Documentation#

Introduction#

Mission#

The basis of the project involves growing plants on textiles in order to be closer to nature and tackles how different it feels to wear living materials and its beneficial energies.

Philisophy, values & ethics#

√ Reshape natural resources & explore raw materials

√ Form follows materials -nowadays materials have an active role in design, creating form and expression, not just fulfilling technical requirements-

As a designer with a sustainable perspective, I think that we should get envolved in the whole cycle of production. From fibers to fabrics, from fabrics to garments and from garments to the customers use of them. So it’s about taking care of the whole life cycle of what we produce. The same when producing food. Getting involved in the whole process and creating our own materials is the best starting point to control the whole chain in order to make it sustainable. Also, if you create your own material, possibilities are endless, and you can design managing resources to reach whatever you want to create.

Raw materials are the first step. If we can manage to do it with no chemicals involved as pesticides, animal or plants suffering, good & healthy working conditions, and without pollution, we can reach a sustainable beggining.

The next step is processing those resources, without polluting the water as well as being concious of the use of energy involved in the process. The same in the manufacturing processes, where you have to manage energy and waste in a responsible way.

Also, we can affirm this project is as well zero waste, in the production and in the whole cycle. You can wear it, eat the sprouts if you want or throw the whole piece to the ground and it will turn out in soil.

Fibers give us the physical means to build identity through the clothes story telling. Moreover, textiles are the synthesis of the existent resources and the human effort. So on, materials involved in the creation of any garment are the ones that make possible the diffusion of the message you want to transmit through the senses that perceive it. In this case feeling the sprouts roots over your skin, smelling them and the visual impact of wearing a growing garden.

√ Empathize with other living species
an be conscious of their life cycle

Since they start growing, you see their life evolving, from seeds to little sprouts, growing every day a little bit till you can see sparklings of green on the top. Then leaves appear and you see them growing every milimeter, looking after them, caring about their lives. So there’s a shift as you start empathizing with those little sprouts and feel life-giving energies that come back to you; as when taking care of plants at your house, if you are conscious of energies sorrounding you, you’ll feel it clearly.

I believe this is the first step of the bonding, being the next step to emphatize with them. Thinking of them from their point of view, at least trying to, as we have no idea how they feel like. But, do they feel? Definitely something is going on, since its not the same when you talk to your plants and treat them nicely than if you don’t.

Moreover there’s an explicit symbiosis between humans and nature, and how we mutually benefit the other in this art piece. The wearer’s will exhale carbon dioxide to the embedded plant life which in turn gives off oxygen.

√ Encourage craft skills (gardening, weaving/knitting)


Growing & taking care of plants as well as weaving and knitting. There are other complementary kits that instead of the garment, they include a bobbin of seed’s yarn and needles so you can weave/knit your own piece.

√ Commited with a sustainable cycle of the resources involved

√ Clothe ourselves without costing the Earth – 100% biodegradable

Inspiration#

Life and death are part of the same cycle. Dead nature mutates too. Like us when we die. It’s ok to mutate. Everything has a cycle, and the cycle is circular. Nature is always nature.

Abstract-

Seeds are life projects.

Water is life,an ephimeral stage of nature’s cycle.

That’s why we look for water in another planet.

Blue.

Water.

Free.

Life.

Earthing#

This phenomena has to do with the direct physical contact of humans with the vast supply of electrons on the surface of the Earth.

Earthing, also called grounding, is meant to equalize your energetic frequency with that of Mother Earth. Everyone can experience it. Spending time in nature is rewarding in various ways. Nature has a therapeutic effect on us. Taking a walk on the beach, a swim in the ocean, sit around the campfire enclosed by trees, lay on the grass, or just be in touch with nature somehow, is relaxing. Benefits goes from sleeping better and having more energy, to analgesic and healing responses. The Chinese, the Greeks, and the Romans all believed that it was healthy to spend time outside, and decades of modern scientific research back that up based in the loss of electrical roots and the electromagnetic waves radiation.

The loss of electrical roots has to do with the disconnection from the Earth’s electrical rhythms and free electrons. This leads to a build-up of positive ions in the body, which can cause health problems in the long term. Moreover, nowadays lives include moving in an ocean of electromagnetic waves radiated by mobile phone signals, Wi-Fi, antennas, and others. This is referred to as “dirty electricity” or “electromagnetic pollution”. By connecting to the earth, you allow negatively-charged electrons to flow into your body, which returns your body to optimum health.

Check The Grounded documentary to go deep in the theme.

Below some key words to ponder and have them in mind before diggin in beGROUNDED.

Ecology- The study of the relationships and interactions of living things with one another and their environment.

Ecosystem- All of the living and non-living things in a given area that interact with one another.

Community- The living part of any ecosystem - all the different organisms that live together.

Nature symbiosis by Maia Chozas

State of art#

Fashion industry, a huge and creative playground. Though most of fashion brands just care about profit and don’t look after their resources. Nor natural, nor human. beGROUNDED supports that we should get involved with products, people, values, resources and projects just because we feel like, and not because of any kind of manipulation that make us feel we need them.

” Search the glove for crafted pieces, with transparent origins and an emotional response, which are timeless in style and made out from biomaterials”

In a context of environmental collapse, design can open a space for dialogue between humans and other living beings, where they blur the ideas of “wild” and “domestic” to build forms of relationship and coexistence that are more enriching and respectful between species.

The engineering of nature takes advantage of properties of natural elements to explore new materials and applications.

Human beings are not the only ones who build the spaces in which we live, work, protect and relate to each other. Ants, bees, silk worms, birds, fungi, plants … diverse species develop materials and forms of construction that resemble ours.

Biological Revolution – Rethinking nature

Hebel and Heisel predict a radical paradigm shift in how building materials are produced, concluding that there will be a ‘fourth industrial revolution’; a shift towards regenerative (agrarian) sources of materials that need to be cultivated, bred, farmed, and grown (Hebel & Heisel, 2017). This is a response to the non-regenerative material sources that were mined during the Industrial Revolution, and is linked to the agrarian age which prevailed before that. Hebel and Heisel explore a concept for architectural design and production which is based on the use of agrarian resources in urban environments through small-scale, on-demand production.

