T
hat day my task was simple: to collect wood
and plastic. I needed these materials to
teach engineering faculty how to build physical
solutions to real-world problems. But I was facing
my own real-world problem to solve: As I walked
the Addis Ababa Merkato, the largest open-air
market on the continent of Africa, I failed to see
any wood or plastic that matched my mental
model. Where I expected smooth planks of wood
and uniform sheets of plastic, all I saw were
slender trunks of eucalyptus and empty plastic
jerry cans that used to hold palm oil. It seemed
like none of this could be used as building
materials, until I saw a road divider made of cut-
up pieces of the yellow and blue plastic and bent
wire. Seeing this solution produced an epiphany:
culture and context is a lens through which we
pre-assign rules about building materials but
actually, anything is a raw material.
Most of the world builds with these types of
readily available materials, prioritizing functional
solutions over aesthetics. This often results in
rapidly produced solutions that don’t look pretty
but work just fine. Prototypes of this sort often
are composed of pieces taken out of their original
context, found objects, or a repurposing of
functions. We call this method of prototyping low-
fidelity prototyping because it is low-cost, quick,
and often one-off.
In the Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen at
Rice University we have a makerspace with all of
the conveniences one would expect: laser cutters,
3D printers, machining capabilities, electronics
capabilities, high-quality machine components.
Despite all this, we champion the use of readily
available materials and practical ingenuity to
solve problems before turning to the tools and
materials of our well-stocked makerspace. This
is reinforced by the presence of our low-fidelity
prototyping cart, full of items that students can
combine quickly to solve problems: felt, foam,
glue, scissors, tape, K’nex, styrofoam balls, and
paper. Those who employ low-fidelity prototyping
throughout the life of a project end up producing
more prototypes, and these final prototypes are
often more refined than the prototypes produced
by those who immediately try to jump into making
with advanced manufacturing.
With much of the world at a standstill and
sheltering at home, many of us are facing limited
resources to solve our and the planet’s real-
world problems. Low-fidelity prototyping is a
method everyone can employ in their own home
by building a Low-Fidelity Prototyping Kit. This kit
is like a first aid kit but for treating problems, not
injuries. These materials are low cost and can be
combined in a variety of ways. One tip: The best
application of low-fi prototyping involves focusing
on the function of an object, breaking the cultural
and contextual lens you are used to. You might
assemble a kit with completely different items;
this is OK! We’ve organized materials by function
and based on what most North Americans might
have in their immediate surroundings. Don’t
worry about organization of your kit, just put
everything in a plastic bag, another raw material
for your building! For starters:
• Something elastic: rubber bands,
bungee cords
• Something that covers large areas but
bends: aluminum foil, saran wrap
• Something planar that spans space:
cardboard (an unrecognized natural
resource), paper plates
• Something that holds things together:
string, binder clips, clothespins, wire
• Something that joins 2D or 3D materials:
white glue, super glue, tape
• Volume filling but inert: styrofoam,
balled-up paper
• Something rigid: popsicle sticks
• Cuts objects: scissors, utility knife
• Something that can change shape or
be molded easily: clay, play dough
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makeprojects.com
Sheltering in place?
Create a collection
of common
materials to help
you keep on making
Written and photographed by
Matthew Wettergreen