Interaction and Comfort for Children - Textiles and Composite Materials

The study presented in this paper, is part of a product design research about children's material surroundings and is based on the review of literature and case study. In an architectural scale approach, a ceramic tile project was developed and prototyped, aiming to provide wall covering solutions, which may stimulate the interaction of the child with his/her surroundings through customization and imagination, following also concerns on sustainability. Glazed earthenware tiles, being popular mineral origin materials, have been used for centuries in households. It seemed necessary to search for information on other natural origin material possibilities that may complete a modular system, namely specific textile materials of animal origin (wool based) and other vegetable source composite materials (cork based), from Portugal. It was possible to achieve a wider view of the advantages and disadvantages of each material, its implications on human interaction and on sustainability. It helped provide directions for a suitable choice of materials in this wall covering project, bearing in mind children's interaction and comfort, but also innovation and playfulness in their development.