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Material Futures
Instructor:
Term:
Kristine Upesleja
FIDM Materials Director
Spring 2020
14 week course
Brief:
Exploring the frontiers of development, use and manufacturing process of new materials for soft goods + wearables .
understanding fibers
01
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repurposing project
02
A circular economy rethinks how we manufacture by designing from waste, keeping materials in use & regenerating natural systems.
Using Amazon packaging, I wanted re-use plastic as a wearable product.
process:
amazon packaging
cut to 5-panel sewing guide
carton for brim of the hat
sewing repurposed materials.
5-Panel:
natural dye project
03
The benefits of using natural pigments is the vibrancy. Not only are they biodegradable, but nontoxic + nonallergic as well.
Our natural dye workshop was held by Carrie Burckle a textile designer & instructor at CSLUB
process:
I used rose petals, spinach leaves & tree bark for pigment
next, I compress rolled the objects onto a silk fiber material
I sun-dried for 1 hour.
the rose petals turned deep purple within the textile.
face covering:
food waste project
04
Food waste is food appropriately ready for human consumption that is discarded.
This occurs when edible food is intentionally discarded by consumers after they fail to plan their meals properly.
Innovative designers are looking into food waste for new, renewable resources for fiber, like Italian-based company Orange Fiber.
The company makes yarn from orange peels that are a byproduct of making juice.
Similar to Orange Fiber, I was inspired to create a wearable product utilizing fruit's natural properties.
process:
I used guava for its skin-hardening properties.
next, I used towels to hold the
guava skins form.
I let the skin dry for 1 week.
I added repurposed polyester for internal lining.
hardshell brace:
bio - fashion
05
Bio-fashion taps into nature’s toolkit to create biologically advanced materials with a lower environmental footprint.
Companies are working to bring bio-based textile alternatives to footwear + apparel industries.
bio-plastic process:
ingredients: water, corn starch
vinegar, & glycerin.
I mixed the ingredients for 10 minutes on a low heat stove.
24 hour drying process.
bio-plastic:
this material has a transparent, & membrane-like texture.
strong & not easy to tear, given the ingredients it was made from!
scoby process:
To grow scoby, I used black tea
& sugar to ferment.
I poured the black tea & sugar in a large container for the scoby to grow.
I added the scoby "mother", which then feeds off the black tea & sugar.
after 3 weeks in cool + room temperature conditions a thick scoby membrane formed.
sustainable branding:
Scoby, the bacteria + symbiosis grown culture can be used as labels & branding for sustainable conscious apparel brands.
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