The
first time I have been introduced the idea of sustainable design was in a
lecture of first year. We design things to cater to a desire for beauty, but we
often forget the significance of earth's beauty. As it was mentioned by Hawken (2007), “sustainability, ensuring the future of
life on Earth, is an infinite game, the endless expression of generosity on
behalf of all.”[1] The ten strategies of
sustainable design guide me how to assist sustainable achievement during design
process. What’s more, they increase my awareness for
environmental protection.
As a knit student, fashion garments would be a
major part of our study. I have learnt three main points I can improve.
Firstly, I should consider extending garments’ lifespan. So designing garments
that can be easy to keep garments in a good condition is quite important. Secondly,
design garments can be worn in different ways. People like to follow new and
fashion design. It might decrease the desire of seeking new things, so that
reduce the waste. The last one is design garments can be separated easily,
which means those parts of garments might be recycled or reused.
I have also tried some
different practice. I collected some piece of discard fabric to develop my
ideas during colour project instead of brand new fabric. What I need to improve
might be developing some old and discard knitwear in my project.
Choosing materials is an important part of textiles
design. After research, I found that selecting eco-friendly materials is a
really effective method. I would try to avoid those materials hardly decompose.
When I was doing the research, I was deeply impressed by those technologies that
using natural elements to extract eco-friendly dye materials. Either dye colour
from dirt or algae reduce a lot of chemical impact to our earth. I tried to
extract colour from leaves and petals in my colour project like they did. Then I
dyed
some organic yarn to experience how they did. The feedback I got is the colour I dyed was not so strong. So I found that
the hardest part is using extraction technique well. But I believe practice
makes perfect.
It is interesting that the same stuff can be used in different
purposes. There are many coastal villages in Shandong Province. People there
used seaweed, a kind of algae, to build the roof of their houses. They lived in
seaweed houses from generation to generation. We can see that how strong
seaweed houses are. Designers Jonas Edvard and Nikolaj Steenfatt also noticed
this strong and environmental material, seaweed. They combined seaweed glue and
paper as a new material to design their products. I think I need to put more
attention on studying natural materials. I might learn more knowledge and use
them properly.
Seaweed and Paper Chair [2]
Sustainable design is not just a trend nowadays. It
also presents the spirit of seeking better environment and better lifestyle. We
need to satisfy our enjoyment and keep sustainability at the same time. After our
effort, I believe that we will have a better place to live in.
Reference
[1] Paul, H. (2007) Blessed unrest : how the largest movement in the world came into being, and why no one saw it coming. New York: Penguin Books.
[2]Emil, S. (2015) Seaweed and paper chair. [online image]. Avaiable at: <http://www.dezeen.com/2015/01/11/algae-glue-seaweed-paper-furniture-jonas-edvard-nikolaj-steenfatt/> [Accessed 12 January 2015].