This bio-mechanised or bio-industrial production requires respect, adaptation, and the development of frameworks of regulations, norms, and standards, and so a different understanding is needed, allowing unique product processes that are similar but not identical (Ibid.). A radical shift in the form of a bio-revolution is proposed by Collet, who assumes that developments in synthetic biology will change how we conceive, design, and produce, just as biologists are now able not only to observe, but “code and re-programme life”: ”I can imagine in another few decades having access to a design platform that produces the associated sequence of biological blocks and digital code whilst I design the perfect hybrid plant that will produce metres of fabrics through its roots. The colours, the strength and elasticity of the fibre as well as the aesthetic of this bio fabric will have been designed and programmed with this hypothetical new software.” (Collet, 2012)

Imhof and Gruber support the notion of the ”ecocene”, where human actions augment and enhance the planets living ecosystems and where, one might say, correspondence is to be found where once we saw only boundaries (Imhof & Gruber, 2016). René Dubos, a nobel-prize winning biologist, suggests that humankind and nature need to retain their wildness, which in turn lead to an endless process of evolutionary creation (Kellert, 2012). Kellert states that interaction with nature is critically important for human well-being and development, but extensively diminished in every-day modern life and among increasing urbanisation. He argues that progress and civilisation will be held responsible for this development.

beGROUNDED universe#

Grounded explores the communication between humans and nature as an emotional and artistic act through textiles, as we are all part of the whole natural system existing in our planet.

√ create a healthy integration of nature and culture

√ highlight the values of a circular economy, combining research and innovation to enhance the well-being of the environment and humans through the entire life cycle of the product

√ consider every stage, from production to use, disposal and after life

√ develop local fiber systems that protect the health of our biosphere by coexisting harmfully

√ encourage sustainability and creativity in our natural materials, while underlining the social practice that supports it

√ support educational and environmental art labs that research, teach, experiment, consult, and encourage regenerative design practices

√ promote social, ecological and cultural development

Product-Service System#

It’s a product system that can be supported by some kind of service if needed, though there’s not specifically a service to provide. The product will be sold as a kit with all the instructions needed to make it grow.

The main product is the biodegradable garment with growing sprouts that allows you to get involved in the life cycle of plants, by taking care of them and see them grow, with the objective of emphatizing with them and with nature, encouraging the symbiosis.

The kit includes:

o Weaved piece

o Hanger

o Sprayer bottle

o Packaging / Box

o User manual

100% biodegradable

Customer’s profile#

• nature lover

• aim to achieve sustainability as a way of life

• value crafts

• no age or sex boundaries

• sensitive & emotional

• interested in health & well-being

Project’s path#

• germinate different type of seeds

• spin wool fibers to generate a yarn

• add seeds to the yarn – create a 3d printed wearable machine to automat the process while spinning the yarn

• design and build a loom

• create a biocomposite for milling the kit box

• design and 3d print a ceramic sprayer bottle

• build a bamboo hanger

• weave the garment

• germinate the garment

• define optimum germination parameters & write the user manual

• assembly the kit

SEEDS & GERMINATION#

¨Seeds as material for textile design… proposing collaborative processes of designing and manufacturing - as a solution for symbiotic ways of living… modern systems for interior gardening… food supply, purifying the air, and aesthetic values, experience… As a result, the spaces where people live and crops grow increasingly intersect and therefore open up for developments that bridge both areas and where aesthetic perspectives become equally important. Textile Farming aims to explore alternative forms of plant organisation by blending seeds and textile structures into a hybrid material… Consequently the materials’ performative capacity becomes part of the textile design process. A foundational part are forms of human management, e.g. activation of the seeds, maintenance of the plants, interaction with the hybrid textile structures within and beyond interiors, that leads to experiences and expressions. By practice based design research and through a series of design examples that explore the transformative potential of seeds in textile structures, alternative forms of plant organisation and methods for the textile design process…¨. On Textile Farming, Svenja Jeune

Seeds come from the primordia or seminal rudiments of the flower, once fertilized and mature. Its function is that of a new place, perpetuating and multiplying the species to which it belongs. The seed consists of an embryo element, a condition of nutritive reserves, which can be stored in a specialized tissue or in the embryo itself, and a seminal cover. It covers and protects both.

The seeds are the unit of sexual reproduction of plants and have the function of multiplying and perpetuating the species to which they belong. In addition, it is one of the most effective elements for the species to disperse, both in time and space.

Germination Process#

For the process of germination, that is, the recovery of biological activity by the part of the seed, it is necessary to give a series of favorable conditions such as: a moist substrate, the availability of oxygen that allows the aerobic breathing and the adequate temperature for the different metabolic processes and the development of the seedling.

The absorption of water by the seed triggers a sequence of metabolic changes, which include respiration, protein synthesis and mobilization of reserves. Once the division and cell elongation in the embryo causes the rotation of the seminal covers, which are generally produced by the emergence of the radicle.

However, when they are in favorable conditions. This is because the seeds are in the dormant state. For example, as long as the right conditions for germination do not exist, the seed will remain dormant for a variable time, the states of the species, until they lose their ability to germinate.

When a seed germinates, the first structure that emerges in the majority of the species, after the rehydration of the different tissues is the radicle. In others, as in cereal grains, the coleoptile emerges.

Germination phases#

In the germination process we can distinguish three phases:

Hydration phase: The absorption of water is the first step of germination, however, the process can not occur. During this phase an intense absorption of water takes place by the different tissues that make up the seed. This content is accompanied by a proportional increase in respiratory activity.

Germination phase: Represents the true process of germination. It produces metabolic transformations, the needs for the correct development of the seedling. In this phase, water absorption is reduced, even stopping.

Growth phase: It is the last stage of germination and is associated with the emergence of the radicle (visible morphological change). This phase is characterized because water absorption increases again, as well as respiratory activity.

The duration of each of these phases depends on certain properties of the seeds, such as their content in hydratable compounds and the permeability of the covers to water and oxygen. These phases are also affected by environmental conditions, such as humidity level, substrate characteristics and composition, temperature, etc. Another interesting aspect is the relationship of these phases with the metabolism of the seed. The first phase occurs in both living and dead seeds and, therefore, is independent of the metabolic activity of the seed. However, in viable seeds, your metabolism is activated by hydration. The second phase constitutes a period of active metabolism prior to germination in viable seeds or starting in dead seeds. The third phase occurs only in the seeds that germinate and obviously is associated with a strong metabolic activity that includes the start of the growth of the seedling and the mobilization of the reserves. Therefore, external factors that activate the metabolism, such as temperature, have a stimulating effect in the last phase.

Factors that affect germination#

The factors that affect the germination can be divided into two types:

Internal (intrinsic) factors: specific to the seed; maturity and viability of the seeds.

External factors (extrinsic): depend on the environment; water, temperature and gases.

Internal factors#

Among the internal factors that affect germination, we will study the maturity of the seeds and their viability.

• Maturity of the seeds.

We say that a seed is mature when it has reached its full development from the morphological as well as the physiological point of view.

Morphological maturity is achieved when the different structures of the seed have completed their development, ending when the embryo has reached its maximum development. Also, it is related to the dehydration of the different tissues that make up the seed. The maturity is usually reached on the same plant, however, there are some species that disseminate their seeds before they are reached, as in the seeds of Ginkgo biloba or many orchids, which have very rudimentary embryos, hardly differentiated.

