Day 3

Schedule

Copy of schedule day 3

Toolpath control for 3D printed textile

We aim to develop a grid-like fabric that could mimic traditional fabrics used in needle crafts like cross stitch and punch needle. This means that our fabric needs to be:

strong
thin
grid-like (vertical lines intersecting horizontal lines)

We obtained a grid-like 3D-printed thin fabric (left image) during our explorations using the slicer approach.

However, the fabric was not strong and could not be used for needle crafts since the needle would break the fabric when piercing it.

To eliminate these weak points, we controlled the amount of extrusion and the position of the nozzle. We created a toolpath that increased the extrusion rate and the layer height when the nozzle approached any intersection (between horizontal and vertical lines).

This custom toolpath allowed us to create robust, thin, and grid-like fabric without any weak intersections.

PunchPrint

PunchPrint is a technique to design and fabricate 3D printed fabric that is compatible with punch needle embroidery.

#1 - Design the outline of the fabric

#2 - Programming a custom toolpath

#3 - Print the fabric

#4 - Punch needle

#5 - Enjoy it!

Other examples of functional objects made with PunchPrint:

Butterfly earrings

Reversible bucket hat

Knight chess piece

Lampshade

Activity: Drawing a Continuous Path

This activity aims to fill the inside of a shape with a continuous line, lifting the pen as little as possible.

You do not need to fill the whole shape; separate lines, like the image on the left, are okay!

Part A

start filling the shape in its center towards the edges

Part B

choose where you want to start the path and fill in the shape

Part C

share how your paths turned out with the person next to you

What is Punch Needle Embroidery?

Punch needle is a type of manual embroidery in which the crafter uses a needle to push a continuous strand of yarn into a foundation fabric.

It is like painting with yarn!

Some examples:

by Arounna Khounnoraj

by Adeline Wang

by Juliette Michelet

Unique double aesthetic

When the needle pierces the fabric, it simultaneously creates a loop on the back side of the fabric and a flat stitch on the top. The side with the flat stitches is more detailed and resembles traditional embroidery, while the side with the loop stitches is textured like a rug.

When we punch needle, we aim to fill the inside of shapes with yarn. Hence, we need to make similar design decisions before punching:

Where is our starting point?
What is the path we will follow to fill the shape? (middle to outline, outline to the middle, from up to down, etc. )

In this example, the shape is being filled from the outline to the center.

How does punch needle work?

We pierce the fabric with the sharp tip of the needle.
We gently pull the needle out until the tip touches the top part of the fabric.
We glide on top of the fabric to our next position.

Tips for doing punch needle successfully

Push the needle all the way down.

Pulling the needle up too far between stitches.

Make sure that you are piercing at an angle closer to 90 degrees.

5-min break

Let's punch needle!

The goal is to create a PunchPrint artifact that matches your clay 3D-printed vessel. You can choose more than one color and interchange needle sizes to vary the height of the loops, creating appealing textures with the yarn.

You should have the following materials: