Shtuff

Category: Furniture

I have created Shtuff because I am passionate about textile sustainability. I have always loved sewing clothes and accessories, however over the years I became increasingly aware of how damaging the textile industry can be, and how the mass consumption of clothes plays into this. On top of this, the story of natural fibres in the UK has always intrigued me. The changes in the wool industry are particularly stark, with it having gone from being a highly valued abundant material to an 'exclusive' expensive fibre, caused by the prevelance of cheap, synthetic fibres. Paradoxically wool is wasted in it's raw form, with cost of transporting fleece for sale often costing more than what the fleece is worth, resulting in wool being burned or left to rot. With these problems in mind, I created Shtuff. Shtuff encompasses two things: a knitted lambswool textile developed for upholstery, which incorporates and uses up shredded textile waste, and sustainable furniture design. The aim of my work is not only to showcase the beauty of renewable materials such as wool and wood, but to use them in tandem with textile waste, demonstrating the value of these materials. I created Shtuff by working on a domestic knitting machine, creating a material with integral pockets which are stuffed with shredded up textile waste. I acquired this waste by collecting it from charity shops as they receive donations that cannot be sold due to their condition. I also used a combination of textile waste and wool roving to stuff the upholstery aswell. The chair frame is designed with the end of its life in mind: it is made of birch plywood and is designed to be dis-assemble-able using cot-bed bolts, and non-load bearing screws. The upholstery is removeable and supported by jute webbing.