Although the seed is morphologically mature, many of them may still be unable to germinate because they still need to undergo a series of physiological transformations. The normal thing is that they require the loss of substances inhibiting the germination or the accumulation of promoter substances. In general, they need readjustments in the hormonal balance of the seed and / or in the sensitivity of their tissue for the different active substances.

Physiological maturity is reached at the same time as morphological maturity, as in most cultivated species; or there may be a difference of weeks, months and even years between the two.

• Feasibility of the seeds.

The viability of the seeds is the period of time during which the seeds retain their ability to germinate. It is a variable period and depends on the type of seed and storage conditions.

Considering the longevity of the seeds, that is, the time that the seeds remain viable, there may be seeds that germinate, still, after tens or hundreds of years; it is given in seeds with a hard seed cover like legumes.

• The most extreme case of retention of viability is that of seeds of Nelumbo nucifera found in Manchuria with an age of about 250 to 400 years. In contrast, there are the ones that do not survive more than a few days or months, as is the case of the maple seeds (Acer), willows (Salix) and poplars (Populus) that lose their viability in a few weeks; or the elms (Ulmus) that remain viable for 6 months.

In general, the average life of a seed is between 5 and 25 years.

The seeds lose their viability for very different reasons. We might think that they die because they deplete their nutritional reserves, but this is not the case, but they keep most of them when they have already lost their germinative capacity.

A seed will be more long-lived the less active its metabolism. This, in turn, causes a series of toxic products that, when accumulated in the seeds, eventually produce lethal effects for the embryo. To avoid the accumulation of these substances, it will be enough to further reduce your metabolism, which will have increased the longevity of the seed. Slowing down the metabolism can be achieved by lowering the temperature and / or dehydrating the seed. The low temperatures give rise to a much slower metabolism, so that the seeds preserved in these conditions live longer than those stored at room temperature. Dehydration also lengthens the life of the seeds, more than if they are kept at their normal humidity. But the drying has some limits; below 2% -5% in humidity the seed constitution water is affected, being harmful for it.

In summary we can say that, to make a seed’s life longer, it must be kept under the following conditions: keep it dry, low temperatures and, minimize the presence of oxygen in the preservation medium.

External factors.#

Among the most important environmental factors that affect the germination process are: humidity, temperature and gases.

• Humidity.

The absorption of water is the first step, and the most important, that takes place during germination; because for the seed to recover its metabolism it is necessary to rehydrate its tissues.

The entrance of water inside the seed is due exclusively to a difference in water potential between the seed and the environment that surrounds it. Under normal conditions, this water potential is lower in dry seeds than in the external environment. Therefore, until the radicle emerges, water reaches the embryo through the cell walls of the seminal envelope; always in favor of a gradient of water potential.

Although water is necessary for the rehydration of the seeds, an excess of it would act unfavorably for germination, since it would make it difficult for the arrival of oxygen to the embryo.

• Temperature.

Temperature is a decisive factor in the process of germination, since it influences the enzymes that regulate the speed of the biochemical reactions that occur in the seed after rehydration. The activity of each enzyme takes place between a maximum and a minimum temperature, with an intermediate optimum. In the same way, in the process of germination similar limits can be established. Therefore, seeds only germinate within a certain temperature range. If the temperature is very high or very low, the gemination does not take place although the other conditions are favorable.

The minimum temperature would be that below which germination does not occur, and the maximum temperature above which the process is also canceled out. The optimal temperature, intermediate between both, can be defined as the most adequate to achieve the highest percentage of germination in the shortest possible time.

Temperatures compatible with germination vary greatly from one species to another. Its limits are usually very narrow in seeds of species adapted to very specific habitats, and wider in seeds of widely distributed species.

The seeds of tropical species tend to germinate better at high temperatures, above 25 ºC. The maximum temperatures are between 40 ºC and 50 ºC (Cucumis sativus, cucumber, 48 ºC). However, the seeds of the cold zone species germinate best at low temperatures, between 5 ºC and 15 ºC. Examples are Fagus sylvatica (beech), Trifolium repens (clover), and alpine species, which can germinate at 0 ºC. In the Mediterranean region, the most suitable temperatures for germination are between 15 ºC and 20 ºC.

On the other hand, it is known that alternating temperatures between day and night act positively on the stages of germination. Therefore, the thermal optimum of the germination phase and that of the growth phase do not have to coincide. Thus, some temperatures would stimulate the germination phase and others the growth phase.

• Gases

Most of the seeds require a sufficiently aerated medium for germination that allows an adequate availability of O2 and CO2. In this way the embryo obtains the essential energy to maintain its metabolic activities.

Most seeds germinate well in normal atmosphere with 21% O2 and 0.03% CO2. However, there are some seeds that increase their percentage of germination by decreasing the O2 content below 20%. The best known cases are: Typha latifolia (bulrush) and Cynodon dactylon (grass), which germinate best in the presence of 8% O2. These are species that live in aquatic environments or flooded, where the concentration of this gas is low. The effect of CO2 is the opposite of O2, that is, the seeds can not germinate, the CO2 concentration increases.

For germination to be successful, O2 dissolved in the imbibition water must be able to reach the embryo. Sometimes, some elements present in the seminal cover such as phenolic compounds, mucilage layers, macrosclereids, etc. they can hinder germination of the seed because they reduce the diffusion of O2 from the outside to the embryo.

In addition, we must bear in mind that, the amount of O2 that reaches the embryo decreases as water availability in the seed increases.

To all the above we must add that the temperature modifies the solubility of O2 in the water absorbed by the seed, the solubility being lower as the temperature increases.

Types of Germination.#

The physiological and metabolic changes that occur in the seeds, not latent, after the imbibition of water, are aimed at the development of the seedling. As indicated above, this process begins with the radicle, which is the first organ that emerges through the covers. However, in other seeds the growth begins with the hypocotyl.

The seeds, depending on the position of the cotyledons with respect to the surface of the substrate, can be differentiated in the way of germinating. Thus, we can distinguish two different types of germination: epigea and hypogea.

• Epigean germination.

In the seedlings called epigeas, the cotyledons emerge from the soil due to a considerable growth of the hypocotyl (portion between the radicle and the insertion point of the cotyledons). Later, in the cotyledons, chloroplates are differentiated, transforming them into photosynthetic organs and, acting as if they were leaves. Finally, the development of the epicotyl begins (portion of the axis between the insertion point of the cotyledons and the first leaves). Seeds of onion, lettuce, mustard, chia, poppy, etc. present this type of germination.

• Hypogeal germination.

In hypogeal seedlings, the cotyledons remain buried; only the plumule crosses the ground. The hypocotyl is very short, practically null. Next, the epicotyl lengthens, appearing the first true leaves, which are, in this case, the first photosynthetic organs of the seedling. This type of germination is presented by the seeds of cereals (wheat, corn, barley, etc.), peas, beans, oaks, etc.

