Cord Keeper

Human Crafted started with this piece. In 2016, my partner Phil Stankard and I entered Design MMoCA — an exhibit at the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art. The concept was to take common garage items and turn them into functional housewares, highlighting forms you’d walk past every day without really seeing.

The cord keeper came from a simple problem. Before magnetic and wireless charging, device cables slid off the desk the moment you unplugged. The fix was just as simple — use the weight of concrete to hold the cord in place.

Making it

The first molds were PVC pipe sections with a piece of steel bar stock laid across the top to create the cable slot. Pour concrete, let it cure, pop it out. The form was basically dictated by the materials — a cylinder with a notch. Later I made a proper silicone mold to speed up production and get cleaner, more consistent results. Each piece got sanded smooth by hand.

After the exhibit

The cord keeper became the first Human Crafted product. I produced it in natural concrete and a range of colors, and had a few artist-painted special editions. It sold in shops around the country and at craft shows — packaged in a variety of experimental and fun ways over the years.

It’s a small thing. But it’s the one that got everything started.