Up-cycling Doilies

"Early doilies were round and made of a white or off- white cotton crochet thread"

(Higinbotham, 2002)

My material of choice, Doilies, are in fact made of cotton thread (more often then most). As previously stated I was bombarded with alarming facts and horror stories when researching the growing and processing of cotton. It's contributions on the Environment are in no way, 'Environmentally friendly'. Tonnes of used cotton is dumped into landfill yearly, impacting on our environment furthermore. As a designer, what can I do to contribute, ensuring a more sustainable future?

"Green is the new black for cotton".

(Blanchard, 2007)

UP- CYCLING

"To go forward, we need to be proactive and visionary in ideas".

(Thomas, 2008)

The first apparent record of the term up- cycling, was by Robert Pilz in 1994, "We walked around the impending EU demolition waste streams directive, 'Recycling, I call it down- cycling, they smash bricks, they smash everything' What we need is up- cycling where old products are given more value, not less." (Pilz, 1994) The goal of up- cycling was, in later years, previewed in the 2002 book Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the new way we make things, written by William McDonough and Michael Braungard. Authors McDonough and Braungard explain that the goal of up- cycling is to prevent wasting potentially useful materials, by making use of already existing ones. In turn, the book reveals, by reducing the consumption and use of raw materials, the reduction of energy usage, air pollution, water pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, will be the result of up- cycling.

Due to the devastating impact cotton has on the environment in its growth, processing, life and after life, I feel by up- cycling the material i am providing a valued second life to the product. As a designer i am, ensuring the reduction of energy usage, air pollution, water pollution, greenhouse gas emissions and the masses of junk dumped into landfill yearly and i am doing this by UP- CYCLING unwanted doilies.