Aeroponics#

Aeroponic systems nourish plants with nothing more than nutrient-laden mist. The concept builds off that of hydroponic systems, in which the roots are held in a soilless growing medium, such as coco coir, over which nutrient-laden water is periodically pumped. Aeroponics simply dispenses with the growing medium, leaving the roots to dangle in the air, where they are periodically puffed by specially-designed misting devices.

In aeroponics systems, seeds are “planted” in pieces of foam stuffed into tiny pots, which are exposed to light on one end and nutrient mist on the other. The foam also holds the stem and root mass in place as the plants grow.

Some aeroponics systems are designed to be used horizontally, like a traditional planting bed. But towers and other vertical approaches are increasingly popular – since the roots need to spread out, this is a clever way to save space. Vertical systems are also popular because the misting devices may be placed at the top, allowing gravity to distribute the moisture.

Advantages

Who knew naked roots could survive, much less thrive? It turns out that eliminating the growing medium is very freeing for a plants’ roots: the extra oxygen they are exposed to results in faster growth. Aeroponic systems are also extremely water-efficient. These closed-loop systems use 95 percent less irrigation than plants grown in soil. And since the nutrients are held in the water, they get recycled, too.

In addition to these efficiencies, aeroponics’ eco-friendly reputation is bolstered by the ability to grow large quantities of food in small spaces. The approach is mainly employed in indoor vertical farms, which are increasingly common in cities – cutting down on the environmental costs of getting food from field to plate. And because aeroponics systems are fully enclosed, there is no nutrient runoff to foul nearby waterways. Rather than treating pest and disease with harsh chemicals, the growing equipment can simply be sterilized as needed.

Drawbacks

Aeroponics systems require a bit of finesse to operate effectively. The nutrient concentration of the water must be maintained within precise parameters and even a slight malfunction of your equipment can cause the loss of a crop. If the misters don’t spray every few minutes – maybe because the power goes out, for example – those dangling roots will quickly desiccate. And the misters need regular cleaning to keep them from becoming clogged by mineral deposits in the water.

There is also one major drawback, environmentally-speaking: aeroponic systems rely on electrical power to pump water through the tiny misting devices. And while they can be employed in the natural light of a greenhouse, they are more often used with energy-intensive grow lights. Solar power or other alternative energy sources can be harnessed to eliminate this drawback, however.

What Can You Grow with Aeroponics?

Anything, in theory. In practice, aeroponics systems are primarily used for the same applications as hydroponics systems. One exception is root crops, which are impractical in a hydroponic system, but well-suited to aeroponics, as the roots have plenty of room to grow and are easily accessible for harvesting.

Other vegetable crops are possible but have more complex nutrient requirements. Fruiting shrubs and trees are impractical in aeroponics systems due to their size.

After diggin into next food aeroponic system, we get to know that roots and sprouts have different needs. They share with us a sketch of it.

For beGROUNDED, the seeds obtaintion was determined to seeds that were meant to be eaten, not specifically for growing, in order to give those seeds some life cycle before they are consumed/dead.

To check the viability of the obtained seeds, some germination tests where made with different types: flax, chia, mustard, poppy and quinoa.

The germinating of those was simple. Take a plastic cube, some kitchen paper and spread the different types of seeds above it. Water them twice a day, considering around 22 degrees in the room, and wait till they grow. This took approximately 7/10 days.

Chia seeds#

The chia, highly appreciated today, is a small black and white edible seed that is obtained from a plant of the mint family, which is called Salvia Hispánica. It has a high nutritional potential because it is a complete source of proteins. It also provides essential amino acids that are easily digested, it does not contain gluten, it is an excellent source of fiber and antioxidants, calcium, proteins and omega 3 fatty acids, as well as copper, magnesium, niacin, zinc and other vitamins.

They are consumed either as chia seeds or as chia sprouts.

Farmers grow chia seeds at an average height of about 12 millimeters, as the growth of the seeds modifies their nutrient levels. For example, germinated chia seeds have higher levels of certain minerals and vitamins compared to dormant and ungerminated chia seeds.

Recommendations for growing chia seeds

• Choose the right water

In towns (cities and towns) various chemicals are added, such as chlorine to tap water and these chemicals can inhibit or slow down the growth of chia seeds. To obtain the fastest sprouting results, chia seeds should be cultivated with water without chlorine, that is, with spring water or water that has passed through a filtration system.

• Maintain the ideal temperature

While many types of vegetable seeds grow easily at room temperature ranging from 20º to 22º centigrade, these seeds grow better at slightly warmer temperatures. A heater should be used to maintain an approximate temperature of between 21º and 29º around the chia seeds during the period of germination and growth.

• Do not soak (remojar) the chia seeds

Legumes such as chickpeas and other seeds, grow faster if they are soaked for the first time for 24 hours before placing them in a sprout jar or sprout bucket. However, this common practice should be avoided when trying to grow chia seeds, as these seeds create a gel-like surface if they are soaked for a long time, which in turn inhibits germination and can cause the seeds to rot before they start to grow.

• Growing stage starts after about four days of watering, be patient and wait till the chia seeds begin to grow without moving or puting extra water.

For beGROUNDED the germination was done with regular water, though for the next step it is planned to improve the system watering the plants with a mix of substrate and water that make the sprouts healthier and stronger.

YARN#

For beGROUNDED, the foam/coir/felt structure used in aeroponic systems will be replaced by the wool yarn. The yarn is meant to be the structure that will host the seeds and later the sprouts. The first step is the fibers election. For this project, wool fibers where chosen as they are easier to manipulate than cotton for example.

Craft technique#

beGROUNDED focus on the value of crafts. Although a machine was created to automat the process of adding the seeds to the yarn, it’s important to highlight the craft technique involved in the process of adding the seeds; since it was improvised till the optimum technique was reached by doing it many times.

1- divide the fibers having in mind the thickness of the yarn you want to create. To have the approximate view of the thickness you can twist the fibers and check if it is as thick as you want.

2- lay the fibers on a table. It’s reccomendable to do it in a long table so you have less curves on the edges.

3- open the fibers with two fingers (index and thumb), till you reach 3 cm aprox. It’s important to avoid holes in between the fibers, so that the seeds remain inside in the rest of the process. Imagine you are prepairing a bed for the seeds.

4- spray a bit of water on the fiber’s filament. This help the seeds to attach to the bed when manipulating the fibers in the rest of the process.

5- Throw the seeds on the fiber’s bed you created. To spread them smoothly you can put the seeds on a pastry bag (you can build it with a small bag), or generate it with a small bag and cut a small edge of it from where the seeds will come out. It is reccomendable you drop the seeds on the middle of the path/thickness.

6- spray some more water on top, in order to make the fibers a bit sticky so that you can bend it and keep it closed.

