Foldable Sewing Machine by Richard Burrow

Presented at the London graduate show, New Designers, Foldable Sewing Machine is a minimalist design created by Richard Burrow. As the name implies, Burrow designed the sewing machine’s folding functionality in order to reduce waste and allow for easier mobility and storage.

“Too often we are encouraged to throw away something when it is broken, and replace it with something new. Clothing items are regularly thrown as we believe its often cheaper to replace than repair. When in most cases it isn’t. Sewing Machines are often designed in a similar way, with many being over designed with far too many features. They are also big, and bulky.”

I don’t think I’ve ever even touched a sewing machine before, but with this clever new design, I’m definitely more tempted to give it a go. Traditional sewing machines are incredibly bulky, and equally ugly to match. Burrow went ahead and solved both of those issues in one design. It looks quite simple from the outside, but I’m sure there are some complexities in the internals to make the folding capabilities work. Burrow also wanted to make the machine as simple and straightforward as possible. You have no idea how much I appreciate that in designs these days.