We had the distinct pleasure to interview award winning designer about their original and creative design work. is an award-winning creative designer, that makes our world a better place with their original works.
("") answered Design Interview ("DI") questions about their award-winning work . Interview questions prepared by Frank Scott.
: In essence, the TC Nexus is a mechanical tie clip for fine dress for men. While standard tie clips may appear to be mechanical, they the lack the same self-contained mechanism that snaps and clamps to a tie and dress shirt without a separate coil-type spring. The TC Nexus is the spring. My main idea was always to utilize a type of simple yet sophisticated mechanism to operate a set of clamping jaws in an industrial but fashionable manner. The inspiration came from my experience designing, engineering, and manufacturing a series of openable titanium wedding rings for men that I eventually sold the rights to.
: I’ve had the idea for this product in my head for years and when the inspiration of the “how” finally came to me, I knew it would need to be aesthetically pleasing in how the mechanism fit together. My initial sketches were focused on different patterns, finishes, and other superfluous aspects that all seemed to vanish once I knew how the mechanism would operate and in turn, what that would look like in its simple but advanced visual representation. The mechanism itself stands out from the crowd unlike any other comparable product. My preliminary goal was to create a product that was truly innovative in a class that has had little change since its inception.
: As an artist, I believe in limited quantities of my work and as a part-time or hobbyist creator and designer, I tire of repetition, especially when I am the only one doing all the work to create my products. It is said that all good things must come to an end, and so I serial number my products as a limited edition production run. I felt this design was promising enough to warrant a larger run, but once the fiftieth TC Nexus is sold, they are done. In the past, when popularity has dictated the return of a product is beneficial, I’ve considered it, but something substantial must change so as to not affect the value or rarity of the first edition.
: As I’ve mentioned previously, I had the idea for this product for years, but it was only just recently that I was inspired to know how I would accomplish my goals. In the begging of January of 2018 that inspiration came, and after several 3D printed prototypes and different revisions, I finally had the product I wanted on my Sunday Best by mid-February. It was quite fast for an entire product development timeline.
: It was really just what I was inspired to do. I knew I liked the results in the CAD software and once I find something that I really like, I tend to stick with it without much deviance from what I have before me. Few things dissuaded me to alter the design because it was so simple and beautiful. This was only ever commissioned to me by myself. I had to other motivation than I needed this design realized as a product I could use myself.
: Artists enjoy working with those that appreciate their work and one of the beauties of being a one-man-band is that I get to work directly with my customers. I brainstorm the ideas, I sketch them out, I model the design in CAD software, I 3D print and prototype the parts, I machine, assemble, and finish the components, and I ship them myself. In a world of large corporations and big businesses, those that are small typically get trampled, but that fact just makes those that struggle through and make it, worth all the more.
: Being a machinist, I’ve worked in rough environments with heavy tooling and equipment, but because of the need to balance blue collar and white collar, I enjoy opportunities to dress well and think. This product was simply and accessory that I wanted to accompany a suit and tie for special occasions.
: No, this was done entirely by myself, from the very first idea that I needed to make my own tie clip, to wearing for the first time, it was all done by myself. Not a single process was done by anyone else.
: The TC Nexus is a limited edition product that is unlike anything in its class. There are no other mechanical CNC machined tie clips out there, and as such, this product warrants a price tag that may not be affordable or justifiable by some. I’m targeting men with fine taste that want a fine dress accessory that won’t be around for very long.
: I did a lot of research to find anything similar in design, material, engineering, or manufacturing to my idea for the TC Nexus, and I could not find a single product with the same qualities I had in mind for my design. The TC Nexus is the first ever over-center-mechanism based, CNC machined titanium tie clip, a pioneer in its class.
: The dictionary defines Nexus as a connection or series of connections linking two or more things. My tie clip is an assembly of multiple components linked together with precision ground and machined stainless steel pins, a literal Tie Clip Nexus, or TC Nexus for short.
: I always start with the most basic of design tools — simple sketches on my iPhone or iPad, and then move on to more advanced tools — CAD programs such as SolidWorks or Fusion 360.
: Even though I couldn’t find another CNC machined tie clip out there, the more distinctive and unique characteristic of the TC Nexus is its over-center-mechanism. Unlike other tie clips that require a separate, roll-formed internal spring, the entire body of the TC Nexus is the spring, but is completely fluid whether open or closed, until a tie is placed between its jaws.
: This project was completely undertaken by myself, from idea, to design, to manufacturing. I was the only one that worked on this product, with absolutely no external help.
: CNC machining was a key feature utilized to realize this design, which incorporates highly advanced, state-of-the-art software for calculations of geometry as well as the calculated control and directions of tool-paths in the machine that carve and shape the raw billet titanium. Technology is heavily laced throughout this product.
: Being a very small start-up business, I am usually limited in my capabilities in one field or another. Marketing research is one of those areas I am limited in, and all research was conducted on a simple basis of searching for similar designs or products, but this was the most needed and therefore most extensive research I made for this design.
: One of the challenges I encountered during the development of this product was in orienting the mechanism under the face in such a way that it did not extend too far off the edge of a tie when placed in its functional position, while maintaining an adequately slim profile. At the same time, the mechanism’s clamping pressure is based off a variable value and, after much deliberation, required settling for an average to accommodate the majority of the variation.
: I follow a number of design blogs and websites and one of these advertised the benefits of winning an international design competition for those that aren’t largely known or well established companies or designers. Being a one-man-band from a small quiet town who started a small business as a part-time endeavor and hobby, this impressed me to submit and nominate a recently finished design, my TC Nexus.
: I experimented and researched some new techniques of finishing, engraving, and anodizing for this design that will help me in future designs. I now know what will and won’t work for my vision of highlighting very small features on parts to provide operational instruction without providing textual information in a small package.
: I learned a great deal in preparing this product for a design competition. The design challenged me to focus on aspects and features that I typically take for granted when designing something for myself that consumers will never see, and that forced me to think more frequently in terms of manufacturability, consumer friendliness, and ease of use.
