Rinse Off
An application of starch on roving wool
2019
The Netherlands is the world leader in the potato industry in terms of potato production, potato exports, and potato processing.
Potatoes fields occupy almost one-fourth of the country’s arable land, providing over 500 different varieties of potatoes, which differ in water content and starch level.
Starch production varies from food industry to material industry. In the textile industry starch has been used as a ‘temporary’ stiffener for centuries, mainly to ease the weaving process of fragile yarns such as wool. This process, called sizing, uses starch on ‘twisted’ threads consequently reducing some qualities of the raw material itself.
Being inspired by the industrial process of textile production, ‘Rinse off’ focuses on maximising the potential of starch by applying it directly on untwisted wool. What starch does is creating a protective layer around the fibers, allowing you to work with them. Once the weaving is finished, the starch is washed away and the fibers are able to open up.
At the end of the production the fibers are still lose. The wool is not felted or twisted, it’s not compacted. The isolation is high, and the material is light.
