Creative Design: Professional

Playful Pineapple

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Abstract

Playful Pineapple is a sustainable, emotionally durable children’s garment designed through co-design methods and rooted in narrative and surface engagement. Utilizing modular design principles and cradle-to-cradle material strategies, the garment incorporates Pinatex (pineapple leather) and cotton twill to support both environmental sustainability and user comfort. A kindergarten classroom workshop allowed 22 children to personalize pineapple leather panels with drawings inspired by summer, embedding personal stories directly into the garment’s surface. The modular design includes laser-cut components, metal hardware for customizable assembly, and a utility best to encourage interaction and creativity. The project fosters emotional attachment by allowing children to see themselves reflected in the garment, extending its meaningful use. Playful Pineapple offers a replicable model for emotionally resonant, gender-inclusive children’s wear demonstrating how sustainable materials and participatory design can cultivate long-term product relationships. This approach encourages early engagement with conscious consumption and reimagines clothing as a medium for play, identity, and self-expression.

Keywords: children's wear, emotionally durable design, laser cutting, modular design, co-design

How to Cite:

McAndrews, L. E. & Lapolla, K., (2025) “Playful Pineapple”, International Textile and Apparel Association Annual Conference Proceedings 82(1). doi: https://doi.org/10.31274/itaa.21955