Student Spotlight: THIS Toothbrush

A brilliant project by Leen Sadder, a graduate student at The School of Visual Arts:

"The MISWAK is a tooth-cleaning twig used mainly in the Middle East, Pakistan and India. Traditionally, the top is bitten off with every use to reveal soft bristles similar to that of a toothbrush.

THIS aims to repackage and promote the miswak as an organic, biodegradable, portable, more beneficial substitute for toothpaste and a toothbrush. The biggest challenge was figuring out how to package and market the twig to a contemporary American audience, who would not be entertained with the idea of biting off the top of the stick in order to use it. The solution for this is a cigar-cutter-like cap that peels off the outer layer to reveal the natural bristles, and slices them off after use. It also protects the stick from germs and microbes."

"Along with packaging, a campaign was designed to promote THIS. Using photographs of various sticks and a contrasting photograph of THIS toothbrush in a clean bathroom, a series of posters and print ads was designed to show the simplicity of the product.

In addition, an online campaign was launched which offered to donate a tooth-stick to a person in a developing country with every THIS purchase."

Comments

[Jaclyn]

Wow. This is so smart! I would definitely try it.

[Dan]

What an interesting idea. I love the idea of the cigar cutter that capitalizes on the "novelty" of the action to remove a bit of the stick to expose new bristles. I also like that the package is totally clear, b/c American consumers will find this to be totally foreign and a bit of a mystery. I think by totally exposing the entire length of the stick, the package is capitalizing on this and using it to its advantage.

I also like how the package doubles as a container that both holds the product at store level and stores later, as well as the cutting mechanism also being the tab hanger. Every other package on the store shelf is thrown away as it is unnecessary once the product arrives at the consumers home.

And my favorite part of this post is that the package is being shown IN CONTEXT on the shelf with other package. Every post on here proclaims that its package "stands out" - anything shot in a studio on a white background will.

Well done!

[Heidi]

Wow! Cool toothbrush. I definately try it. I first heard of using a stick as a toothbrush on a nature show I saw in PBS. It was very interesting, I believe the brushes come from a bush in Africa. It is what the navitive use to brush their teeth, that's why they have such beautiful smiles, I guessing. I really would try it just to find out if it works, I wondering too if the bush has natural way of preventing cavities? Cool ad.

[RM]

There have been a few concepts for Miswak as a 'natural' alternative toothbrush's in the past. It sounds like a great idea and always gets a great reception because generally most people have never heard of this stuff and it has the wow factor of something new, but Miswak has some inherent practicallaity problems.

This stuff stinks. I mean literally reeks. Even more so the smell is compounded when stored in a sealed packet. When I first opened a packet of this stuff I was taken back by the smell. First thought as a consumer.... I supposed to put this smelly twig in my mouth?

Secondly the feel. . . . . it's a twig and it's extremely rough and ready in the hands and the outer bark will leave behind a residue\particles.

You also have the problem that theese need to be soaked for a long time before they can be used in order to soften the Miswak (ideally rose water). This itself proposes issues with stagnant water. Not only that but the colouration of the water changes because of the bark of Miswark turning it a browny colour. Lastly the end (despite being cigar cut) still needs to be chewed inorder to seperate the fibres of the miswak. This will need to be repeated everytime you chop the end of for new bristles. I don't really see any of these issues being resolved in this concept.

Needless to say after all of the above no one in our studio wanted to put it in their mouth.

It would of been good if more thought had gone into the product.

From a graphic point of view it's nice, from a packaging point of view its ok but more thought into the product could of lead to a more interesting practical packaging solution. The cigar cutter packaging is a nice idea, but from a product point of view it's half baked and hasn't been developed on much further than its a stick which you can clean your teeth with. . . .

[Taylor]

I think it's interesting, yet attempting to capatalize on a terrible product one could get for free. First of all, how do I reach around and behind my teeeth with that? Do you see its sixe compared to a regular brush? If I really wanted to be this much of a hippie, I'd just get the bush and grow my own! As far as the designer being a student, the packaging is very good, good advertising too. As a product, never going to work. I love having a toothbrush that reaches anywhere and leaves my gums and teeth feeling clean and my mouth renewed. Let's just focus on making that recyclable.

[Roni]

Is the package "organic" and "biodegradable", or just the stick?
It seems odd to me that every time a person would buy a new stick, they would end up with another storage tube and another cap-cutter. For this reason, I think the packaging could stand to be more minimal, less permanent.
How about offering a "refill" package that comes with bunch of these teeth-cleaning-sticks?

[Nazarudin Noor]

A miswak shown are from Arak tree and found only in certain countries and also Olive tree bark with softer bristles, what a challenge on designing the packaging it but considering the high value in middle east and asia markets it's worth a try. The bristles to be cut every three days and both Arak or Olive tree is holding 70 benefit concerning mouth, eyes and brain activitis and desease. lets do it.

[Mandy]

Seems cool at first glance-- though the "cigar cutter" concept has me nervous about my kids getting a hold of it and cutting themselves. It also doesn't seem super effective-- since my dentist really pushes an electric toothbrush for proper care. Once I switched-- I noticed dental cleanings go much smoother.

I would also want to be sure the packaging is just as natural as the product-- which seems pretty hard to do.

Interesting idea though...

[Eric]

This amazing! I hope this happens one day soon. Alhumdulillah!

"The Prophet said, "It (i.e. Siwak) is a purification for the mouth and it is a way of seeking the acceptance of God."