UX

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Unexpected Kindness + Opportunities

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Update: I have not yet gone back to a full-time job. I decided that 2 full months was not enough time for my mini-sabbatical and that I needed a bit more time. I have chosen to design my life in this way right now and we shall see what comes from it. I will write a full post when I take my next steps.

Pictured here are Jen and Jo from Starshaped Press. Two people who are very near and dear to me and who have been incredible encouragers and friends.

Pictured here are Jen and Jo from Starshaped Press. Two people who are very near and dear to me and who have been incredible encouragers and friends.

This decision, magically, has done wonders for me so far and I have met, been introduced to, and created many new personal and professional relationships that I probably would not have encountered had I taken on full-time work instead. 

What I have realized through the meeting of these new folks, especially those in my field, is that I am beginning to see glimmers of hope in the context of possibilities again. I have to confess that in the past few years, I was a bit nervous and unsure about where our industry was headed. My thoughts included:
 

"Where is this going? Is it working? How can we make this better? Will this even make a difference? Why do certain groups just not care? Do I still care?"  


What I failed to realize is that I didn't have a strong network of supporters/encouragers in my field, outside of first degree work connections, that I could lean on when times were tough. I can absolutely say that building this for myself right now is a lesson learned and what I hope is not regrettably too late. 

I have met a lot of people even in these past few weeks and something that I have thoroughly enjoyed experiencing and deeply appreciate from the bottom of my heart is just genuine kindness and encouragement. I know that not all folks are like this but when you do get to encounter these moments, your faith in the world sort of restores itself bit by bit and it gives you enough oxygen to keep trying. I really do believe that the universe has its own way of supporting you when you least expect it and what I love about it is that you never know what shape or form it will arrive in.

This is all to say that these relationships have led me to an unexpected opportunity that is really exciting. I'm really hoping the stars align on this one. 

I have to write this: There is something about this opportunity that feels different. I can't quite put my finger on it but it feels sort of like real magic. Stay tuned.

Anyway, I am thankful for my community and it spurs me to offer encouragement towards others who may need it more than me. Feeling down on UX? Hang out with your UX community and I guarantee you will feel better.

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A UX Lesson in Baby Carrots

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Baby Carrots are not actually babies in their Carrot families. They are adults that didn't make the 'good looking club' only to be cut down and shaved into something that doesn't even exist naturally IRL. 

I discovered this fact a few years ago and I think about it from time to time. When I pass by a bag of 'baby carrots,' my heart sinks and I spend about 7 seconds thinking about what their true expressions of form would've been before being tossed into the 'not good enough' corner and then forced to take the same shape as the rest of their fellow rebels. I still always buy a bag to snack on later. Nom nom.

I've been cooking a lot more lately and have actually had to purchase real, adult carrots for recipes. When I meet them in their stacks at the market, they seem so boring. They're all straight, tall, some are chunkier than others, but there's no variety to what I'm looking at and on top of all this, they're dirty and need to be peeled. Ain't nobody got time for that. What's so special about these ones anyway?

Every now and then I'll meet one with a little flair of character that has snuck into a pile on display for the world to see. I tell it, "Show'em who's boss you badass carrot." When I go to the farmer's market, I see the ones who had so much fun in the soil that it's a miracle the gardeners even knew to categorize them as carrots. (Apparently, carrots can throw raging parties where they wrap around each other and end up looking like corkscrews. Party animals.)

Google search of 'carrots twisted.'

Google search of 'carrots twisted.'

However, when I started to use carrots in my cooking, I as a user of carrots began to appreciate the reliability of the straight and uptight, boring carrots. They were easy to peel and chop, tasted richer in flavor, and according to The Carrot Museum, they are richer in nutrients when they mature the way they are supposed to mature. 

What I'd like to point out here is not that there is a Carrot Museum in this world (what?!), but that as designers in the UX world, sometimes it is best to leave certain components alone. If they are reliable, simple, and satisfying, focus on another aspect that actually needs some change and help. Use your reliable, simple, and satisfying feature to gain trust from your user and anchor your extended experimentations on the foundations of what works and what will, more likely than not, always work. Use it as the stable ingredient in your larger recipe for service delivery and/or digital feature.

As an artist and designer, I like to change things up. A new way of doing things brings fresh perspectives and intentional awareness is heightened when engaging in a novel interaction. You can spice things up every now and then just to keep the user engaged but remember that your experience, as fancy as it can be, will always be an ingredient to a human's larger soup of encounters s/he experiences every day. 

It's hard not to make your UX/Service design shine brightly to stand out from the crowd but I think there is something to be said about being the same, boring yet reliable service available for people. No nonsense. Just a basic and nutritious ingredient to a user's journey throughout his/her day.

Steadiness is a virtue. Perhaps 'baby carrots' would agree.

