ReBrew NYC — The Café Collection

A material research project turning New York’s spent coffee grounds into a printable bio-ink, and that ink into a collection of hand-dyed café textiles. Exhibited at NYCxDESIGN, Canal Street Market, Rivian, and Parsons.

TypeSelf-directed research

RoleMaterial development, product design

Date2024–2025

ExhibitedNYCxDESIGN Souvenir Exhibition, Canal Street Market, Rivian, and Parsons School of Design

RecognitionAmerican Design Club showcase

Hand towel printed with coffee-based bio-ink — FIG. 1 The Café Collection — printed hand towel

Slide: 2.25 billion cups of coffee consumed daily, 60 million tonnes of used grounds a year — FIG. 2 The problem — coffee ground waste

Slide: bio-plastic experiments alongside dye and ink material testing — FIG. 3 Research — bio-plastic, dye, and bio-ink testing

Slide: material test samples, properties testing, cataloguing, and the custom sample ID code — FIG. 4 Research process — experiment, test, analyse, iterate

Slide: the three legacy cafés illustrated on the towels, and where the collection was shown — FIG. 5 Defining — the Café Collection

Printed textile with spent coffee grounds — FIG. 6 Print and spent grounds

The collection installed at the Souvenir exhibition — FIG. 7 Canvas 3.0 Gallery, World Trade Center

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