Reminiscent I Tessuti Profumati

Press Kit

Unique Properties

Reinterpreting the fragrance industry, Reminiscent uses natural ways to integrate and infuse scents into hand-made textiles through embroidery and embellishment.

Collaborating with nature I use only biodegradable materials in my production process. I developed a natural coating for cotton yarn as a carrier for fragrances that are embroidered onto Organza silk. I have used the calming scent of jasmine in these textiles as it is reminiscent of my hometown of Bengaluru in India and brings me a sense of comfort.

Dimensions & Packaging

Jasmine Textile I Dimension : 1041.4 mm x 1117.6 mm
Jasmine Textile II Dimension: 914.4 mm x 1371.6 mm

Tags

Textiles, Fragrant embroidery, Scented embellishment, Material innovation, Natural fibers, Sustainable textiles, Natural dyes, Handcrafted, Coated yarn

Production Technology

Jasmine II is handcrafted from 100% sheer organza silk with hand-smocked accessible pockets to store flowers and fragrances. Jasmine I is crafted with 100% organza silk with scented embellishment that is handset and machine embroidered.

Creating a system of fragrant embellishment, through trial and error, I developed a natural coating for cotton yarn using filtered beeswax hardened with tree resin, pure jasmine essential oil, and colored with natural pigments. The yarn is coated in the medium and cured in a sealed casing for 24 hours to lock in the scent before it is ready to be used for embellishment.

Design Challenge

The creative challenge was the temporality of scents and how to make them last longer. The accessible pockets in Jasmine II allow the user to replenish the fragrance once the flower buds lose their scent.

The scent-coated yarn on Jasmine I allows the fragrance to remain anywhere up to one to three months, depending on their exposure to heat and light. The impermanence is a reminder of its completely natural state, just as the color of natural dyes also tends to alter with time.

I use beeswax as my base for my coating as it burns slowly and therefore releases the scent at a slower pace. I combine the wax with a tree-based resin that increases its melting point and hardens and strengthens it, making it more durable for manipulation and use in embroidery and weaving.

Research

Over the last year, the COVID pandemic has forced all of us to make significant lifestyle changes. The all-pervasive change has been the wearing of masks that restricts our sense of smell, a sense that we usually take for granted. The pandemic has made us also realize the power of this sense in our lives, whether it is with the cool, fresh air that we breathe or its ability to evoke wonder, desire, or longing, of memories and of happiness. Reminiscent textiles pay tribute to this powerful sensorial experience and its effect on mental and physical wellness.

Inspiration

The calming effect of a small pouch of lavender while being cooped up in my apartment during the lockdown in 2020 gave me the idea to further explore the concept of scents for wellness and how they can be expressed through color, patterns, and textures. Reminiscent, is my way of using textiles as aromatherapy, to condense time and distance and reconnect with nature, nostalgia, home, and identity.

Project Duration

The project started in December 2019 in New York and finished in May 2020 in New York, and was exhibited at New York Textile Month in September 2020

Operation Flow

The multi-sensorial qualities of these textiles allow the user to engage with them on different levels of interaction- through touch, smell, and sight. Fragrances can be customized based on the user's preference. The fragrances of the coated yarn are released strongly when the textiles are placed in direct contact with heat. The textiles are also made from natural materials, which are biodegradable including dyes, which are less harmful to the environment. The accessible pockets on Jasmine II allow the user to replace the flowers in the textile when the smell fades away or interchange them with another fragrance.

Patents

Copyrights belong to Pallavi Padukone, 2021.

Image Credits

Image #1 Photographer Olivia Koval, Reminiscent Jasmine II, 2019
Image #2 Photographer Olivia Koval, Reminiscent Jasmine II, 2019
Image #3 Photographer Pallavi Padukone, Reminiscent Jasmine II, 2019
Image #4 Photographer Pallavi Padukone, Reminiscent Jasmine I, 2020
Image #4 Photographer Pallavi Padukone, Reminiscent Jasmine I, 2020