7- bend the two edges of the fiber’s filament from outside to the middle, trying to keep the seeds inside. For better results try to do it with both thumbs first, from down to up, and then with both index fingers from up to down.

8- Generate a dread-lock with the use of both hands by generating friction. A good technique is to do it with the fibers between both open hands and with your thumbs in the direction of where you are going, so that it flows smoothly between your hands as you keep going. Bear in mind not to do it to tight so that the sprouts can go out of it later, but not to loose so that the seeds don’t come out as well. You just need to reach the optimum point for them not to come out.

You will reach better results and a nice finish if you do it one step at a time all over the fiber’s filament. Though if you have a long filament you can divide it in two or three parts, and do the steps continuosly in each one. This avoids the water drying as you keep going with the steps, and the seeds to come out when you manipulate the filament.

Moreover, it is important to explain that within the twist of the fibers while spinning, the surface is being reduced. So if the seeds remain outside the fibers, while the spinning they will come out.

Below some videos of the process, where you can see how the technique evolved over time.

Wearable seed’s machine#

The seed’s dispenser wearable machine was designed in order to automat the seed’s addition to the yarn, to reduce time and so be able to produce more amount of seed’s yarn. Though, beGROUNDED support crafts, it takes a long time to produce big amount of it. So in this case, the machine allows the first stage (craft technique) of the seed’s yarn process to be substracted.

After an extense research of different methods, analyzing circuits and mechanisms with a solenoid, an air pump, or other mechanic ideas, the wearable machine was chosen as it was thought that it will fullfill better the process needs.

The wearable seed’s machine was designed in Rhino and 3d printed.

Before designing the machine, the mechanism was tested with tubes of different materials. In this case, the test was done to check if the fibers can twist around the tube, making possible the idea of releasing the seeds precisely at the beggining of the spinning, in the middle of the fibers.

Testing seeds mechanism from Lara Campos on Vimeo.

Design#

The first stage of designing the machine was to think in all the elements that it should include. An exchangable funnel, a dc motor, a disposal tube that goes directly to the spin of the fibers and a bearing ball that allows it not to rotate, a power source that was thought to be a battery, a 10 K potentiometer, a transistor and 3d printed pieces that are the compartments for every components and can be assembled after printing, to be able to embbed the circuit inside of them.

The funnel was thought to have a threaded nozzle to be able to exchange it as the seed’s size vary, and so reply the process with different types of seeds.

Though this idea was discarded as all the ducts should be adapted to the seed’s size, so there should be one machine for each (with the actual design) or redesign it to accomply this function.

A battery box was designed but the components for the electric circuit changed, so a cap that fits it was designed and printed in flexible filament to keep the box with the rest of the components inside, and let the wires for the power adaptor to come out of it.

Moreover, the dc motor chosen in the first place was not that powerfull, so it was replaced by a bigger one; which in consequence force to readapt the main cilinder of the machine to make it fit, and 3d print it again.

The disposal plastic tube that was used plugged to the cilinder’s hole was embedded with a metal bearing ball to avoid the rotation of it. Though it didn’t work as it was supposed to, so it was removed and a new piece that caps the front of the cylinder was designed with a hole (tube’s diameter) in the middle and sticked to the tube to avoid its rotation.

Once done, the machine looked like working, but after a few minutes it smelled like burned and the 10 K potentiometer was dead. A voltage regulator was needed! So a transistor was included in the circuit and fits perfectly inside the box, so no changes where made to the printed structure.

3d Printing#

To print the wearable machine some parameters were set up:

• standard quality / 0.2 mm

• layer height 0.2 mm

• wall line count 5

• top and bottom layers 4

• infill density 20%

• speed 60 mm/s

• support needed / touching bulding wall / 45 degrees angle / 15% density

First prototypes were printed in Anycubic printer and the final pieces were printed in Prusa, in white PLA filament except for the cap that was printed in white Filaflex.

Electric circuit#

The components needed for this circuit to work are a 6v dc motor, a mosfet TO-22AB, a 10k potentiometer, a power adaptor and some wires.

All the components were welded together and embedded inside the machine’s box designed fot them, instead of the dc motor which was sticked with plastic glue to the inside of the cilinder to avoid movement.

The power source was meant to be a 9v battery in the first place, but after connecting the circuit and trying the wearable machine for the first time, the friction between the cilinder and the exterior, as it rotates inside, wasn’t allowing it to rotate with enough speed and was even stopping all of a sudden. So some changes were made. In the first place, a 9V battery doesn’t have enough current for the circuit to work with enough power, so it was replaced by a power adaptor.

Results#

The final result is not as expected. The machine was supposed to work but the seeds where not falling correctly due to the fact that they are so light that need some air pressure to move through the tube. Still there was no time to add an air pump and redesign the printed structure to fit it in. So this time, the seed’s yarn was made manually, and the seed’s machine will be improved after the project’s presentation.

• files rhino

Once you have the fibers ready, the next step is the spinning.

Spinning machine#

To create a yarn from the fibers, a spinning machine was built. You can check the documentation on Open Source Hardware - from fibers to fabrics – to go deep in the process of making the spinning machine. Special thanks to Studio Hilo that were the starting point of beGROUNDED, by sharing with us their open source spinning machine.

To adapt the spinning machine to the project’s needs, a new Hilo machine was built. This time bigger, in order to have enough space for a big bobbin, with bigger holes for the yarn with seeds to move smoothly through the tubes, a foot switch/pedal that allows the user to have free hands while spinning, and a box below to store it together with the wires. Moreover it was laser cutted in plywood 5 mm thick and varnished to have a nice finish.

laser cut parameters: power 85, speed 0.8 and 1000 PPI

• files

Electric circuit#

Components: 6v dc motor – transistor LM317 – 10k potentiometer – pedal – current adaptor

Weld all the components together following the circuit sketch. It’s the same as described in the Open Source Hardware documentation, but this time adding a foot switch.

An electrical switch is simply a device that opens or closes an electrical circuit, and a foot switch, sometimes called a “stomp” switch, is operated by someone stepping on the actuator, which is typically a pushbutton or a pedal.

The advantage of using a foot switch is simply that it frees up a person’s hands for other work while still allowing a human operator full control over switching.

data sheet

When connecting the pedal you may find some trouble as there are three wires coming out of it. NO terminal, NC terminal and COM terminal represent contact terminals’ symbols. Each symbol means a single terminal itself: Normally Open terminal, Normally Closed terminal and Common terminal respectively. In this case, the normally open is the one you need to use, leaving the normally closed free, as the circuit will be closed (and so current flow through the circuit and the machine will work) when you press the switch. Otherwise, the normally closed is meant to be used in emergency buttons for example. The COM wire will be the wire that connect the pedal with the transistor/voltage regulator.

