Here is my visual expression of the first iteration of my design.

This prototype is made of packing paper, tape, yarn, and rubber bands. It is slightly larger than a pack of playing cards.

Doesn't this look like a comfy chair?

Here are ten gaps I've noted in my user experience of life in general:

1. I hate my diaper bag, which is the free bag I was given when leaving the hospital. I have yet to find one that meets my needs as a cloth-diapering, often baby-wearing mom. Messenger-style bags don't work and single-shoulder bags are uncomfortable; backpacks are difficult to organize in a useful manner.

2. At least once a week I wish I had a really outstanding business card--something that will get a response. (Ditto for my writing website.)

3. Often when I go to a cafe to work, there isn't a free table, or there's no power outlet. What if a business, similar to a coffee shop, could guarantee a table with everything I needed to be productive in some sort of contractual way?

4. Often when I go to a cafe with my four-month-old in tow, there is no changing table in the bathroom, probably because the ones on the market are both really bulky and, ahem, not terribly aesthetic (hideous, actually).

5. My husband's bikes are in the dining room. I tried to store them in a closet but he ended up tearing the door off its hinges trying to get them out. Must...store...bikes...one of them is a triathlon bike and needs to be protected from the weather.

6. I have a mess of receipts every month when I try to sort through the household budget; sometimes I end up two months behind because it's such a chore to try to organize our expenses.

7. I want to keep my long hair despite having a baby that wants to grab onto it. There should be a way to keep long hair out of little hands while still looking normal.

8. I'm going to a wedding this month where I plan to wear a sari, but I can't find a sari blouse that is easily compatible with discrete breastfeeding.

9. My dog goes bananas every time the mail man puts mail through the slot in the door, inevitably when I'm either on the phone for an interview or the baby is napping (or worse, both). I need to fix this somehow!

10. My cleaning supplies--broom, dustpan, mop--are in a sort of heap behind the kitchen door. I need some way to organize them in a limited space (and also keep the mop from ruining the paint on the wall

This Moroccan tea glass is a bit faded now, but I love it. The glass is the perfect thickness to keep your hand at a comfortable temperature when filled with something hot, and it's perfectly sized for and equally suited to holding peppermint tea or a rich red wine. It manages to be both sturdy and delicate, in perfect balance.