Reflection:
The first challenging part of this project was the elevator pitch. I was nervous about speaking in front of people and presenting, but after hearing the feedback from my peers, it seems that I just needed more confidence. This last project was indeed a challenging one, however, the flex challenge taught me a lot more things about setting deadlines and procrastinating less. This way, I was able to finish on time compared to the past ones. Like I mentioned before, I tend to do the opposite when it comes to self-regulation, but this time I followed the correct steps: plan, do, evaluate. I was also flexible and listened to feedback from my TA when the code wasn’t working. Even after hearing her suggestions, I still asked Audry for help, and she gave me a new board. I implemented one of the codes in the class website and had to edit a few parts for the external LED lights to change colors. I also had to change the light blue to purple, but most of the time it would read the color as blue. When I was finally able to get the correct RGB # it would sometimes confuse the color green, but it still worked.
Once my code was running effectively, I started working on the flowers and connecting the external LED lights. I was initially going to use fabric to make the flowers but since I was relying on the scraps from fimble, there was hardly any white fabric. Instead, I used toilet paper, and searched up online a few ways to make the flowers. This was the easy part, I was quite confident in my ability (self-efficacy), but it still took me a lot of time to make each one. Not to mention that I had to be very careful because toilet paper breaks easily. I made a total of 10 flowers, 2 of each style I was able to find; roses, camila, tulip, peony, and something similar to a poppy. Finally, I organized them in a cardboard tube to make them stable.
This semester I took a public speaking course, which is outside of my comfort zone, but I had a sense of belongingness because it was in Spanish. However, I was the only first-year so in some way I felt out of place. I knew that it would definitely be a much more rigorous course, but I wanted to challenge myself outside of my comfort zone. Just like in iDesign, I also had to self-regulate by preparing my speeches and the chapters I had to read. Through these chapters I learned that public speaking isn’t just about improvising on the spot in front of a public. People have to practice their tones, gestures, and rhythm. If they are using a visual presentation, they also have to practice with it, and of course engage with the audience, no one wants to hear a boring presentation! Part of being in a public speaking class also comes along with active listening. We have to listen to facts, stories, and every single detail because we have to give effective feedback for our peers to improve. Being part of both iDesign and public speaking class taught me to be resilient and adapt to new situations, to overcome challenges.
Updates and Deadlines
11/6 – 7: list of materials needed (and price) & project sketch.
Weekly update: I updated most of the materials I needed
11/8: design doc due
Weekly update: I completed the list of materials, the deadlines, and the sketch, along with the written elevator pitch.
11/8 – 11/13: develop coding and testing
Weekly update: This week I focused on my code, but it was not working. I went to TA hours, but we weren’t able to fix it. Instead, Claudia helped me think of ways to modify my project in case the code wouldn’t work. One of her suggestions was to make the LED lights turn on through a capacitive touch code and put them all on a board.
11/15 – 18: finalize code & begin physical design
Weekly update: I was not able to finish the code, but I started to plan out the physical part of the project, which were the flowers. I went to Fimbel Lab and made a rose with some fabric scrap and put a single LED in the middle. I put conductive thread in the positive and negative leg and in the meanwhile it would light up using a battery.
11/19 – 27: final design
Weekly update: Throughout this time I was still still trying to figure out the coding, after consulting with Audrey, she concluded that the board was not able to retain much information so she gave me a different one instead (express), and it worked. After making a few modifications I was able to light up the green, red, and blue fairy lights. I also went to the Fimbel lab to find more fabric, but there was no more (white), so I decided to use toilet paper. Finally, I decided to label each cable with a piece of masking tape to make them easier to identify.
11/28 – 12/4: final touches
Weekly update: I was able to make all the flowers (10), and added the yellow and purple fairy lights. I arranged them using a cardboard tube by making holes through it since it made the flowers more stable rather than just taping them to a flat piece of cardboard. I also decided to put all the negative alligator clips at the back and all the positive in the front where the arduino would be placed.
12/5 – 12/10: troubleshooting
Weekly update: during this last week I just rearranged the alligator clips and used a smaller flat piece of cardboard for the ground. Then, I taped both sides respectively and using packing paper from a previous amazon order and I made it into a flower bouquet.
12/11: project showcase
Progress: https://photos.app.goo.gl/QFQfHLA7XvxHJFnv9
Final Product: https://photos.app.goo.gl/XgEDBzhnNgpBdGdd6
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