The transistor used LM317, is an adjustable 3−terminal positive voltage regulator capable of supplying in excess of 1.5 A over an output voltage range of 1.2 V to 37 V, that connects the pedal with the potentiometer and the dc motor.

data sheet

Moreover, the potentiometer is fundamental to handle the speed of the dc motor and consequently the spinning speed.

Once the circuit is working, you just need to assembly the components into the machine. To locate the dc motor and the potentiometer it’s necessary to drill some holes.

KIT#

• 100% biodegradable

√ Garment – Poncho: wool & chia seeds woven piece

√ Sprayer Bottle: ceramic 3d print

√ Hanger: bamboo stick & laser cutted wood hook

√ User Manual: recycled paper engraved with laser

√ Box: milled & laser cutted wood, wool yarn

Product’s journey#

Sprout’s different paths options:

• the sprouts will be cut and eaten if desired, and the garment will be wore without the plants till turn it into soil at disposal stage

• the garment will lay on the earth to make the sprouts grow bigger and stronger

Garment#

The chosen garment to be produced was a poncho, though any weaved or knit piece can be done with the same techniques and results.

Design#

A poncho is a rectangular piece with a hole in the middle for the head, that lays on the body organically.

In this case it was decided to do a plain weave, though other kind of weaves can be apllied. A plain weave is also known as “calico” or “tabby” weave. It is the simplest of all weaves having a repeat size of 2.

The range of application of this weave is wide. In plain weave cloth, the warp and weft threads cross at right angles, aligned so they form a simple criss-cross pattern. Each weft thread crosses the warp threads by going over one, then under the next, and so on. By this plan of interlacement, every thread in each series interlaces with every thread in the other series to the maximum extent, thereby producing a comparatively firm and strong texture of cloth. A complete unit of the plain weave occupies only two warp threads and two picks of weft which is the design for that weave.

The firmness of any woven structure depends on the frequency of interlacing between the warp and weft threads. The greater the number of intersections the better will be the firmness of the cloth.

To calculate the ammount of yarn needed it was considered a 1 cm space between lines and multiplied for the area that should be covered. For a poncho of 80 cm x 150 cm the calculations gave 120 m of seed’s yarn to be produced approximately.

Loom#

To weave the piece, a frame loom was built with 67 cm width and 69 cm height to be able to weave to rectangular pieces of the desired width (40 cm each).

A frame loom, as the name suggests, consists of a frame, usually rectangular, with two side bars, a base bar and a top bar that hold warp threads taut for weaving.

When warp threads are taut, they can be woven. A frame loom can have a fixed warp or a variable warp as in this case. This means the lenght of the warp is not determined by the size, as the extra lenght is coiled on the top bar, which can be manually rotated and loosed as the warp is filled with the weaving. This allows you to weave as long as you desire the piece to be.

Some pieces of the loom (tooth/pegs & shed stick) were designed in Rhino and laser cutted in red acrylic, and others built with strong wood (main structure) cutted with the saw and perforated with a drill. Then some threaded rods (3mm) where introduced in the drilled holes and put butterflies to keep them firm.

• files & instructions

Weaving#

The first step involves the cutting the warp yarn according to the desired lenght of the weaving. Wound the warp yarns in the bottom bar pegs (tooths), pass them through the shed stick and coil them around the top bar under tensión so that the weft can be woven through.

The weft thread is attached firmly to the side bar with a knot and then woven under and over horizontally across the warp threads, with the stick shuttle which is the one that has the yarn coiled in it. Once a line was done you press it with the shed stick and continue with the next one above, leaving in between the desired space (1 cm in this case).

If the weft yarn is over you can do a knot with another one and continue weaving, trying to leave the knots below so they are hidden.

Once you completed the lenght of the side bars, you can loose the butterflies of the top bar, rotate it as much as you want, and press the butteflies again. Then loose the bottom bar butterflies and rotate it to coil around it the weaving you´ve done till the tension is tight again. Therefore, continue with the weaving and repeat the steps as much as you need till you finish the weaving, where you do a strong knot.

To take it out disassemble the bars to take out the weaved piece and do some knots at the bottom and at the top with the warp threads.

Once both weaved pieces are ready, seam both rectangles together till half of the lenght. This way your poncho will have an open front and will be closed at the back.

SPRAYER BOTTLE#

Digital fabrication allow us to design and produce almost everything. Moreover, taking digital fabrication to production is quite inmeditely with 3d printing since you can design and produce even without going out of a room. Still sedentary and robotic for me, but a great way of producing instantly and without waste as it is an additive process that consists of adding a large number of layers of a certain material to make a three-dimensional object.

In order to create objects, 3D printers follow instructions based on topographic information obtained from a 3D file. In this way, 3D printers add by melting and solidifying the material, giving volume to the object. Each 3D file is sectioned into layers and reconstructed layer by layer.

3D printing performs a physical transcription, materializing digital information and opening a wide range of new possibilities for creativity. This new method of printing is considered revolutionary, since it adopts a completely different logic to the old manufacturing methods. With traditional industrial processes, machines remove material while 3D printing only adds material.

To germinate beGROUNDED garment is fundamental to have a sprayer bottle in order to water the plants with few amount of water, and so it was thought to include one in the kit. How to manufacture a bottle? How to create a biodegradable one? It is possible to combine digital fabrication and 3d printing in order to create biodegradable objects? Yes it is, through ceramic 3d printing.

Ceramic 3d printing uses gres as material, and works quite similar than normal/plastic 3d printing. The main difference is that the machine’s extruder doesn’t heat, just extrude the material uniformly. The material doesn’t come as filament, it comes as a big bag full of gres that should be added to the machine’s tube where you store the material and then compact it with an air pressure valve.

So ceramic 3d printing was chosen to take the sprayer bottle to reality.

Design#

To fabricate a bottle 100% biodegradable implies a huge challenge, as sprayers are meant to be made from plastic. The first idea was to create the sprayer as well, but after extense research of different mechanisms and taking them to reality, it was discarded as they involve small valves that can just be done out of plastic/silicone and involve specific machinery to build them. Moreover, it should be viable to water the big weaved piece with it, so the potential idea of old parfumes was also discarded. Therefore, it was decided to include the bottle without the sprayer and encourage the recycling of any plastic sprayer almost everyone have at home. To do so, the bottle should include a threaded universal nozzle that fits industrial standards of shape and size. Some reseach was made about them, and the dimensions were determined.

First several designs were made in Rhino and tried in the machine’s printing software to check if the shape was well designed in order to be printed without falling apart. It is very important that angles within the shape of the design are less than 45 degrees, otherwise it won’t stay on its feet.

After some tests and failures, the design of an ergonomic bottle was ready. An ergonomic shape was designed in order to have a comfortable grip of it.

3d Printing#

Some key aspects learned during the printing process:

• Clean thoroughly all the machine. Extruder tubes, valves storage tube and the printing table. As the material dry within some time, it is important to check in depth every component to avoid dried rests to stick to the fresh material that will go through the components and so to your new piece.

