Ok, full disclosure, the closest we’ve gotten to taking one of these out so far is, we’ve set one up (7mins.) in our friends’ living room and took turns sitting in it. Super smart design, ultra light weight and easily transportable. We’re hoping to get one in the near future. Read more about these cool origami boats here.
Maiden Voyage! (with nylon skin)
Big Day. Friends/Industrial Designers, Scott Mourer and Hayden Schramm helped me launch the USS Intention at Rocky Mt Lake Park (Denver) earlier today and the little boat performed great. It felt balanced and went straight, after a few spins it took on about 2 qts of water (I’ll add some sealant to the seams tomorrow) but otherwise, a sweet ride. Emily, the girls and I will take it out this weekend to test it some more. For some extra R&D, I’d like to take it to a pool and flip it, as well as, practice getting back in after a capsize, will see if that’s possible.
Big shout out to Brian Schulz at Cape Falcon Kayaks (OR) for all the exceptional videos, support and inspiration + Skin Boat Store for all the supplies. Reach out if you’d like any add’l info. on the process, materials or if you’d just care to chat about boats.
Making a small sail for it is next!
HOW TO TRAVEL by School of Life
Emily found this little gem at BookGive (a friend’s non-profit which gets books into the right hands) where Emily volunteers 1-2x/mo. The book is more of a self-reflection on the art of living through journeying throughout our curious world. It’s my favorite way of traveling, which sometimes I forget. I highly recommend.
Note: kayak is fully ready for water testing (hopefully this coming week or weekend)
Iceland Visitor Centre by Andersen & Sigurdsson Architects
Iceland’s been popping up on my radar a bit lately and if/when I make it there, this place could be an interesting visit. Read more.
NOTE: Piper and I added 2nd coat of the 2 part urethane to the kayak this morning, hoping we got all of the thin spots. Good Sunday to all.
First Coat
kayak update
Finally made the coaming (wood band around cockpit) and tried to get more of the wrinkles out of the nylon - will maybe try spritzing and ironing on the next hot day. It’s a lovely Sunday in Denver.
Kayak Update
Pulled out many of the wrinkles with diagonal cut & stitch but a few to go - formulating a plan. Hoping for an early June launch.
Plywood & carbon fiber boat
Love the simplicity of this one. More here.
One sheet of plywood boats
Piper (our 14 yr old) wants some help building one of these - full scale.
DIY Sailboat
This is my new favorite down and dirty quick boat made from off-the-shelf materials. Here’s more info. on Instructables.
Boat Update
Happy New Era Everyone!
Started skinning the kayak with nylon - so far so good.
Kayak Update
Just finished installing the final blocking and hardware elements before skin goes on plus added final coat of urethane to the frame. The temperatures have been below freezing at night and unfortunately the coat did not cure properly (still sticky in places). I’ll research possible solutions.
Boat update
Added reinforcements for small sail at the front of kayak and completing bracket for mast (alum. pipe). Also, added final coat of 2-part urethane to the frame. Once all the hardware and backer material are finished, I’ll start pinning, cutting and sewing on the nylon skin. Hoping for Sunday.
Kayak update (sail time!)
Over the past week, I’ve begun reinforcing my kayak so that I can rig a sail to it. I‘ve always wanted to learn to sail and this seems like the perfect opportunity. Also, I figure I should have enough leftover nylon from the boat skin to make at least two sails. The image below is not my boat or sail, just one of the many DIY ones found for inspiration.
Sneci, the teeny tiny Houseboat - Tamás Bene (architect)
This combines two of my favorite things. Check out more pictures and information here.
Boat Update
Applied a heavy coat of the 2 part urethane to the kayak frame and will plan to add a second coat to the lower half. Once frame is completely sealed, it’ll be time to add the skin (white 9oz. ballistic nylon) - see Spirit Line Kayaks for more info.
3-2-1...Launch!
We all (+ a friend) gave it a try - went straight, didn’t sink, took on a little water through the plastic but otherwise handled nicely. All in all, not too bad for some plywood, drywall screws, plastic wrap and packing tape.
Plastic Wrapped
Hopefully testing later today. We reinforced it all around with packing tape and made a greenland paddle out of (2) old oars. Only thing left is getting it secured to top of car.
Kayak Update
The plywood frame is complete. Planning to add temporary plastic wrap skin today and test out in nearby lake tomorrow.
Floating Habitat - El Refugio del Pescador/Natura Futura Arquitectura + Juan Carlos Bamba
This simple floating structure is the kind of project I love. See more here.
