From Technological Product to Cuddly Ball

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Lately we have been working on an interesting and challenging assignment. Startup Athom asked us to make a soft toy based on their product Homey.

This little futuristic white ball connects all devices at your home, even different brands and technologies, and makes it possible to control your home from one app.

It was challenging to translate such a technological product into an object made out of fabric. Especially the small ring of rainbow-hued light and the three tiny ball-shaped feet pushed our creativity.

The nice thing about taking assignments which are slightly out of your comfort zone is that you discover and learn things you would normally not. In this case we discovered a company that prints custom designs and designs from independent designers on fabric. Their digital print process uses eco-friendly, water-based pigment inks and dyes which produce very little waste. This offered us a solution for the rainbow-hued ring and also creates quite some opportunities for future work. The tiny ball shaped feet of the ball made us learn how to make felt balls. This new skill might come in handy in the future.

We, and luckily our client as well, were very happy with the end-result. The Homey now has a sweet and cuddly family member standing on the desk of the office of Athom.