Designer DIY with Sam Hecht
Famous for his lighting, furniture and electronics, the Industrial Facility designer simplified things for our DIY book
No one would ever accuse Sam Hecht of being a ‘more-is-more’ kind of guy. The British industrial designer has worked for such famed minimalists as the architect David Chipperfield and the Japanese department-store chain Muji.
Most items that he has produced through his firm, Industrial Facility, are simple and built to last. However, when he came to draw up a a simple do-it-yourself product, he decided, instead, to fool around with a few components that we tend to expect to endure not quite as long as a table or a chair.
“The things that you make yourself need mainly to be functional and durable,” he says. “But I was curious to see whether it was possible to find a new aspect to a short-lived everyday item.”
This elevated Flowerpot Stand features in our new book, Do It Yourself, which shows readers how to make striking home furnishings, as designed by the likes of Ross Lovegrove, Hella Jongerius and Ai Weiwei, from everyday household items.
While it might not last a lifetime, it’s a pleasant and cheap way to bring a little greenery up to your eye level. Here’s how you make it.
What you need
Hacksaw; terracotta flower pot approximately 8 inches (20cm) diameter; terracotta saucer, approximately 20 inches (50cm) in diameter; three metal plant supports; flower label, gravel.
Instructions
1. Mark out an equilateral triangle on the saucer. Insert the stakes through the hole in the base of the flowerpot, and fan them out on the plate so that the pot stands on them. 2. Mark two of the stakes even with the top of the flowerpot. 3. Take the stakes out of the flowerpot, and use a hacksaw to cut them off at the marks. Then position them again as in step 2. 4. Spread gravel around the stakes. Pot the plant in the flowerpot. Place the label on the end of the remaining long stake.5. Water!
For greater detail on this design and many more works by such designers and artists as Konstantin Grcic, Ai Weiwei, Hella Jongerius and John Baldessari buy a copy of Do It Yourself Here.