Progress with wire forms

I've finished a big step in developing wire forms I wrote about in my previous post. What sounded easy turned out to be quite a challenge. The goal here was to create a wire pen holder, and this is the result:

I went through close to twenty iterations. Last time I wrote about the prototyping mindset, but the message might be even simpler; just keep doing. Ruminating over ideas about how to speed up the process or trying to guess what works can kill the joy, just like any overblown project. The final form is this:

The biggest aha moment came when I realised I can leave some space for the makers instead of trying to develop a foolproof solution. After all, trial and error is part of crafting and shouldn't be taken away.

My original idea was for the model to have hooks and overhangs in places where the wire could potentially slip, so that it perfectly guides the wire. Not only is it hard to design, but ultimately boring to craft. Instead, I left the form simpler and used metal clips as needed.

These clips are not the best, as they're not flat, so they hold the wire just by the edge. I'm thinking about printing some better version or looking around for ideas. I was even thinking about some kind of substance like clay or tape. I'll explore the options which will probably be my next stop in these experiments.

As for the product, there is definitely room for improvements, but I'll shelve it for now and try something simpler in 2D focusing on practicality instead of novelty this time.