But what did it take to create this clean, modern design? Ashley Chloe answers in this behind the scenes look into wearable technology design and the beginnings of the Helix Cuff.

The Difference in Wearable Technology

“Plenty of headsets come with cases, but most people still carry them in pockets and purses, where the wires instantly tangle. We wanted to create an elegant solution to this problem, so we brought together a team with designers and engineers from Nest, Nokia, Lenovo, and IBM to create the Helix.” Angela shared. Putting together a team of experts was one of the first things the founder of Ashley Chloe did and it made a huge difference in the startup’s ability to create a revolutionary wearable.

Getting experienced perspectives on each part of Ashley Chloe’s business was a priority for the company. Team-based thinking has defined the startup’s culture greatly.

Helix Cuff’s Chief Designer, Mika Nenonen knew that designing wearable headphones would involve numerous considerations. He explained, “A human wrist is valuable real estate. We have to provide a lot of value to the consumer in order to convince them to wear a product that attaches to their body, and that they will see all the time.”

“Fundamentally, the marriage of fashion and functional design to create a storage element for headphones simply didn’t exist,” Mika commented. Creating something that has never been created before is definitely a challenge. But when you’re working for an important solution, it’s a challenge worth taking.

Before he began the design process, Mika decided what he would need to focus on. He shared, “When we design a product that's so visible, we need to pay a lot of attention to the quality of the aesthetics and materials because it’s very much a representation of the user’s personal style. We wanted to create a design that looks sleek and stylish, feels comfortable, and cleverly hides its technological power.”

The design process consisted of multiple iterations. The design team went through hundreds of sketches to find the right look. 3D Prints were a useful tool in testing models. Finally, the Ashley Chloe team narrowed the design down to a few prototypes until they found Helix Cuff.

Challenging Design Constraints