Dawning Wave

Abstract

<p>The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Solid Waste anticipates a continued growth in textile waste and identified more than 28 billion pounds of clothing and textiles are wasted in the United States (EPA, 2014.) One way to discourage this waste is to encourage textile upcycling through personal creativity.The purpose of this design is to transform a used textile product into a wearable piece of clothing. In an attempt to prevent more textiles from ending up in a landfill, curtains inherited from a family member were used in this design process to create something wearable. Inspiration for this design came from Japanese architect, Toyo Ito, who designed a façade that mimics sea waves in a building located in Barcelona, Spain. Through experimentation, strips were twisted in different repetitive directions to create a pattern design for the garment and create a new facade that would have similar movement to Ito's. Findings from this design process contribute to the growing design research using upcycled materials. Furthermore, this design identifies opportunities to upcycle waste by dramatically altering the surface of the textile. Folding and twisting the textile in this design wasa way to disguised the original stripe pattern. As textile waste continues to grow this could have greater implications for designers looking to source fabric. With an increasing amount of textiles available for upcycling, designers can be challenged to find new ways to considerably alter the surface design.</p>