Threading a hand sewing needle with conductive thread can be an impossible task. The thread is too fat. The eye of the need to small. The thread frays and splits. And once you finally get the thread thru the eye of the needle you realize the needle is too large to fit thru the electronic hardware. Frustrating, yes? Try […]

  My first evening in Barcelona I taught a very informal workshop at Dudua located at c/Diluvi 5. Before the workshop I was horribly lost on the little streets of Vila de Gracia. Google Maps mapes it look so simple, yet I required the help of the locals!  Once again the dog walkers directed me to where I needed to […]

I was able to dress Holly with a five month old warp that has been waiting to be wound on to the back beam. But only after I salvaged the stainless steel conductive thread and cut out all of the tangled grey pearl cotton warp threads. WHile I was away there must be thready gremlins that infiltrated The Gas Station […]

Video from Hannah Perner-Wilson on Philips eTextile Life Cycle Design shows how the user can rip out the electronic guts of the fused fabric allowing the user to recycle the electronics and fabric separately. more on recycling eTextile waste in my 11 June 2013 post

After teaching around the world and back again I found that people are still buying anti-static or metalic looking threads believing the fiber is conductive and will work for eTextiles, wearable computing, and craft -tech. Its an easy mistake as there are more vendors on ebay and etsy selling fake ‘conductive’ thread than I ever imagined!  Unfortunately, this ignorance and […]

  We collected some of the conductive thread, copper foil and battery waste from the eTextile workshop at the Surface Design Conference. How we recycle eTextiles and wearable computers continues to perplex me. I don’t have an answer, but at least I am asking the question! Article from NYT ‘Could Smart Textiles Prove Toxic?‘ 2 November 2011. ‘The Environmental Cost […]

Links from my lecture Saturday 8 June 2013 1:30PM and eTextile workshop 10-11 June 2013 Ohms Law  E = I x R          E = Volts,  I = Amps  and R = Resistance source All About Circuts   RESOURCES Diana Dew from Creators Project Hovding Bike Helmet LED Circuit – post image what is conductive thread – […]

Hello Surface Design workshoppers! I stuffed your eTextile samples and supplies notebooks with LED’s, conductive fabrics and conductive threads!  Excited? I am!  

A big space, lots of electronics, conductive thread and curious minds was all it took.

Saturday 4 May 2013 Matt Pinner, from crashSpace, and I hosted an eTextile workshop at the Los Angeles Makerspace. About 18 people came to learn about conductive thread, copper foil tape and Bare Conductive Paint to create eTextiles and paper computing. We began with the basic LED circuit that I use for all my classes.The two hours flew by as […]