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Shine Theory

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While I was tidying up my place for a week using the KonMari Method (you can read about it in this blog post), I harnessed my boredom moments by listening intently to podcasts throughout my activities. I had a lot to catch up on since I was so busy the first half of this year so I had plenty on my queue. 

I finished all of it. 27 Radio Lab episodes, 13 This American Life sessions, and 11 Stuff You Should Know blurbs. IKR? Counting all of that makes me feel like I overdosed in one way or another but it feels good to be 'caught up' on the stations I subscribe to. I was now up to date.

But then the terror swept in. I wasn't done tidying and needed another podcast to listen to. Marie Kondo, the author of the book I was using to tidy my apartment, forbid me from watching TV episodes throughout the process so I was panicking even more. I googled, sampled, and even tried out some of Apple's podcast Top Charts list as well as their Featured list. My heart was into nothing. I took a pause from tidying and even went for a walk while testing out some more podcasts. 

And then I took a chance on CYR: Call Your Girlfriend. Two long distance besties who met in Washington, D.C., live in different cities, and take time to talk to each other once a week on all things politics, Beyonce, feminism, current events, technology, and so much more. After listening to their pilot episode, their voices and reasoning over debatable opinions became addictive and oh so refreshing. If you have not yet listened to this podcast, especially if you are a lady, I guarantee you will love it. Well, I suppose it depends on where you fall on a spectrum of topics, but if you have any respect for women in our generation and workplace, you will gladly find yourself saying, "This is true. I agree." or "Wow. I never thought about it like that." throughout the episodes.

These girls have it. I don't even know exactly what it is but I feel as though that they understand what it means to talk about topics that are ever evolving - especially the hard ones that deal with feminism and every perception that exists when the delivery of a political message/opinion is unsuccessful or successful. They're funny, smart, and incredibly sharp as they articulate their thoughts throughout each episode. Their agendas are also sprinkled with lots of pop culture which keeps things interesting and entertaining. Any podcast that can talk about Ruth Bader Ginsburg (a.k.a. the Notorious RBG) and then riff on Kanye and his artistic troubles will always have my ear. 

The greatest reason why this podcast should go down in the history books is because they have introduced Shine Theory to the world.

So, what is it? It's this simple.

"I don't shine if you don't shine."


Although this applies to a lot of situations, genders, and identities, this theory is spoken directly to women in the workplace. I will be the first to say that we have desperately needed it.

Personally, this has opened my eyes and committed my heart to pursue remembering and acting on this theory throughout everything I do, but I am so glad that it is aimed at the context of us ladies while we work. I have seen countless amount of times where women have done the opposite - almost as if they were saying, "If I don't get it, then you can't either. Over my dead body." I have worked with and known women who think this way and it is exhausting. It's also really easy to absorb this misery and become the perpetrator of the same kind of actions - misery loves company and revenge is sweet for a reason.
 

But even if it were somehow possible to objectively evaluate all of our female peers against ourselves, it’s worth asking why we’re spending all this time creating a ranking system in our minds. When we hate on women who we perceive to be more “together” than we are, we’re really just expressing the negative feelings we have about our own careers, or bodies, or relationships.

Here’s my solution: When you meet a woman who is intimidatingly witty, stylish, beautiful, and professionally accomplished, befriend her. Surrounding yourself with the best people doesn’t make you look worse by comparison. It makes you better.

- Ann Friedman, Call Your Girlfriend: Thesis


What I love about this theory is the fact that not only is it absolutely true (proof is in the plethora of other theories that are along the same lines but aimed at different contexts), it's the first time that there is actually a thoughtful theory by and for women to help other women direct their behavior in a positive way. When something is theorized and solidified as an actual thing to philosophically take into consideration, it pulses in its radar and beeps until it is acknowledged and either agreed to or rejected. It also helps that Taylor Swift's squad goals are heavily marketing this theory IRL. 
 

why

because true confidence is infectious

because powerful women make the greatest friends

because people know you by the company you keep

because we want the strongest, happiest, smartest women in our corner


- Call Your Girlfriend: Why


I guess all I can say is THANK YOU Ann Friedman and Aminatou Sow. You have both created a platform for ladies to choose to be a part of and identify with which is more than comforting. 
 

UX Notes: Although Shine Theory is used mainly for women in the workplace, the reason why it exists at all is primarily because women in the workplace are a minority population that is struggling to find a voice and seeking to appropriately navigate its growth for years to come. The UX discipline is new and also a minority population in a lot of contexts - especially in large corporations and places where the word 'design' is still cringe worthy. As much as we want our UX discipline to solidify itself, have a backbone, and be the answer to the very many problems that exist out there (because it is that great!), let's partner with those who think of us as rivals and use Shine Theory towards them. More likely than not, they are probably Outsider UX folks and you may find that you have more in common than you think.