• Put the gres carefully inside the storage tube, avoiding air bubbles inside of it. To do it is reccomendable to divide the material in several parts and put one at a time pressing it and taking care no air bubbles are kept inside. If bubbles remain inside, the material won’t be extruded smoothly and holes will appear in the printed piece. Below are some air bubbles results, and some artisan solutions that emerged to save the printed object, time and materials involved.

• 5/6 bar air pressure set up manually from the printer.

• 3mm nozzle (exchangable).

• 1 mm layer height 1mm - in order to have few texture and a nice finish (set up from the printing software).

• Check the printing speed to suit your printing needs. In this case it was 40 mm/s and it was slowered down from the printer to 30 mm/s to print the threaded nozzle, in order to have a good and precise finish.

• It is a must to keep the printed piece on the printing table for 24 hours to let it dry.

Below some videos of the printing process and final results.

Special thanks to Noumena, Eugenio and Aldo that shared with us their knowledge and their machine to make it possible!

Baking#

Once dry, the bottle was cooked in a low temperature oven (1000 degrees for 12 hours). It is important that during the first 6 hours the temperature goes slowly up till 600/700 degrees, and to keep the oven ventilations open to allow the gases to come out of it. The rest of the cooking time the oven should reach the maximum temperature. Afterwards you need to wait till the oven cools down some more hours till you can take out the pieces.

After the low temprature cooking, the enamel phase need to be done to seal small pores of the bottle in order to avoid water leaks. First you need to pour the varnish, in this case just on the inside to keep the natural aestethic of the ceramic, and move the bottle so that the varnish cover all of it.

Later, a high temperature baking needs to be done (1300 degrees for 12 hours). Once again you need to wait till the oven cools down some more hours till you can take out the pieces.

This is the final piece!

Special thanks Taller de cerámica Forma Barcelona and Elizabeth that shared their knowledge and make the cooking pahse of the bottle something amazing!

HANGER#

The hanger should be biogradable too, so the chosen material to do it was bamboo, which is strong and resists water, though extremely lightweight. It was picked near the Green Lab, in the local mountains from Barcelona.

In the first steps of the project it was meant to be extendable in order to fit in the box and be able to support the poncho, which has 80 cm width. Still to make it extendable implied some kind of mechanism that were not developed, but it was sketched and rendered to see how it will look like.

After some sketches and developing all the other elements involved in the kit, it was decided to avoid the extendable mechanism and create something simple, with the funcionality to be the box handle as well. Moreover, the bamboo stick could work as the box handle without being shortened.

The bamboo stick was carved on the middle with a razor (3.7x1cm hole).

A hook was designed to fit in the hole. It was designed in Illustrator and laser cutted twice in plywood of 5 mm (thickness), and then sticked together.

The parameters fot the laser cutting were:

Hanger’s shape / cut: power 85, speed 0.8 and 1000 PPI

Text / cut: power 70, speed 10 and 1000 PPI

Logo / engrave: power 70, speed 50 and 1000 PPI

To reach the bamboo stick color the hook was dyed with a mix of curcuma and olive oil.

BOX#

Material / biocomposite#

Waste manifesto#

Waste? What does it means? What do we associate to it? Maybe we prejudge it, since we were born and raised in a society that already consider it non-worthy, not useful, not a resource.

Why we use part of our natural resources and cosider the rest just ‘waste’? What if it’s not? What if we re-shape out set up, our minds, and apply our creativity to create something with it?

Probably the fact that may smell bad when decomposed.

Probably that it’s not tasty.

Probably that it looks ugly.

Probably that we heard all of our lives that it is ‘waste’.

But, what is waste?

We should get over with our boundaries. Specially social ones, and try to look forward without them; playing, experimenting, trying, creating, redesigning, observing, mutating.

For example, change. Mutating. Is always good. As we change, energies does. As things change, they happen to be something new. New to be, new to learn, new to live.

So, why we think about waste, or to be more specific food waste - organic waste – as non resourceful, non-worthy, non-explorable, not interesting, not useful?

We should give it a chance, try it and then reconsider our point.

Just re think about your your considerations. What is waste? What do you associate to it? What about organic waste? Would you do something with it? What? Do you divide your waste? That is the first step of the process. Just imagine if you could build objects, garments and other stuff out of your food waste.

Let’s cook with waste! Let’s be creative, explore it and design recipes to create different composites and then see where we reach.

Design#

In Textile as scaffold assignment I started a research journey about different kind of composites. Combining organic components to create a new material, mainly food waste combined with pine resin as a natural binder. Still on experimentation phase, good results were obtained. A lightweight strong & insoluble in water biocomposite was created!

Many packaging designs were developed during the design process of the box, thinking about using the biocomposites developed in Biomaterials assignment. After prototyping different types of boxes and materials to combine with the biocomposite, it came to scene that the weight of the box wouldn’t be viable to carry by the user and distribute it easily, as it came out that it would be around 20 kg (all made from the biocomposite, milling it) and 6 kg (all made from the biocomposite, but just the box contour leaving the inside empty).

At the end, it was determined to keep it simple, biodegradable, lighter and with another utility after being the kit’s box. So it was decided to build a box that hangs from a stick (bamboo hanger) and is carried over the shoulder. The base and top of the box will be done from pine wood (cnc milled), the rounded cilinder structure from laser cutted plywood of 3 mm and some wool yarn to keep the pieces together.

The idea was meant to encourage the user to create their own lamp and explore their creativity by using the kit’s elements either the handle (bamboo stick) or the ceramic bottle as the structure, and the laser cutted wood as the lamp’s shade. There are tons of diy instructables online, to follow and take it to reality.

Making off#

Biocomposite pieces

Two squared wood mold were built in order to pour the biocomposite inside. Those were made with 1 cm wood, cutted with the saw and sticked with glue for wood. The molds were 30x30 cm and had 1 cm walls for the composite thickness.

Before doing the mix, some calculations were made (having in mind the sample volume, recipe and weight) to have the exact weight of each piece as well as the quantity of material needed.

The final recipe was replied, this time considering the volume of the mold.

As the sample’s volume is 394,4 cm3 and weights 288 grs, each square of 900 cm3 (30x30x1cm), it will weight 657,2 grs. aprox.

As the sample’s volume is 394,4 cm3 and involves 200 grs of mate herbs, each square of 900 cm3 (30x30x1cm) will take 456,4 grs. of mate herbs aprox.

As the sample’s volume is 394,4 cm3 and involves 150 grs of pine resin, each square of 900 cm3 (30x30x1cm) will take 342,3 grs. of resin aprox.

As the sample’s volume is 394,4 cm3 and involves 150 grs of alcohol, each square of 900 cm3 (30x30x1cm) will take 342,3 grs. of alcohol aprox.

