Part 1: Get in a playful
mood.
This was joyfully
accomplished by watching my favorite TV classic, M*A*S*H. I also threw in an
episode of Drew Carry's Improv-A-Ganza for good measure. (It's just like Who's
Line, but in Vegas and with half the Drew Carry)
Part 2: Mind map- sink/basin theme
My first mind map branched into various themes from "sink/basin" but soon I filled up the paper, so I created another map intent on going as far as I could off each new idea. I started with "kitchens" and "faucets" and then the map blew up from there, making all sorts of crazy connections.
Mind Map #1:
Mind Map #2
Part 3: Ten silly
ideas
I used cross products and an association map to brainstorm sink/basin-themed
products.
I started thinking about items in the kitchen: measuring
cup, can opener, grater, spatula, ladle, potato masher, salt & pepper shakers,
funnel, oven mitts, pots and pans, strainer, bowls, cookie sheets, muffin pans,
cutting board, knives, mixer...and referred back to the initial mind maps to
brainstorm silly ideas.
Some cross products:
Glasses+ science = beaker and test tube glasses
Tupperware + alarm clock = gross-out meter
Rolling pin + hardware = ruler roller
Cookie sheet + hardware = cookie dough placement system
...
---TOP 10 Ideas--- (images below)
1. Mustache chip clip
2. Test tube and flask drinking glasses
3. Cookie Cup: a long and narrow cup, perfect for dipping cookies
4. Cookie Sheet: a cookie sheet with cookies on it indicated proper
cookie placement for the typical cookie recipe (2" apart"
5. Have mercy potato peeler: a potato peel that resembles a knife in
design, emits a screaming noise when potato is peeled
6. Tupperware with "Gross-Out Meter" to indicate your leftovers level
of grossness (advances each day)
7. Rolling pin with depth measurement: allows you to roll the perfect ΒΌ"
dough
8. Clear sink - see-through sink bowl allows you to see your counter
aquarium or whatever design you choose to put beneath it.
9. Motorcycle pizza cutter: motorcycle's front wheel slices the pizza
while it emits a "vrrrrroooom" noise
10. "Bombs away!" drain plug
You had a really good mind-mapping processes. One of the challenges I feel a lot of people are having (myself included) is expanding associations to the less obvious. You appeared to have no troubling doing this. I will also have to check out the new Improv show.
I like how many of your ideas are not directly related to sinks/basins. I can see most of the connections, although it seems most of them are kitchen related. Have you considered sinks in other places as well? Laundry rooms, airplanes, etc.? I suppose you have to draw the line somewhere though, otherwise you'd need a much bigger sheet of paper.
I read your 10 ideas earlier in the week and instantly thought that the mustache chip clip was genius. I really want one, or ten! Also, with the mind map, I am very impressed with how far you made connections. Its fun to look at the first one and compare it to the second one and see how many more connections you found. I am interested if you found any connections that you thought were particularly interesting. I also liked the cookie cup idea. I can't believe they do not make them. It would result in much less annoyance when dipping cookies!
I like that you branched out to non-obvious kitchen utensils, which I think helps everyone to think of more non-obvious items! I like that you had multiple mindmaps and I think you explored divergent thinking more than most people did. The motorcycle pizza idea was my favorite.