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Service Design Conference // Chicago 2015

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The topic of service design has come up the past couple of years and I find it fascinating how quickly these two words are gaining popularity and acceptance in even the largest of institutions. UX was, and still is, not as generously accepted when introduced and I have a theory about why this may be the case.

My theory is that because the word, 'Service,' has humble connotations and is cognitively associated with actions related to hospitality, food industry, and depending on what kind of service you've ever received, it is generally accompanied with kindness and a smile. This word is also viscerally more accepted as something to consider and be curious enough to look into when mentioned. It is non-threatening in its introduction across many contexts and specifically in political contexts, it can also be quite powerful as it subtly comments on working class labor and ethics. It kind of just slides right into our vocabulary and this ability is not to be taken lightly.
 

Service Design Panel discussion at the end of day 1.

Service Design Panel discussion at the end of day 1.

Let's take a step back and compare 'User Experience' and 'Service Design.'

Some argue that they are different, some say that they are from the same family, and some just don't even know what to do about either of them. This is partly due to our industry's lack of firm definitions at times which allows it to be more inclusive to newcomers and gives room for more creative ideas but this is also destructive in our current business landscape because we don't look put together and decided.

From a larger HCD perspective, the principles and philosophy behind who you are designing for is one and the same. Both are pursuing the goal for a better user/customer/human experience. However, the beauty and revelation of this split that will inevitably grow and be more definite in the future is that it streamlines and organizes new design ideas and improves production flow to look more holistically at the human rather than quick fix moments. Not to say that this isn't being done in several UX circles right now, but I guarantee those UX circles can be draining at times while tethering between different hats that are undefined and nebulous.

The best way that I can explain this is through something I learned in my college anthropology studies. In anthropology, there is a separation/distinction between a person's status and the roles they take on within that status. People can have different statuses throughout the day but each has a set of roles that the human knows to act upon while assuming that particular status. This is why elevators are interesting because there is no set status or role - awwwwkkkkwaaarrrddd. 

Examples:
When I get into my car, I have the status as a driver. As a driver on this particular day, I must pay attention to the road and push the gas + brake pedals while obeying traffic rules until I get to my destination. Those are my roles while I take on this status. 

When I get into my partner's car, I take on the statuses as the navigator and passenger seat companion. As the navigator, my role is to look on my phone and use my vocal chords in an audible fashion to tell my partner what turns s/he needs to make to get to our destination. As a passenger seat companion, my role is to also play music that is appealing to both my partner and me. 

So, why do I bring this up? Statuses and roles are innately how humans move about their lives - both physically and emotionally. We need this distinction and acknowledgement in order to better our industries and tribes. I believe that to some degree, 'Service Design' comments and works to juggle the different statuses humans take on while 'User Experience' comments and deciphers how to make tasks demanded by roles to be more efficient, pleasant, and useful.

You can't separate these two industries just like you can't separate a status and its role but acknowledging its separation and interdependence not only gives a nod to the anthropology community but also encourages and makes clear how to produce and operate these carefully designed moments - both internally and externally.
 

Anyway, the Service Design Conference in Chicago was fantastic. Here are 3 reasons why.

Erik Flowers walking us through a stellar workshop.

Erik Flowers walking us through a stellar workshop.

1) The speakers actually cared and spoke from the heart.

I don't know how else to expand on this but that every single speaker genuinely came to talk about what they had been experimenting with, what their struggles were, and how they were proceeding to do more service design work. Erik Flowers from Intuit and John Tuck from TrunkClub were some of the hilarious ones who you couldn't help but befriend, and Dianna Miller from Syracuse University anchored the hearts of every single audience member as she gave courage to designers in the room to share and extend their experiences. 
 

2) Attendees bonded over the challenges they faced and offered little case studies of their own to help others. 

You could almost feel the love and depth of care that lived in these stories while people began to share what they were going through in their organization. It was sort of therapeutic in a way and it even encouraged me to share the struggles of implementing design in a large corporation that, like many, just thought it was all about making it pretty. This was a safe place to share your struggles and also to proclaim what works. One of the biggest realizations for me was how necessary it was to come together and share these experiences - it brings back perspective and endurance to achieve the design goals I think every HCD designer cares about.
 

3) It was just large enough, the venue was enabling, and it was branded to be an experience that held together on its own. 

Sometimes I think the best service designers can be found in event planning industries. It is not an accident when they design seating a certain way, choose the kind of snacks people can select from, and how loud microphones are tuned to be. Putting on an event is no easy task and these guys nailed it. Everything was really seamless but simple. No super fancy things but just enough to make little moments feel special - like when they gave you your lanyard with a color coded dot on the workshop you selected. The amount of people there were just enough to make it diverse but not feel too overwhelming. To cap an audience count is design decision as well - but I'm sure you already knew that. :)

George Aye presenting the Chicago Public School Cafeteria project that I along with a group of designers helped design.

Service Design artifact from our workshop with M. Felix.

Service Design artifact from our workshop with M. Felix.

