materials: ws2812b LEDs, silicone caulk, steel wire

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This project explores unconventional ways of wearing addressable LED strips, combined with experimental techniques for organic diffusion through piped silicone caulk. It challenges common uses of LEDs where they stand as starkly technological points of light by melding them with a soft, touchable, and protective exterior that diffuses the lights as glowing roses, invoking both organic nature and magical realism.

 

The piping technique, adapted from cake icing practices, softens the ‘hard’ edge of technology with a ‘soft’, domestic skill usually kept in a separate sphere, the success of which demonstrates the potential to be had by utilizing skills from all trades rather than staying within the domains of a typical maker space. The wearable aspect turns every user into a framework for their own portable garden, and the open structure presents it as a stylish accessory.