cox janssens promotes colorful textile decay for longer use

developed by designer cox janssens, ‘time included cloth’ is a series of colorful textiles that challenge the current perception of fabrics in today’s consumerist society — who seems to identify them as disposable material. indeed, people seem to get quickly bored of their clothes and lose the skill to treat or even repair them. therefore, this project tempts people to make textiles last longer.

coloration by sunlight shows a stronger pattern when exposed for a longer period
main image © ronald smits for design academy eindhoven

cox janssens has integrated wear and tear into the design to let intriguing changes occur but also show how ageing can be something to cherish. in that sense, the value of the textile gets richer which ultimately prolongs durability. time and use are therefore embraced, where continuous processes of washing, surface friction and sunlight increase interest towards the four different fabrics created for this project. consequences of use that are normally considered as bad will be seen in another perspective.

frequent laundry modifies original texture and color patterns

to achieve the proposed process, the designer selects and combines various materials — with patterns that are based on the flexible, changeable properties of a skin. in the following examples, durability is approached differently by not trying to create something indestructible that always appears new, but instead designing something that thankfully illustrates time.

surface friction shows the pattern gradually fading into a single colour

blue jeans are encouraged to go into the white wash, changing the colour with wrong laundering

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: lea zeitoun | designboom

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