John Tuck from TrunkClub

Michael Felix leading us through a hypnotic workshop that was filled with meditation.

I really do feel as though I made some great relationships at this conference. I even reconnected with a professor of mine with whom I served on a project. It's strange how the world churns design circles and I'm really glad I made it out.

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Tidying

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On the flight from Copenhagen to Chicago, I read Marie Kondo's book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing. I couldn't sleep at all during the flight so I plowed through the entire thing - and I'm so glad I did. 

I started my sabbatical by cleaning out my apartment but after reading this book, it seems as though I had only just dusted my shelves. Lady Marie is hilarious in the way she goes about talking about one's home and belongings, so for the pure joy of reading someone else's thoughts about belongings, this book is a must read.
 

"But when she pulled open her sock drawer, I could not suppress a gasp. It was full of potato-like lumps that rolled about. She had folded back the tops to form balls and tied her stockings tightly in the middle.[...] I pointed to the balled-up socks. 'Look at them carefully. This should be a time for them to rest. Do you really think they can get any rest like that?'"
Excerpt From: Marie Kondo. “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up.”


Beyond the great representation of your belongings having a life of their own, Kondo does a great job of allowing you to follow through with her advice and thought process by encouraging you to ask yourself, "Does this bring me joy?" 

I documented some of my process but the biggest eye-opener for me was the realization of the sheer amount of things I possess in my little apartment.

All of the books I own in my apartment were laid out on my dining table. I love books with all my heart and this was the category that was the hardest for me. (Do you see my dining table bending a little? Ha.)

There were joyful + painful moments as well as lots of memories flooding through my thoughts while completing the process of tidying my apartment but after I completed it, I felt new, refreshed, and cleansed.

Total bags tossed into the trash? 15. I know. I couldn't believe it either.

One of the things that Lady Marie advises to do is to "[visualize] the ideal lifestyle you dream of." The one thing I had always wanted to do was to reorganize my bookshelf as a color gradient - because, why not?! Being a visual person, sometimes I won't remember the name of a book that I'm thinking of but I know the color and can see the cover in my mind. So, naturally, this way of organizing my books makes sense for me.

This process of tidying was probably one of the best experiences I've ever had. Kondo states in her book that it would also teach you to edit out other things in your life and I think that this is a true statement. 

As a UX designer, it already gives me a new perspective when it comes to choosing hierarchy of information, process flow, and editing material out. If you're in the industry, ask yourself, "Will it bring my user joy?"
 

UX Notes: Designing experiences should be done with the user in mind but what happens when you have multiple kinds of brain processes accessing the same material? Filters can be a point of contention with content managers and designers but having visual filters may be a feature that many have not yet experimented with but could provide another way for others to naturally find what they need. Hey Amazon - what if you had book cover color filters in your search process? I'll bet that your sales would go up (even if it's a little margin) and that you would have die hard, loyal fans.

 

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Industry Specific

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While I was writing my thesis in graduate school, I investigated a school called the Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design (CIID). I wasn't able to visit during the few days I had in Copenhagen about 3 years ago but I made it a point to visit this time around. 

I had a friendly exchange with Alie Rose who basically runs the joint (Co-Founder and Head of Education) and met her at the CIID building. She was so pleasant to talk to, gave me a tour, and I ended up hanging out with her and her colleagues in their space for a little bit. Simona, the head of the program there, saw that I had a camera and asked if I could take some profile shots of her so I did. One thing led to another and I ended up there for almost 5 hours - would've been longer if I didn't have a dinner to go to. Basically, I fell in love with this place.

I have never been to a building that was so vertically charged with positive energy.

The only way that I can describe this is through food. You know when you have a croissant that has been folded over and over again with butter and dough, and you get the feeling that this little pastry in your hand is just charged with so much goodness? Yeah, that's what CIID feels like. 

Turns out that most of the students who come here are selected to be diverse in nationality. This move is absolutely intentional and really smart when it comes to creating an environment for innovation and collaboration. It is only through cultural differences and bringing brains together that have been wired differently will new ideas form and we will also progress to live more harmoniously in this world. 

One of the things that I love about the HCD industry is that it beckons in differences and not only welcomes them with open arms but is a crucial part of the formula when it comes to designing services, experiences, interactions, etc. Without this kind of dimension, it is quite possible that whatever solution or design is made may not be as encompassing or holistic. 

This is Simona Maschi who is the Co-Founder and CEO of CIID. Pretty much a rockstar but you can already tell by the photo.

This is Chris Downs with whom I had the privilege of spending some time with talking about lots of Interaction Design and notions about Service Design. He invited me to see some of his students pitch their ideas and I gladly accepted. So fun.

Pictured here is Simon Herzog who heads up the Nest component of CIID. Nest incubates new ideas and startups in the European sector and has a bunch of stellar experts and advisors who will help you along the way. 

