“Made by Moths” by Chiara Tommencioni Pisapia (Credit: Dezeen.com)
London-based Italian designer Chiara Tommencioni Pisapia has developed a textile recycling process using common clothes moths, who remove animal fibres from clothes, leaving behind the synthetic fibres so these can be recycled separately, states an article by Alyn Griffiths on Dezeen.com. The moths feed exclusively on natural materials such as wool, fur, silk, felt and leather, as these contain a fibrous protein called keratin that their larvae can digest.
The designer worked with experts from the Center for Novel Agricultural Products (CNAP) at the University of York to explore the potential for farming the moths' larvae and using them to digest the keratin-based fibres. Read more...
