Making Denim for Roy

Posted on March 28, 2012 by

Thank you , Internets, for the steady flow of videos that celebrate the construction of textiles. This one turned up a few days ago via twitter: @lbruning and I think i’ve watched it 20 times already.

Back in June, I was first introduced to Roy’s work by way of an excellent video that showed his mastery of the craft. Now he’s working with Cone Mills, who has a long history with Denim, to create the perfect fabric for a 100% american hand made pair of jeans. They’re making the denim almost the same as they did 50+ years ago, probably on some of the same equipment and that’s the great thing about textiles: For all of the advances made in the industry, some things stay the same, and thats all right.

Posted in Branding, clothing, craft, machines, Textiles, woven | Tagged | 1 Comment

Spiders Under the Influence

Posted on March 19, 2012 by

caffeine

There’s been a lot of talk lately about spider silk. Shawls made from spider silk. Genetically modified goats that produce spider silk milk. Its super  strong stuff and incredibly interesting for the future of high performance textiles. Great stuff, but I think we need to take the time to remember the important scientific work of seeing what happens to a spider’s web making ability under the influence of drugs.

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Posted in Architecture, design, NASA, pattern, structure, Textiles | Leave a comment

Playing with Toys to Make Machines that Make Fabric

Posted on March 5, 2012 by

 

This is inspired play. Never in my years of childhood mastery of Tinkertoys, Legos, Lincoln Logs and Erector Sets, had I ever risen to this level of engineering.

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Le Laboratoire

Posted on January 21, 2012 by

Le Laboratoire is a playground of ideas where science meets art or art meets science. Continue reading →

Posted in 3d textile, Architecture, Art, constructed surface, engineering, information, structure, Textiles | Leave a comment

Medina Haram Piazza

Posted on January 14, 2012 by

In the city of Medina, the lunar cycles have been slowly advancing the time of the pilgrimage to Al-Masjid al-Nabawi from autumn to summer. In anticipation of that change, this stunning umbrella system was crafted to protect the pilgrims from the oppressive summer sun. Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, design, engineering, structure, Textiles | 1 Comment

Sheep Shaving and Speed Weaving.

Posted on January 12, 2012 by

Its farm show time here in Pennsylvania. I don’t know how, but I could feel it in the air 100 miles from the epicenter  at the Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg.

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Posted in craft, Textiles, woven

Career Change!

Posted on September 5, 2011 by

A personal update today: I just finished week number two at my new position as a Textile Design Engineer at Secant Medical. While I’d love to pontificate lengthily about what I’ll be making in this new opportunity, I’ll be pretty much keeping it under my hat out of respect for confidentiality and the fact that I prefer to not talk directly about my work. In a nutshell: I’ll be designing woven, knit, and braided textile surgical implants and it’s wildly different than designing jacquards for office furniture. I’m alternately excited and overwhelmed… Challenged for sure.

So it’s a slight hiatus here at textilesmithing as I get settled into my new position and new location. (goodbye, Michigan. hello again, Pennsylvania) Please stay tuned though. It won’t be long until I need to write again about the textiles that excite and inspire me.

Posted in Textiles | 1 Comment