The top floor of CIID is 'the Nest' and it really feels like a cozy, safe place to share and incubate a delicate idea.

I met great people and have since then met extensions of great people in Chicago who have been educated in this space. Their prototyping playground is imaginative, the architecture is fitting, and the energy is just really present and spot on. They have a great business model that includes education, consulting, and incubation for new ideas and I don't think it can get any better than that.

To read more on this program, go to CIID's site. 

UX Notes: Creating a physical space that reflects the kind of tone of work your organization provides is crucial to the survival of your employees and work culture. If you're wondering why something is not working in a project, take a look around you to see if there is something you can change. It might an environmental fix that you need.

More visual TREATS:

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Food for... Eating.

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When my brother and I went to Japan, we waited in line for sushi at the fish market for 4 hours. Yes. 4 hours. 

Needless to say, I love food. It has always been 'live to eat' and never the other way around. There are articles written out there about our current culture's obsession with food and the endless boards that exist on Pinterest which is everyone's not-so-guilty pleasure. So, I will gladly own up to the fact that, yes, I am a Millennial who is obsessed with food. 

Food lovers - you HAVE to go to Copenhagen. 

Your first thought might be, "Did you go to NOMA?!" The answer is no, I did not. 

I thought about going there and giving myself an insanely expensive treat but I decided that I wanted to keep that experience for later on in my life so that I have something to look forward to (and also to have an excuse to come back to Copenhagen). I laugh about this because it only shows how deep my adoration for food really is. I am literally planning when the peak of my dining experience should be but I have no shame in this arena and neither do my siblings.

Little did I know that some of the chefs who have trained at NOMA have exited and started restaurants of their own - one of them is Christian Puglisi and I basically played in his playground for a large portion of my time in Copenhagen.

If I'm going to go with this playground analogy, this man has the best sand box called Mirabelle, the most wonderful snack tables for recess called Manfreds, the best swing set with trained pushers called Relæ, and the coolest kids in town to hang out with. He also has one of those domes you can crawl over called Bæst but I unfortunately didn't get to try that gem. 

Mirabelle

The Airbnb I stayed at had a really great book of local eateries that they crafted themselves and I am forever indebted to my hosts for introducing me to this place. I think I came here a total of 4 times. Yes. I liked it that much. 

It was such a laid back place to do some work, to read, and to get some wonderful food. The people there are wonderful and there is a glass wall between the cafe and the bakers that make is so delightful to be creepy and stare at the process of all the goodies that come out of this place.

What I kept going back for:
1) The Sourdough Bread. This bread, ladies and gentlemen, is the best sourdough bread I have ever had. Ever. Ugh... I can't even write about it because it's so good. Let's just say that the day I was flying out of Copenhagen to come back to the states, I swung by to grab some to eat on the plane. It's that good. 

2) The Cortado. I used to be a barista in Los Angeles, CA and let me tell you how hard it is to steam milk. It's one of those things that people really take for granted and I did so myself until I had the task to create some on a daily basis. Mirabelle does an impeccable job and their espresso is fantastic as well. So. Good. 

3) The Plain Roman. This delightful treat is a thin focaccia like bread topped with sliced potatoes and leeks. There were other options available but this one takes the cake. It's so simple and clean but oh so delicious. 

4) The Croissant. Oh. My. ... This croissant is amazing. The Danish baker who creates this I found is a young woman (through my Instagram research - basically internet stalking) and she is famous in Denmark for producing these goodies. In their take away menu it reads, "Our croissants are very popular and are ripped off the shelves every morning. Come early or call ahead to make sure you get one," and it is so true. It was only the third time I came to Mirabelle that they had some available. 

 

Manfreds

I didn't feel like sitting at a restaurant but I did want some great food to take home so I figured it was my chance to try Manfreds. The reviews read that their beef tartare was impeccable. I'm actually really afraid of raw meat - I came out of my vegetarianism around 3 years ago but everything told me that I needed to try this dish. I ordered the beef tartare and the green dish of the day.

The hostess was really sweet and made sure I got some of Mirabelle's sourdough bread to accompany my meal. The. Best. Ever.

I ate both dishes in the comfort of my rented apartment and wow. It was delicious. Beef tartare is actually good and I think I may have been introduced to it in the best way possible. And with that bread? I don't think anything can go wrong with that bread.  

The green dish had olives in it and that's something that I still can't get around. I can detect those things in their smallest form in pizza so that shows how much I react to it. I wish I liked it though because the rest of the dish was spectacular and I can see how it would've been oh so wonderful if I enjoyed the enhancing flavor.

 

Relæ

The very last night I had in Copenhagen was originally planned for dinner with my new letterpress friend, Katrine. We had to cancel but I was miraculously called for an opportunity to eat at Relæ which I had been crossing my fingers for the entire trip. 

