Bite Size

Emma Bergman and Eason Chen

A semester long project required teams of 2 to create 10 reproduced products to be sold at a design department winter market. After ethnographic style research, sustainably focused research, ideation, material exploration, and prototyping, the final design went into production. packaging and a marketing video was developed according to the winter market brand language.

Just in time for the holiday and gift-giving seasons, Bite Size will fulfill your hosting needs. Inspired by the classic charcuterie board, we elevate the wasteful toothpick appetizer to a reusable, finely crafted eating experience. Bite Size is a party serving board with 12 individual scoops, made from a variety of hardwoods and finished with food-safe mineral oil, for the sharing of one-bite dishes or quick sips. The concave shape of the scoops, designed for both solids and liquids, embodies versatility and artistry, making your parties more enjoyable. Handcrafted and sustainability-focused, it's more than a board; it's a celebration of taste and community.

Winter Market -Bite Size Promo Video

The first stage of this project was 8 weeks of ethnographic style research. My group partner and I researched the topic of construction zones, collected research, and then developed themes of actionable design insights. Our groups swapped our data with other groups, and we received new research to base our designs. The research we received from Morgan Brown and Mark Boyd was about build-your-own-food experiences. The three actionable insights we based our design on were:

How can design encourage collaboration between individuals in the home kitchen,

How can design benefit chaotic and unpleasant kitchens in the home and,

How can design encourage communication and understanding between cooks in the home setting?

The next stage was ideation. After brainstorming 16 different concepts to incorporate these theme and exploring 3 main ideas, we narrowed it down to 1: a charcuterie-inspired serving tray. This tray would be a reusable alternative to the disposable toothpick and perfect for hosting parties. The initial design had one main tray with scoops on top that could be taken by guests for an appetizer bite. The shape and form of the board are reminiscent of a fish and its scales and are made out of hard wood.

We decided to use a variety of hardwoods for aesthetics and durability. We used left-over wood scraps from local furniture company for sustainability and low budget efforts.

We prototyped the scoop form by making trials of 3D printed models. These all had adjustments in size, shape, and depth find the most ergonomic form.

The wooden boards were fused together with glue and underwent a series of CNC cuts programmed with Fusion 360 stl files.

The cut components were sanded and oil finished for with food-safe mineral oil.

Production Processes

Fusion 360 3D modeling

wood board fusing

CNC machining

bandsaw machining

electric sanding

hand sanding

wood oiling