Woolly Mouse

How can we assign elevated value to consumer electronics through materials and how can these materials cultivate maintenance rituals?

In this project I set out to explore how we can change the way we interact with our personal electronic devices. We treat them largely as disposable - why? Often, because they cannot be repaired, but also they are usually made of materials like plastic, which we associate with disposability. I chose wool as a surface material, as it has many incredible properties, as well as the fact that it can be almost infinitely repaired and added to through felting. Wood can be re-oiled and repaired.

The whole mouse can be disassembled for servicing and repair, or all the hardware can be removed, and the mouse chassis can be either recycled or composted.

Sketches / Ideation

Below, I landed on an ergonomic mouse shape, something that would be easy to mold the felt to