I wrote that if I were to compare Christian Puglisi's restaurants to a playground that this place would be the swing set with trained pushers and boy was it a blissful ride. All I had to do was sit down and enjoy the acclimation of slowly being pushed higher and higher and then being brought down gently with a joyous treat at the end.

Another addition to this dinner that made it a serendipitous experience was meeting a fellow diner to my right who was visiting from New York. He, too, was on a small sabbatical and it turns out that his girlfriend is in the same industry as me. We had much to talk about throughout the night and it was nice to share a meal with someone who was also about to embark on an adventure of new work and challenges ahead. 

Other delightful finds in Copenhagen include:

Grød

One of the strangest things I fell in love with in this magical city was oatmeal. Growing up, I didn't even know what oatmeal was until later on in elementary school, didn't taste it until high school, and even then I didn't like it. It always puzzled me how people could eat oatmeal and feel satisfied.

But Grød is so different. They stripped down the humble oatmeal and dressed it up with natural ingredients to enhance its flavor. One that surprised me was Icelandic yogurt which is very similar to greek yogurt. Wow.

Total times I tried different dishes here: 3. It's that good.

 

Höst

Another coveted place that is just as tough to get into as Relæ was Höst. I got a last minute reservation and got to spend some time eating delicious treats, meeting and talking wonderful servers, and reading my book. 

The people here were so wonderful and the food was fun and paired with great wine. Something to note about this restaurant is their attention to their dinnerware. Each piece was created and/or selected for the dish in mind which supports the dish to achieve its maximum potential.

The interior is also really magical and quaint and you can tell why they have won 3 international design awards. They were also named the world's best designed restaurant at the Restaurant & Bar Design Awards in 2014 so there's that.

Service Design Notes: During my dining experiences, a lot of the restaurants had a interesting way to welcome you to their table. They would bring out a little treat for you while you began to browse the menu to figure out what you wanted to eat. This is a great way to welcome users and also gives a way for restaurants to buy a little bit of time. It also makes the introduction memorable as opposed to the standard bread in a basket.

UX Notes: One of the most important things about design is that everything must breathe together in its function and form. I once interviewed a girl for a UX position who stated that "UI is not UX." As we talked more, I found out that she likes to cook and asked her if she just eats out of the pot or pan she cooked from or if she makes an effort to place it on a dish in a way that appealed to her. The answer was the latter. Having visuals support your hard work of research and functional design elevates your design to correctly communicate how you want your users to receive your product. Food and mobile screen? Not so different.

 

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Rødder: Pop-up Dinner

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I mentioned several times that I did some research into my tribes that exist in Copenhagen. During this quest I found a blog that belonged to one of the main Service Design groups in Denmark. I reached out in hopes of meeting like-minded people but sadly, it was summer, and they weren't holding any events during my stay. However, I continued to read their blog and looked at some of their past events.

One of their events looked so festive that I searched a bit more to find who had hosted such a lovely looking event. Turns out that it was hosted by a group called Rødder: Two chefs holding pop-up dining experiences filled with thoughtful, locally grown produce that were transformed with creativity onto a plate. I crossed my fingers and sent them an email to see if they would be hosting an event during my stay. Lo and behold, they were. So, I bought a ticket. 

I arrived a little late to the dinner but was met with smiling chefs who directed me to a spot in a long dinner table setting. I talked to them about this set up and they described to me that it was very intentional on how they wanted everyone to feel united as well as cozy enough to spark conversation during communal dining. Remember - Danes don't just party with anyone. 

I sat down and was met with two groups to the left and right of me. I must've looked timid (and I'll admit I was - I was horrified that I was late and also that it seemed to be a very family oriented event) so they were kind enough to spark conversation. Again, to me, Danes are so friendly and kind. What is this nonsense of them being cold and unapproachable? Someone please correct this misunderstanding.

We talked about many things and eventually, many of them asked me how I got a ticket to this event. I told them my story and they were sort of amazed. I then found out that Rødder was the first group to ever host pop-up dinners and spearheaded this notion of celebratory communal dining with local food. Here I was, sitting at a lovely pop-up dinner, with a ticket that was coveted by many who were met with 'sold out' notifications during an online check-out process. #jelly?

Needless to say, the meal was fantastic. 

Chef Esben

Chef Solfinn

Aren't these lily pad looking things gorgeous? I still have yet to find the names of them. If you know what they are, please share!

Lovely plant centerpieces

This dessert was amazing. Vanilla mouse with fennel, gooseberries, and lemon ice.

At the end of the meal, I talked with some of the chefs and they asked if I was the girl from Chicago who had emailed them about their event. Such great memory, right? We chatted a bit and I thanked them for the meal. We ended the conversation with them inviting me to their wine shop to chill and hang out the next day. Umm... yes. I will be there.

