Thanks to Manni Lin
When designing a watering pin for plants we needed to find a shape that, when pushed or screwed into the soil would not damage the roots of the plant. Turritellidae, common name the "tower shells" or "tower snails", is a taxonomic family of small to medium-sized sea snails. The shells of turritellid species have whorls that are more convex. This rounded screw shape was perfect for plant pin, so we decided to make a 3D scan of the shell and incorporate this in the design.
We had to enlarge and alter the shape so it had the right size and could be fitted with a water-tube.
The 3D models were used to make the plaster moulds in which the clay would be cast. Getting the right wall thickness and just the right firing temperature to get the earthenware pins so that they deliver just the right amount of water was the next challenge.
