Yesterday we had a lecture from Sarah Kettley and I have to admit I was really looking forward to it having read extracts from her book for my research. She showed us the various projects she has worked on over the last 13 years exploring e-textiles and sensory work. It was really inspiring to see how the e-textiles have been used in so many different ways for a variety of purposes. The work ranged from using sensors to detect people's presence to interactive projects with the charity Mind. I was intrigued to see the different types of sensors that had been used and the possibilities of e-textiles when used in products. She also mentioned working with conductive thread on the digital embroidery machine which could help my work as I had been wondering what type of thread would work best.

After the lecture I was fortunate enough to be able to have some 1 on 1 time with Sarah to talk about my project. In comparison to last week she was very enthusiastic about my work and what I was exploring which was great to see and hear. She gave me some good advice on people to look into and it was helpful to talk with her about my ideas and get instant feedback on how I could approach them. She did seem to particularly like the idea of putting LEDs on the end of bugle beads to create an almost optic light look. I wanted to take this opportunity to talk to someone who is clearly an expert in their field with lots of experience working with e-textiles and I'm glad I did. Going forward I'm going to start testing some ideas to make sure I get the circuits right for a design as it needs to be structured in a particular way. She told me to look at their work for the 'internet of soft things' as there is a guide to designing circuits which should be really useful. I've got a temperature sensor and light detecting sensor I'm keen to get designs for along with a few others if they are appropriate and I can find the right design for them. The hardest part will be working a circuit into a design but I look forward to the challenge.