Service Design Notes: There were no technology components involved in this dinner experience except for the ticket purchasing which wasn't even checked upon arriving. What do you think about honor systems? I think that the better we get at service design, the more honor systems we will see in the industry. I believe this to be true because as we design better experiences, we connect with humans better and create mini-relationships even if it's for the designed moment. When we connect and develop these mini-relationships, we don't need to play police because cooperation, respect, and the golden rule is part of the transaction of receiving a service.

UX Notes: These long tables that were quite narrow were consciously selected and designed for these events by Rødder. When creating an experience, it is important to consider the physical space of where you are constructing your experience because this is where the unconscious mind and emotions creep in and can determine which direction your experience will go towards. I believe this set up is successful for Rødder because the physical space forced naturally reserved Danes to get close and enjoy food in good company.

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Thoughts on Clothing + Shops in Copenhagen

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I haven't written much about shopping in Copenhagen but if you meet anyone who knows me, I am pretty infatuated with clothes. Having sewn some clothes for myself, I have learned to appreciate fabric, patterns, stitching, and just pure craftsmanship from designers who specialize in this field. I'm always looking for interesting cuts and I love finding material that consists of thoughtful quality while backed with intention.

I work in the technology field and there are moments where I think about digital product design as clothes making/design. Let me explain.

Parallels to clothes-making and technology:

1) Pattern makers are your back-end architects and developers. 
"What are you talking about?" you might ask. But have you ever met a pattern maker? These people are geniuses. Material is their data and they think about multiple things as they architect their plan to create various sizing for one style of clothing. Our human body is their ultimate goal but the production process is really what they are designing for and if they do it right, everyone else has what they need to finish the product. "Will this die cut be durable for the amount of production requested?" That question is not so different from, "Will this system be able to handle multiple queries and modular data flow?"

2) Sewers are your front-end developers. 
Sewing can get really technical. The type of stitch needed can make or break how something drapes onto your body (a component of interaction design). Some clothing designers have a fit over whether or not they should start on a half-stitch or a whole stitch - no joke. You pixel perfect people out there are not alone and your tribe extends far beyond the digital community. Our body sizes are the devices you code responsive design for and it matters how you organize your bootstrap logic in order to get the product to surface correctly. Coincidence? I think not. 

3) Clothing designers are your UX/UI folks. 
I have a fundamental belief that UX should not be separated from UI but I won't have enough space here to comment on that. I'll save that for later. Regardless, here is where the questions and design decisions get really tricky and again, not at all different from the fashion world. Is this relevant to what is currently out there on the market? Has this already been made? If not, what is out there that we can benchmark off of to make this product/dress better? Tell me more about how your foot feels while walking in this shoe. Do you feel confident that wearing this will keep you warm when walking outside during winter? Is this color palette configured to your personality/industry? And the list goes on.

I could keep going with this but an important point to make here is that it is imperative that clothing designers work with pattern makers and sewers constantly so that the end design is actually what was intended. This helps production flow to meet its potential and sewers know why starting at a half-stitch will actually change the product as well as influence how people interact with it when they put it on. So, the real question is, why do we separate these people in tech? Ideal teams all work together but I have seen many a time where back-end architects and developers don't even get to talk to UX/UI folks when assigned to a product. Or, front-end developers get left in the dark when handed screens to produce and have no idea how the product is suppose to behave and why.

I challenge technology teams to really explore other mediums to see how craftsmen are working to produce whatever thing that they are tasked with. There is much to learn from physical product making and I think that more teams should learn collaborative processes in other mediums. I'm pretty confident that if they do experience this, our digital products will be that much better. 

Enough of this though - take a look at some shops I visited. 

More Visual TREATS:

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A New Letterpress Friend: Katrine

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I wrote about a letterpress artist I had contacted in this blog post but I found another letterpress artist that I also wanted to meet. I sent a 'hello' email before my trip and we found time to connect. 

I rode my bike over to the other side of Copenhagen and stopped at an address located in Østerbro. I was told that I was going to be going to a wine shop which peaked my curiosity but I was just happy to meet someone in my tribe.

Meet Katrine

What a rock star, right? When I walked in, I immediately knew what she was doing. This lady has integrated her letterpress work and passion for printing within her wine shop, Trøffelsvin, where she sells printed cards and centers all of her signage with her letterpress work. Beautiful and really clever.

As a letterpress printer and artist, there are different business models that you can create for yourself. Some run a full time print shop with custom work, some run artist studios while teaching in academia, etc. but the point is that if you have a passion for it, you make an effort to integrate it into your life in any way you can. 

I had such a wonderful talk with Katrine I got to meet her husband as well. Both are stellar human beings and you can just feel the presence of good people when you run into them. I spent a good amount of time with them and then went on my way. They were kind enough to invite me over for dinner so I'm really looking forward to it as my trip comes to a close. More to come!

More Visual TREATS:

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Danish Culture

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During the first part of my trip while my friend was traveling with me, two of the hosts we met at the Airbnb mentioned that Danes aren't very friendly and that they are hard to get to know. I heard this a few times throughout my trip but the more I spent time in Denmark, the less I believe this to be true. 

