First things first

I did the one thing I wasn't supposed to do: I added way too much glycerin.

The AI gave me the idea, and I thought it would be worth a try. It turned out to be a flawed recipe in terms of messiness. And grossness.

  Why less glycerin?

Within the structure, glycerin acts as a plasticizer, which adds flexibility.

Sodium alginate (the polymer derived from seaweed) functions as a binder and network-forming material: it is the main network to which the other elements will attach.

Water is the solvent that creates the environment for all the components to bind together.

Glycerin, sodium alginate, and water: these three ingredients constitute the base “recipe.”

The goal is to find the perfect balance.

Too much glycerin provides flexibility, yes, but it also makes the thread slimy.

Too much glycerin leaves the thread moist and sticky. And when the thread gets wet

  —oh, because sodium alginate has also the property of absorbing moisture, and when the ambient humidity is very high, it absorbs so much that the yarn starts to “sweat.”

More glycerin, more sweat.

A sweat that occasionally turns into droplets.

SWEAT / ALGINATE YARN + YERBA MATE

But suddenly, this imperfection became beautiful to me; when the yarn is not soaking wet, it adds a texture that I really like. A strange, damp kind of beauty. A rain-kissed green beauty in the middle of the jungle.

Against all odds, I found my recipe.