Thermochromic Textiles

The idea of something interacting with human presence by changing its appearance has lead me to think about fabrics which can change their appearance based on indicators from the human body. This has lead me to thermochromic textiles. These are textiles which change in colour and vibrancy in different temperatures, in other words, a sort of mood ring of the fabric world.

Textile designer Linda Worbin experiments with thermochromic textils through use of heat sensitive pigments.







The above are a series of images which show an ordinary looking tablecloth, which when heat is applied reveals a completely different design. This opens up the possibility of a hidden message within the design, one which is only visible when heat is applied.

The next series of images show how the colours vibrancy is enhanced when heat is applied.







These fabrics could provide interesting effects on a garment, with warmer parts of the body being more vibrant, creating a sort of thermal imaging effect.

The following images are of the Fabrication Bag, which is designed with a pattern using different layers of thermochromic, ordinary pigment colors and heating elements, turning the textile pattern into a dynamic display that presents incoming calls messages.