Unraveling My Design Process

I am working on a project which involves teaching design. In doing so I am observing what I do on a microscopic level so that I might be able to convey this to others. I'm noticing that I meld many aspects of myself as I work. I can easily go back 30 years to formulate a design and even decide how it will be crafted.  I may not recall the name of a song but I do remember what a finish looked like on a table I saw five years ago, how the pieces of veneer were laid out, the edging detail, the shape and proportion of the table and how it all felt. One of the most important aspects of designing is noticing our surroundings in great detail and being able to use those gems to help us in solving the questions in new design.
Here's an example of a recent gem I found in a B&B in Portland Oregon:

This carving detail has such beautiful flowing lines it catches your eye as soon as you enter the room!

I was asked to submit a design and bid for a job to build a lazy susan. My very first response was to not make it a circle. I have a natural inclination to make things more difficult than they need to be . . . or perhaps I don't mind asking the question even if it seems ridiculous. Yes, I believe to design well you must ask what feels like an endless amount of questions. Often, in our culture of know it all's, we don't like to ask too many questions. But inside of the design process, your piece will emerge as you define your answers one by one. Knowing what questions to ask, which ones are easy to solve (like the lazy susan really needs to be a circle . . . or it's going to cause all sorts of problems functionally) and which ones to go over and over to find just the right solution is something that takes a lot of repetition, guts and endless amounts of hope.

I seem to be on a personal quest to add more beauty to the world. I am reacting to the world around me that seems to be blatantly disregarding the visual environment. Here's a quote from a website that I visited recently "we believe in the power of independence, the power of creation, the power of handmade to change the world. we believe that mass-production and rampant consumerism have created a culture that is hungry for “more” & “cheap” – we believe that handmade can change that, reconnect us with our fellow (wo)man and put life back into a bit of perspective."  I do think they're on to something. We've got a lot of work to do! Let's get to it!