I thought about why I didn't experience this distance between myself and the Danes and I concluded that it could be because of my Korean culture. Both cultures are pretty reserved and it takes a bit of time to create bonds and friendships with people.

There are no good or bad sides to this. It's simply just the way certain populations work. But like I said, I did not experience this and I believe it is also partly because I met so many people in the arts as well as the restaurant service industry who were all so welcoming, friendly, and kind. 

Fie, one of the girls I met at Alhambra & Sons, was kind enough to extend a sincere welcome and offered to take me to the part of town where she grew up. I was floored by her kindness and gladly received it. We actually talked about this activity of invitation during our hang out and she too said that it is out of a Dane's norm to ask someone out to dinner and a get-together so quickly. At this point, I could care less because all I felt was warm, sincere kindness from a human to another human. 

I learned so much about Fie and her family during the few hours we spent time together. She showed me her hometown which was a gorgeous place that had rich history and lovely architecture. We talked about many things and she shared with me her Christmas traditions (Christmas is celebrated profusely in Denmark - something I am dying to experience), lovely stories about her family, and hilarious jokes about the current state of Danish politics. All I could think was, "This is so wonderful. She is so wonderful. How did I get here?"
 

Some facts about Denmark

1) In the old days, there were dog statues in the windowsill of many homes. Why? You're going to love this. 

Apparently, some of the women of this town didn't enjoy monogamy so whenever the dogs were facing out towards the street, it meant that their husbands were home. When their husbands left, however, they turned the dogs to face inward - to beckon in their lovers. Ha. I couldn't stop laughing at this story. There are also these old contraptions of mirrors by the windows to spy on the street and everything. Such clever ladies, I'd say.
 

2) Danish people never complain. 

This was the view from where we were eating. Gorgeous.

We ate by the seaside and I ordered a Coke Zero for my fried, seafood meal. Don't ask me why but I love Coke Zero and can tell the difference between Diet Coke, Coke Zero, and just Coke. Ew. I'm grossed out at myself after reading that sentence. Anyway, what I had received initially was Coke and after a couple of sips, I asked the waitress if she would bring me a Coke Zero instead of the Coke. Simple mishap - could happen anywhere, right? Oh man was I in trouble. Fie was kind enough to smooth out the situation but after the waitress left, she told me, "Yeah... Danish people don't complain about those things." 

I was utterly humiliated but allowed myself to slowly forget about it as we continued to eat and share stories about our lives. I felt really awful about not keeping to cultural specifics because I felt as though I had bad manners in that moment - but I guess this is why we travel. To encounter these kinds of moments and re-evaluate why we do things on a day-to-day basis. 
 

3) Be very afraid of geese. 

This is a seaside pool where locals come to hang out. Nearby, the goose farm exists.

Roasting and eating a goose during Christmas is actually a thing in Denmark.  I think it originated here and there was a goose farm pretty close to the seaside. Coming from a Korean family, I never knew what you were supposed to eat during Christmas and our family quickly decided to not figure it out but to feast on grilled meats on a tabletop grill. Fie shared that during the early winter months, children would wander together to the community pool by the lake but would be firmly warned to stay away from the geese. Fact: They can get to be the size of little ponies and can attack people if provoked. How do you categorize this? First world problems? Someone help me. 

I was so thankful to have had this experience with Fie. She also took me to Denmark's famous ice cream shop called Ismageriet where I had delicious elderberry ice cream with marshmallow goo on top. Just thinking about it makes me want another taste.

There is always a line but it goes quickly. Be prepared to know what you're going to order when you get to the front! (You can also taste as many samples as you'd like but the people behind you may judge.)

UX notes: Just like cultures have their own set of manners and rules for how things should behave, digital products informally have rules for proper manners as well. For example, asking for a credit card to test out a trial run for an app? That's bad manners. Hiding a button to encourage an accidental invite to everyone you've ever had an email exchange with in your life as LinkedIn connections? Bad manners. It is important to look at the culture of what positive manners products are producing and follow suit. Otherwise, where is the human culture in technology?

More Visual TREATS:

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Type Hype

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As a designer, there are so many things that you can gravitate towards and have a passion for within the design realm. For me, typography is and always will be one of my forefront passions when it comes to my design approach. So when I came upon this store called PLAYTYPE which is entirely conceptualized around typography, I nearly lost my cool. 

I can't even.... I just can't. So, I'll just show you photos.

I really wish I could bring one of these things home with me. Concrete lettering. How delightful.

Needless to say, I spent a lot of time here and talked to the girl who was running the store. She gave me some good tips on other fun things that are happening in the city as well as more places to eat. I'm also proud to say that I got a few posters to take home with me - not sure how that will happen when it comes to luggage but I am ready and willing to take the challenge.

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