A Mother’s Problem, A Son’s Solution
The Problem
My mother spends much time in the kitchen making the most delicious foods. She likes to create all kinds of diverse dishes, but what she truly loves to do is bake and design incredible cakes. Now, even though she’s usually happy with her tasty results, she doesn’t seem to enjoy the overall prepping process. I noticed, one evening, that her main struggle around the kitchen is carrying heavy cooking machinery from one side to another, along with other minor inconveniences. So I began to wonder, how do I make the woman who gave birth to me’s life easier? I had to think long and hard about how to best approach this so I did some closer observations.
One afternoon as the sun was ready to set, an indication that my mom was soon about to cook, I waited in the kitchen near the table and offered my undivided help in the night’s cooking preparations. She was a bit surprised, but she also wasn’t aware that I was trying to sympathize with her everyday struggles around the kitchen. I told her I would do all the heavy work and all she had to do was work on the actual cooking/baking. My mother agreed and I became the sous chef for the night. Well, It didn’t take long for me to understand that I was right, and then some.
First of all, her current storage area for cooking & baking supplies is overcrowded, making it difficult to get to any item on the rack. Just take a look at the photo below. I had to move various things (and furniture) before I could get the cake batter she asked for. When I finally reached for the cake batter, I felt that all my time at the gym had been wasted since I couldn’t keep the machinery in the air for longer than 5 seconds. She laughed at me for a bit and mentioned my dad or sister usually helps her with those things. I felt bad for not offering help before but then again I’m never really home.
I continued to reach over (and put back) various cooking tools, some more heavier than others and at times at higher racks forcing me to get a stool. I recall feeling tired and my arms numb halfway through the cooking preparations. How does she do this so often, and what happens when none of us are around to help her? Anyways soon after it was time to start putting together a small cake she was working on for a baby shower. My mother asked me to place this plastic mat lined with circles for measuring purposes over the table. I watched how she placed the cake on the mat and made rotational adjustments to inspect the cake for design mistakes. The plastic mat really made it difficult to keep the cake steady since I had to hold it down. She probably wastes time adjusting and readjusting on her own.
Finally, when I thought everything was done and ready she smirked and said we needed to add the finishing touches. She left for the living room and came back with some adornments. She went back again to glance at her computer screen, and then adjusted some details. Then back and forth multiple times for what seemed to be a neverending loop. Couldn’t she just use her phone to look at prepping instructions and design looks? Nope, she grunted that she needs to see it on a bigger screen from her desk computer in the living room. I started to dread the baking process too and just wanted to be done. So I left her to the final steps and headed to my room for one thing only, to design a product that would make her experience in the kitchen easier.
The Design
I spent hours and hours defining and understanding my mother’s main issue with lifting and moving all these heavy pieces of machinery. I was looking for a way to cut back her labor work so that she can get to baking & cooking with less physical strain. But I soon realized that in order to do that I had to also solve other pain points within the baking process like space, reach, and convenience. So I got to tinkering and here are the results!
I built an entire baking storage ecosystem in hopes to facilitate her cooking process in the kitchen. In image A below you can see an electric rotating system based on a similar concept used in parking lots to stack cars on top of each other. She can place all her heavy machinery there and with a push of a button have it rotate to the tool she needs, where she can slide it from the base onto the tabletop. No longer will she need to reach high places and lift heavy machinery across the kitchen.
In image B you’ll find a detachable baking station with wheels so she can move multiple tools if she needs to any area in the kitchen. She can also place her cake on the built-in rotating center shown in image B2 so that she can look at her design details with ease and sturdiness as well as take proper measurements.
Lastly, In image C we have a design workstation where she will be able to look at and read design details on her computer without having to leave the kitchen at all. Additionally, the desktop is adjustable and wired to lift and descend with the tap of a switch. It really is a one-stop shop design no? To top it off I made sure to have plenty of storage space for all her bowls, utensils, and smaller tools. The storage is designed to take more vertical space and create an open space environment. I really hope my mom will love this product, do you?
Additional Images
