KOKUYO DESIGN AWARD 2015

A flash card deck can also be used to capture random thoughts in the moment. I was impressed with the suggestion of using a flash card deck in a number of settings beyond simply memorizing vocabulary. The design features a coherent product name and form, which one could even say conflicts with the original purpose of the product. I think this design reflects a very modern value.

The final presentation for this design offered an attention to detail without excess, incorporating beautiful visuals and a highly persuasive stereotype. The flash card deck is a product that might be fated to disappear with the advent of the smartphone market. However, this product might have the power to change that fate. I hope to see the process begin immediately to get this design onto retail shelves.

This design makes me believe that a tool can change one’s lifestyle. This flash card deck offers visual proof of one’s accomplishment and satisfaction in a compact, beautiful form. It’s a feeling that you cannot get from using a smartphone to accomplish the same tasks.

This is a fantastic example of how noticing a small problem turns into a wonderful idea. By seeing how the ring of a flash card deck gets in the way during transport, the designer was able to extend the solution into a very highly perfected idea. I was also impressed with how well the mechanism worked to line up and stack the flash card deck so neatly.

I was so impressed with how this design suggests much more than its use as a way to remember vocabulary words. The design is one that envision this product used for everyday recipes or for any person to use in a number of different life settings. This design says that the importance of continuing to be a lifelong learner is part of the message of Beautiful Lifestyle. It suggests a wider range of possibilities for the flash card deck as well as the form of a beautiful design.

This design capitalizes on our urge to pull on the end of a string. While this product might be difficult to machine manufacture, hand production might be exactly what communicates the beauty of transience. This design certainly demonstrates the importance of refining hand-crafted technologies.

This design combines a fragility with function as a calendar that you want to use every day. Looking at the presentation sheet, I thought this design was a bit too fragile in execution and materials. However, the prototype offered a greater impression of robustness than I expected. As its title suggests, this product might be even better by expressing more fragility in the good sense of the word.

The consistency between concept and design, as well as the mechanism of pulling a string to mark the days on a calendar add up to an outstanding idea. I think there is room for improvement in how the paper is integrated into the design, the font used for the numbers, and other graphic design elements.

The degree of perfection was outstanding for this almost poetic design. While it may be a daunting product to actually produce, it is a sophisticated calendar that evokes the Japanese sense of beauty in the ephemeral.

This presentation—from a well-done hand-made prototype to an actual demonstration of pulling on the string—was one that stimulated creativity. Sewing together paper with yarn, and then counting off the days by pulling the string is very novel—both creatively and emotionally.

At first glance, this is a simple, completely white notebook. However, this design expresses a strong case for something that is completely different from a regular notebook. I think this could be the beginning of a new interaction between people and notebooks.

I think this design is the result of subtracting the extraneous to reveal a minimalistic beauty. The prototype feels handmade and lacking in polish due to its very minimalism. I look forward to seeing an unexpected level of detail and perfection as this design is readied to become a real-world product.

I think this perspective is fantastic. The design name “emboss” is actually a manufacturing process, so I would like the designer to come up with a name that stimulates the creativity of the user, emphasizing the new value that this notebook brings.

I think this Embossed Notebook design has a special significance as an extension of Japan’s popular Campus Note notebooks series. I can see this product becoming a must-have high-end item for consumers familiar with the Campus Note notebooks.

I was bit worried about the raised sections within the notebook after embossing, but I was relieved after seeing the prototype. The quality that embossing brings to the design raises one’s desire to follow or even write on top of the embossed lines. This notebook design isn’t just about convenience; it brings a new value to the notebook itself.

I was impressed with how this design achieved beauty in recreating nature close to us. It was also interesting to see the designer’s choice to product the bubble effect in the design without resorting to gluing two layers of material together.

This is a beautiful concept that incorporates bubbles from nature into a household tool. While the prototype was certainly highly finished, there is some room to consider manufacturing methods and optimal size further.

While this design doesn't seem that it would be effective in its role as a ruler, it has a strong appeal as a beautiful desk decoration. It has the effect of providing some small relief in a world today where we are so busy with all of our tasks and responsibilities.

The model used in the presentation was smaller than the general type of rule that I was expecting. At first look, it had a mysterious presence that I didn’t associate with a ruler.

Using loosely defined bubbles as the design to replace the gradations in a straight ruler leaves the bare minimum of functionality to the tool. This is a product that I hope people use understanding and enjoying this handicap. It looks like a piece of art that one keeps around their workspace, bringing a small bit of visual beauty.