Last week, I finally got round to making my blanket. I decided to only use fusing and sewing techniques as the weaving and knitting were too time consuming and were difficult to do. So one Friday morning and me in my pjs, decided to embark on the mammoth task.

During the making of the final sample, I realised that not all plastics fuse together. Some plastics need more heat, whereas if some have too much heat, they melt down to create holes in the plastic. 

I found that thicker plastic takes longer to melt and the old, thin plastic bags are much easier to melt and overmelt.  

I also found out that in order to really fuse the crisp packets  together, I needed to iron on both sides too. This ensured that all of the seams were tightly fused and not susceptible to falling apart. 

For the base layer, I used crisp bag packets so it would provide the reflective property needed for insulation. I then added my plastic fish on top and fused everything together with some of my single-use plastics on top from food packaging. This provides extra waterproofing to the bivi bag as well as ensuring none of the fish fall off.

I also decided to add the slogan ‘save our seas’. This brings awareness to the plastic crisis affecting our oceans. After all, shouldn’t textile design bring awareness to the problems that we are creating?

All in all, I made a rather strong material out of plastics which used up my single use plastics as well as having insulating properties too.

Not bad for a lazy Friday morning!