I have an eye for detail and work very precise both in a group and on my own. you can read more about my development in the section about my past learning experiences.
I have experience with various adobe programs like InDesign and Illustrator to make posters for committees or do the layout of documents. I also have designed some websites for art exhibitions. I have experience with crafting physical prototypes with foam-core cardboard, wood and fabric 3D-printers or embroidery machines and making prototypes interactive using Arduino.
I like to keep the environment in mind when I am designing. In my spare time I like to disassemble clothes or bags that are broken to reuse their parts in projects for my study or for personal projects.
My Identity
I am a resourceful and innovative designer with a strong passion for hands-on creation. I have a lot of experience with figuring out how to work with materials like fabric, clay, wood, or leather and I am openminded about learning new techniques. When I am making something, I get completely emerged in the process and stay focused on the task for hours in a row. I am a perfectionist and very detail oriented. I like having the freedom to make what I have in my mind and being able to spend hours on the tiniest details. I prefer having a reflective-transformative design process because it enables me to conceptualize, experiment and learn through doing. I get inspired through doing and often ideate by just starting to make something.
My passion for the tiniest details can be expressed through the art of model-horse making
I am thorough when thinking my designs through. I think about its intended function, but also about how it can be repaired or what happens to it after it gets discarded. The kind of designs I make differ, but my aim is to always make them have a positive impact on the environment. I want my designs to look good, but I find it more important that they communicate to the user that they can easily be repaired. I use my eye for aesthetics to communicate my designs in an attractive matter and to present a compelling story.
When finalizing or testing my design I make use of a variety of production methods like sewing, woodworking and cardboard prototyping, but I also like to make use of different machines like 3D-printers or embroidery machines. I also have experience with bringing my designs to life with the integration of Arduino, motors and LEDs.
Buying wood at Praxis for the
prototype for Engineering Design
Using the embroidery machine
I have a good theoretical understanding of what it takes to manage or design for a successful business. In the design process I like to create persona’s early on to give a clear indication of who I am designing for. I also know how to implement the values of a company into the design and how to create a loyal customer basis. I am looking forward to turning the theoretical knowledge into practice.
My aim is to be organized, but in practice this is something I struggle with. I need to keep oversight of the things that need to be done to not get overwhelmed by a task. I work with to do lists and aim to plan when to get tasks done. I prefer working in groups because I then I can focus on the things I am good and enjoy doing, while others work on things they are good at and enjoy doing. If there is something we all find difficult we can figure it out together. I find it easier to stay motivated when I am working on something in a group. I have experience with leading teams, but I prefer a role more in the background.
Working together to take nice pictures of our prototype
I am not afraid of mathematical equations. Before I started with Industrial Design, I enrolled for Applied Mathematics. Math had always been one of my favorite courses in high school, together with physics and biology. I have good spatial awareness, which comes in handy when sketching, building a prototype, or creating patterns for sewing. When I need to know how much material I need for a prototype, I make a quick calculation.
I am very aware of the affect my choices have on the environment, my mindset is minimalistic, which means that I try to consume as little as possible. I try to buy everything second-hand, I have stopped eating meat and I recycle and reuse as much as possible for the prototypes I make.
My Vision
We live in a throwaway society where over-production and over-consumption are feeding each other. People feel the need to follow trends and discard products long before they lose their functionality. This is a waste of energy and valuable resources and has a big negative impact on the environment.
Design is deeply complicit in this environmental destruction because its practice often only keeps the needs of the human in mind. Human-centered design drives the development of new products and services but overlooks long-term sustainability. I believe we should shift our focus to more-than-human design. I think we should plan the complete lifecycle of our products and design what happens with it when it loses its primary function. It might no longer be of use for humans, but maybe it could have a purpose for something else in the ecosystem.
Design can directly influence the the behavior of consumers by shifting the focus of designs from sleek and seamless to embracing DIY, personalization and the possibility to repair. This will help consumers shift their mindset from wanting to keep up with the latest trends to being happy with making sustainable choices. Personalizing the product will give users the sense of uniqueness and will allow them to keep expressing themselves without constantly buying new products. By making a design repairable, the user will be able to form a connection with it through caring for it. This will increase the emotional value of the product and decreases the chance of it being discarded before it loses its function.
Design can indirectly influence the behavior of consumers by using speculative designs to provoke thoughts. Creating designs that change mindsets will possibly lead to an intrinsic motivation to make sustainable choices.
My Work
Patsy Bag
The Patsy Bag is a reflection tool designed to help people who compulsively pull out their hair with changing their behavior. The design is based on Habit Reversal Training. It uses positive reinforcement to teach a new way of self-soothing. Its daily presence is a reminder to pull fluff balls instead of hair and it facilitates continuous awareness.It uses craft as an intentional activity to manage life and well-being.
Future Vintage
This garment was made for a design research project within the squad “Crafting Wearable Senses”. We wanted to research what we value about vintage clothes. The values we found during user studies were implemented into the denim garment. The garment was used to validate and communicate our findings.
Protesting Bag
This bag was made during the course “Digital Craftsmanship”. The assignment was to make a bag that tells a story using data. Our group decided to pick climate protesters as our target group. We designed a bag that caries all necessities a protester might need to stay safe incase the protest gets out of hand. The visuals on the bag tell a story and were embroidered onto the fabric using an embroidery machine.
Bag to Brag
For the course “Engineering Design” I had to work together with people with a non-designer background to create a functional prototype. We decided to design a picknick back that converts into a picknick table.
Down to earth
A speculative design project created to provoke thought and to let humans question the way we interact with plants and our place in the ecosystem.
Prowgress
A design project about preventing injuries caused by rowing with a faulty posture. We created a prototype that we used to do user testing. During this project I learned how to create a coherent style.