Textile production is on the cusp of a revolution. While the design sector remains at a standstill, one company has become the catalyst for the industry’s digital immersion.
Meet Wovns, the hybrid platform that merges technology and a textile studio into a creative haven. On the San Francisco firm’s website, designers have the ability to create their own custom woven textiles in an individualized, seamless process.
Founders Chelsea and Dena Molnar, twin sisters, each bring their unique design experiences to Wovns, with goals of changing up textile production, establishing a creative space for woven textile development and providing industry exposure to small-scale designers.
“The early stages to Wovns started when we both were working in the New York design industry. We have seen the full trajectory of textile development,” Dena Molnar said.
In the mid 2000s, textile software was really limited and both partners wanted to provide a solution to designers facing this issue. With backgrounds in both the architecture and textiles industries, the Molnars went from textile remodeling research to creating an interactive design platform. In June, they launched the Wovns project with a Kickstarter campaign, and last week said they had successfully raised $40,111 with 428 supporters.
A crucial component to Wovns is its “Featured Textiles Collection.” Curated by the Molnars, the collection features distinguished custom woven textiles put together by worldwide designers.
“We are looking for modern, fresh innovative design that compliments with the energy behind the technology and looking for people doing things before that they were not able to execute,” Chelsea Molnar said.
Textiles featured include Julia Rothman’s Mermaids, Corinne Leigh’s Mothmoon and Clarissa Santos’ Material. With the collection, people have the ability to buy textiles of various designs, applications, patterns and qualities. Small-scale designers also benefit from showing their work on Wovns. They have the opportunity to show their unique talent that otherwise would have not been possible without the digital platform.
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Creating custom woven fabric on Wovns is a simple three-step process.
First, designers choose their own fabric qualities and color palettes. Two fabric qualities are offered on Wovns, depending on final product material. Divan quality is a cotton and polyester blend that works for applications such as home décor, soft goods and upholstery. Talma quality is a soft cotton and rayon blend, ideal for light clothing such as dresses and shorts.
Designers then create their basic repeats on photo editing software, use processing to crate computational textiles and then upload final design files onto Wovns. Finally, after placing orders, designers receive their custom woven fabric for product creation.
This year has been filled with milestones for the custom woven textiles platform. After accomplishing funding goals and debuting the company concept, bigger plans lay ahead for 2017. According to the founders, the whole platform will evolve to feature different fabrics, colors and tools for future designers.
As one of the early promoters of digital textile production, Wovns could likely set the standard for other industry members for years to come.