‘Envisionaire’ and material designer Tijs Gilde’s research often results in interior applications for large-scale production. For the 'Archive of the Future' project, he collaborated with cord-braiding specialist Veva van der Wolf, taking inspiration from Bart Hess’ work 'STIMULUS: cord reflexes', which Hess developed in the TextielLab in 2015.
Cord is usually made by braiding twisted strands around a yarn core. But Gilde and Van der Wolf used a wooden core instead. They experimented with ways to create a decorative covering for hard materials with structural properties, which would make the use of screws or glue for assembly unnecessary. The project presented several challenges, including for Van der Wolf, who discovered new possibilities in the cord braiding machine, a more than 100-year-old device that continues to inspire and spark innovation.
Covering the individual wooden elements with braiding was fairly easy, but connecting the elements proved to be more of a challenge. The aim was to cover the wood entirely as well as create sturdy joins with load-bearing potential. This required extensive testing to achieve. The duo also wanted the braiding to be aesthetically pleasing. By using different coloured yarns and manually controlling the bobbins during braiding, an intriguing ‘changeant’ effect was created, giving the cord an iridescent appearance.
Once braiding is completed, the end of the cord needs to be finished off. Van der Wolf suggested using a Turkish knot, a passementerie technique that gives a loose end a decorative and logical function.
