Alice Potts is helping push the concept of sustainability by creating designs from her own bodily fluids. Her work offers a fresh perspective on biodegradable textiles by using an unusual resource: human sweat.

Potts, a British textile researcher, grows crystals from her own sweat to address the waste problem in fashion. She focuses on the human organism, describing her creations as “real-body design,” a blend of people, biology, and technology.

Sweat has long been stigmatized for its odor and association with discomfort. However, thousands of years ago, it was often used as an ingredient for medicine and pigments. Nowadays, the beauty industry treats sweating as a flaw, but Alice sees it as a natural defense mechanism that protects the body by killing harmful bacteria.

 “Passion, sex, exercise—all emotional experiences involve sweat”, Potts explains. She highlights how sweat reveals intimate details about a person, like ovulation in women or fear in men.

Potts discovered the sweat crystals by observing the white residue on her gym clothes. Driven by curiosity, she collected sweat from professional dancers and athletes. After each training session, she scraped off the sweat and used a special filtration process to remove impurities, allowing crystals to form on soaked clothing.

The resulting crystals are sharp-edged and transparent, created naturally without any additional adhesives. Laboratory tests have shown that these crystals can reveal a lot about the background of a person, such as their environment, diet, and health. There are even visual differences between male and female sweat crystals.

While Potts’ creations are primarily seen as works of art, they embody a sustainable approach. “The crystals will fade and decompose over time, like everything natural”, she says. This aligns with her vision for more sustainabilty in a world dominated by consumerism.

Potts creates objects that remind her of special moments, challenging traditional fashion norms and combining art, sustainability, and personal expression in a unique way.