Most people focus on the present but forget how the past has shaped today. We flip through our Dad's Drawers to find answers for you, so you can make better sense of the world and even forecast popular trends in our online community.
Along the way, discover great bargains and grow on new hobbies: for free, right at your home.
What is in "Dad's Drawers"?
Most people throw away the treasure they have at home passed through
generations. We scavenge our Dad's Drawers to help find great value in stuff you
never thought you need, so you get to brag about your inherited wealth -- or
even better, build closer connections with your family by acquiring common
language.
Why should we bother about old stuff?
In an era with fragmented and ever-changing information, many people
are caught in a cat-and-mouse chase of emerging trends. One either
keeps up or lags behind. An invisible wall then arises between the new
and the old, such as the "digital divide" that rendered many conventional
tools and offline individuals obsolete. While change is only constant,
so are the fundamental human needs that drive it. Therefore, through
the lenses of vintage items in Dad’s Drawers, anyone may possess
the ability to understand, if not predict, the patterns of the world
and engage in the making of new ideas. The inequality brought by
previous “divides” would also be eliminated, with people of different
upbringing placed at the same starting line, fostering appreciation
towards the past while building new social connections.
What exactly will the project be about?
This project is inspired by my personal experience and various
newsletters issued by communication scholars. As a student journalist
and a fervent newsreader, I have heard no lack of criticisms towards the
traditional reportage of news outlets, accusing them of providing bits of
“data” but not organized “information”. Readers nowadays no longer
thirst for content, but insights – certain perspectives to make sense of
the society and not struck by confusion.
While it is impossible for someone to deliver an almighty mental model,
the experience of discovering old film cameras from my Dad’s Drawers,
and witnessing film photography becoming a hit years later, inspired
me the other way: jumping onto the bandwagon of older days can
actually help understand where our future is steering towards.
The most important part – these great bargains are not only valuable, but also
interesting enough to become a new hobby and a common topic that reconnects
generations across.
Therefore, Dad’s Drawers hopes to take readers and the community
members on a journey to rediscover the history of past items from their
family cabinets, like how I was struck by my Dad’s hidden gems, then
grow intellectually, socially, and personally from the experience of
exploring, reading, and exchanging ideas in our online community.
In the first phase, Dad's Drawers would start on the social media Instagram
to share insights and experiences of rediscovering home treasures from
different people. This would be done by literary research and interviews, and the
information would be delivered with multimedia designs, such as animation,
podcasts, short films and still photographs. With a more significant online presence,
the community will start engaging readers to share their stories in a roundtable manner,
such that minds alike can befriend one another and get inspired socially.
If possible, it would aim at expanding towards the global context to
facilitate transnational, cultural exchange.
And for instant inspiration and forelooking whim...
Start crawling into your old drawers, right now and right at your home!
(It does NOT necessarily be your dad's one.)
Comments
It is a good idea of learning the history through revisiting the things that contain stories a few decades ago. However, I wonder how can this project gain revenue? It seems to be a free platform where everyone can share the things they found in their parents’ drawers and discuss the stories behind. However, can’t this also be done using any social platform like IG and Facebook? What is your project’s uniqueness?
I like this idea! It is unique and interesting. I think there is an opportunity to reuse or recycle old belongings too for environmental benefits :)