As the sample’s volume is 394,4 cm3 and involves 50 grs of carnauba wax, each square of 900 cm3 (30x30x1cm) will take 114,1 grs. of wax aprox.

Mix all the ingredients in a cooking pot while heating, and pour the mix with some globes inside the molds. Put a piece of wood on top and press it as it dries.

Next step was to mill the pieces using the render done in Rhino and set up parameters with the RhinoCam.

Still this idea was replaced with the wooden base design, as I mentioned before.

Wood cylinder

A design of lines was downloaded from Obrary in order to laser cut 3 mm plywood and be able to bend it to build the cylinder of the box.

This pattern was replied over a 74x22cm rectangle that are the dimensions of the elements inside the box.

The laser cutted parameters were: power 80 / speed 1 / PPI/Hz 1000

Then some wool yarn was used to ‘sew’ the edges together, keeping knots on the inside.

Set up#

Assembly all pieces together, using the wool yarn to keep together the wood’s cilinder structure and making some knots to assemble it with the biocomposite pieces and the bamboo stick/hanger (through the drilled holes).

USER MANUAL#

The user manual was designed in Illustrator, made out of recycled paper and written with laser engraving.

The laser cut parameters for engraving were: power: 80 / speed: 1 / PPI/Hz:1000

FINAL PRODUCT#

GROWING THE GARMENT#

To germinate the garment an improvised green house was built, just to accelerate the process due to the lack of time, to control parameters as temperature and humidity. Though the garments can be germinated without a green house as shown in the samples done, keeping the optimum temperature between 20 and 29 degrees.

The improvised green house was built below a table, covered with big sheets of plastic on the sides and some textiles below to isolate it to the floor’s cold temperature. Over them a sheet of plastic where the weaved piece layed on top.

Smart Citizen Sensors Kit#

In order to have specific data about those parameters and be able to manage them, a Smart Citizen kit was used.

The Smart Citizen kit is a piece of hardware comprised by two printed-circuit boards: an interchangeable daughterboard or shield, and an arduino-compatible data-processing board. It carries sensors that measure air composition (CO and NO2), temperature, light intensity, sound levels, humidity as well as PM (particle matter) 1, 2.5 and 10, depending on the size of the particles, to measure pollution. Once it’s set up, the ambient board is able to stream data measured by the sensors over Wi-Fi using the FCC-certified, wireless module on the data-processing board, and you can check the obtained data through an online webpage.

Power to the device can be provided by a solar panel and/or battery. All the design files (schematics and PCB layout) for this Open-Source, Arduino-compatible device are available on our Github repository.

The project was born within Fab Lab Barcelona at the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia, both focused centers on the impact of new technologies at different scales of human habitat, from the bits to geography.

You can get more information about the project at Smart Citizen web page , and check the Green house data

Still this kit includes more sensors than the ones needed for this project.

Germination#

As mentioned before in the Germination section, some parameters where controlled to reach a good germination.

Temperature: between 20 and 29 degrees, in this case it was optimum to mantain it between 25 and 29 degrees. To reach those values, a heating dark lamp was used, mostly during the nights in order to keep the warm temperature.

Humidity: consistent around 55%. The poncho was watered every day two times (morning and late afternoon) with a sprayer bottle, just to keep it moisturized but not soggy. It is very important not to soak it.

Gases: 21% O2 and 0.03% CO2.

Light: values changed during night and day.

The germination was done for 14 days, between March 21 and April 3rd, due to one unexpected factor that came to scene. In some areas, sprouts took longer to come out of the fibers because an excessive yarn’s twist. So the sprouts where struggeling to go through the fibers, and needed more time to make it possible. This factor is an important thing to have into account and improve for the next growing garment.

The first 3 days, no visual result could be seen. As mentioned before, it is the time that chia seed’s take to absorb water and develop to start the growing stage. Day 4, small white radicles can be seen coming out. And after day 6 some little green leaves can be appreciated. Both moments where super exciting and encouraging. The sprouts where coming out! Within days they become bigger and after the 13th day the poncho was taken from the geen house and experienced.

Below some data gathering and graphics about parameters during the germination:

Germination process pHotos/video

beGROUNDED Poncho#

The sprouts length by the moment the poncho was captured and used were in between 5 and 8 cm.

Scanning the garment - Kinect + Skanect#

Experience#

The user experience involves an idillyc interaction between both living species, human and sprouts.
Since they start growing, you see their life evolving, from seeds to little sprouts, growing every day a little bit till the user can see sparklings of green on the top. There’s a shift as the user start empathizing with those little sprouts and feel life-giving energies, as well as a natural relaxing feeling while wearing it.

TO BE CONTINUED#

It’s left for future investigations the application of the seed’s yarn in different utilities and structures, the exploration with aromatic seeds to intensify the experience, and the application of natural dyes.

• OTHER TYPES OF SEEDS TO APPLY - poppy, sesame, mustard, quinoa, amaranto, alfalfa, flax

• AROMATHERAPY SEEDS basil, parsley, thyme, sage, oregano, mint, chives, rosemary and lavender

Another pending is to create growing patterns/drawings by creating a software, probably by sketching it with grasshopper to extract length values of the yarn where seeds should be located to generate it.

Moreover, to explore deeper the biocomposites created as well as diverse applications of them.

MESSAGE TO THE WORLD#

Let’s bond with nature, taking care of other alive species as well as of the resources nature provide us. We are all part of it.

☺ available seed funding to support the project

Special thanks to

• Anastasia Pistofidou

• Fabricademy’s Instructors

• FabLab Barcelona

• Studio Hilo

• Smart Citizen Bcn

• Yiannis Vogdanis

• Jean Nicolas Dackiw

• Noumena

• Forma Taller de Cerámica

• Fabricademy Bcn Group

• Luciana Barnatán

• Nature

RESEARCH#

• References - similar projects:

• SEED AS MATERIAL FOR TEXTILE DESIGN – ON TEXTILE FARMING by Svenja Jeune

• Svenja Jeune

• Chia Pet by Elizabeth Esponette

A product designer with a degree in fiber science and apparel design. Her “Chia Vest,” is a hooded muslin garment impregnated with sprouting chia seeds.

• Grass embedded dress by Paula Bruna

• References - germination:

• Growing sprouts in felt

• Next food aeroponics

• Vegetable waste within fabrics by Angelique Van Der Valk

• Vertical gerden systems

• Waste project – Food waste as structure and substrate for plants

• Chia seeds

• Planting kit to grow food

• References - earthing:

• Earthing health benefits

• Earthing article

• Earthing People

• References - others:

• At the heart of Art

• Sawdust Reasearch

• Ana Montoya Art

• Allbirds: From Wool to Shoe

• Flora Robotica

• DIY Lamp to recycle your kit’s box