Task A3 | E

​ xisting products 
🔎 What? 
 
❗Why? 
 
Analyze a group of similar products that inspire a solution to  You are trying to figure out what makes related products a 
the problem.  success (or not) and you are trying to come up with ideas for 
  your own project.  
 

⚙H
​ ow? 

Inspiration board 
● Choose ​a product idea from this list - ​Choice of Upcycled Product 
● Create​ a Pinterest board of a range of products (at least 25) that are an inspiration to your specific project.  
● Present​ a screenshot of (a large part of) your Pinterest board in your design folder. Include the title and the 
hyperlinked source of your pinterest board. 
● ​ hen creating your inspiration board, choose products that are different from each other. If the 
Consider also​ -​ W
products are very similar, you will gain only limited knowledge and inspiration for your own project, because most 
products will lead to the same conclusions. It is likely that your inspiration will not only come from products that are 
similar to what you have in mind. Quite different products may have features that inspire you as well. 
● Review​ the ​high level example​ and the rubric (below) to ensure you have enough detail. 
● Choose and j​ ustify​ which project plan will be the foundation for your project. You will incorporate elements from other 
projects, but choose 1 that best represents what you want to make. 

Inspiration Board of a tote bag Ideas 

Source:​ Rahul Salwan “​https://www.pinterest.com/rasa2025/pins/​’. Feb 2020 

 
"Rahuls Pins." ​Pinterest​, www.pinterest.com/rasa2025/pins/. Accessed 1 Mar.
2020.  
 
PMI analysis​ | Plus, Minus, Interesting 
The command term a ​ nalyze​ is defined as​:  
 
“Break down in order to bring out the essential elements or structure​.” 
 
In this task this means conducting a PMI analysis for the products you identified in your inspiration board. 
 
Tips for analysis: 
● Evidence that you looked closely at the site of the pin 
● Identified properties of the products (size, shape, style, functional effectiveness, appropriate for fabric, 
appropriate for your skill level, appropriateness for client) 
● Bullet points but full sentences 
● Explain why it is a strength/challenge/interesting point 
 

⊕  Analyze​ strengths (​plus​) of the products. In your analysis clearly identify and explain specific features that 
make the product successful. 

● All of my designs are made from cotton so it is easy for me to make as i have a lot of cotton t-shirts 
at home 
● Most of the desines I looked at used no sewing machine. This is a strength because If you don't 
have a sewing machine at home you can still make a bag. 
● If you make a tote bag and you want it to be waterproof you can dip it in a liquid called nik wax and 
that will make it waterproof. This is a strength because if you go out in the rain with you tote bag it 
won't get wet. 
● You can customise whatever you want on it so you can pick a t-shirt that fits your style. This is a 
strength because you can have your own personalized tote bags. 
● Some of the designs have a boxed bottom so you can put stuff that has to be flt and when you set 
it on the ground it also won't fall .This is a strength because if you have thick books and you put it 
on the floor it won't fall so your items in the bag will be safe.  
● Some of the materials are durable so they wont fall apart  
● You can save money buying a tote bag , This is a strength because you don't have to buy new bags 
every day you can just use one 
● You save the environment by buying a tote bag. This is a strength because you don't harm the 
environment by buying bag over bag over bag. 

⊖  Analyze​ weaknesses (​minus​) of the products. In your analysis clearly identify and explain specific features 
that make the product less successful. 

● For some of the designs you have to do Extra work by doing the sowing by hand This is a 
weakness because it will be harder and more time consuming 
● Some of the tote bags shrink when you wash them so after a few washes they will become too 
small to fit the things you usually put in them This is a weakness because if you cant fit the things 
that you usually put in the tote bag then it will become useless and you have to buy another one. 
● Some of the tote bags can be washed This is a weakness because after a while there will be a lot of 
bacteria in the tote bag and if you can't wash it then the bacteria can make the thing you put inside 
the tote bag spoilt  
● Some of the materials like leather cant be dipped in nik wax this is a weakness because then any 
items you have made out of leather you can’t bring it near to water 

ℹ  Outline​ all take-aways (​interesting​) you have gained for your project by analysing the products. 
Take-aways are Ideas that are worth remembering for later in the project. 

● If you make a tote bag and you want it to be waterproof you can dip it in a liquid called nik wax and 
that will make it waterproof. This is interesting because if you go out in the rain with your tote bag 
it won't get wet. 
● Cross stitching the fabric makes it stronger .This is interesting because you can make weak fabric 
stronger and increase the amount of weight you can put in the bag. 
● Leather is already water resistance so you can expose it to some water but not much  
 
 
 

Choose and justify a project plan 

 
Select one of the products from your inspiration board and justify the choice for this product to design in the next 
stage of the design cycle.  
 
Your justification must address the following elements: 

Why did you choose this product over the others in your inspiration board? ​Explain how it is appropriate for: 
● your client  
● the fabric you chose 
● your skill level 

I chose this design over others because anyone can create this product so it is very easy you don't need to know a 
lot of sewing skills. You can also choose any fabric you want. This bag is perfect for beginners to make, it is fast 
and easy. 
 

   
A3 Assessment 
Level  Descriptor  Typical features of student work 

0  The student does not reach a standard described by any of the descriptors below. 

1-2  The student ​presents​ some  ❏ The analysis of the individual products l​ ists​ specific features as strengths 
existing products that inspire a  or weaknesses. 
solution to the problem.  ❏ The inspiration board is ​not completed​, nor a link to your source. 
❏ The choice of final product demonstrates ​limited​ analysis and thinking 
about client, fabric and skill level. 

3-4  The student ​outlines​ features  ❏ The analysis of the individual products o​ utlines​ specific features as 
of some existing products that  strengths or weaknesses and leads to some further insights regarding the 
inspires a solution to the  project. 
problem.  ❏ There is a l​ imited​ number and range of products in your Pinterest Board. 
There should be at least a range of 25 products that are different from 
each other 
❏ The source is included, but ​not in, proper​ MLA format. 
❏ The choice of final product demonstrates ​basic​ analysis and thinking 
about client, fabric and skill level. 

5-6  The student ​describes​ common  ❏ The analysis of each individual product or system d ​ escribes​ specific 
features of similar products  features as strengths and weaknesses and leads to meaningful insights 
that inspire a solution to the  regarding the project. 
problem.  ❏ There is a s​ ufficient​ number and range of products in your Pinterest 
Board. 
❏ The source is cited in p ​ roper​ MLA format. 
❏ The choice of final product demonstrates ​sufficient​ analysis and thinking 
about client, fabric and skill level.  

7-8  The student ​analyses​ a group  ❏ The analysis of each individual product or system e
​ xplains​ specific 
of similar products that inspire  features as strengths and weaknesses and leads to impactful further 
a solution to the problem.  insights regarding the project. 
❏ There is an e
​ xtensive​ number and range of products in your Pinterest 
Board. 
❏ The source is cited in p
​ roper​ MLA format. 
❏ The choice of final product demonstrates ​sophisticated​ analysis and 
thinking about client, fabric and skill level.