Eldy Lazaro

Join us to a #DIS2026 workshop about the knowledge we create through *Stories and Artifacts* when we design and make things! 🫖🧣🪑🌱 Visit hcidesignstories.com for full call. Submission deadline on *May 27, 2026* for participating! Submit a short position story related to a thing you made. We will discuss these stories, identify key themes and produce a Glossary of Design Stories through the making of a zine. Reach out if you have questions! See you in Singapore 🇸🇬 flyer design: @gabriellejbr ceramic tea set: @farwest1138 photo: @avi.farber.studio

I’m excited to share that I’ve been developing the Eco Materials Library at the University of Colorado Boulder (@cuboulder ). Located in the hallway outside @btulab_cu at @cu_atlas , the library is an open-access physical and digital resource for students, faculty, researchers, Boulder community members, and material enthusiasts interested in exploring more sustainable materials. It has been such a joy to see this initiative take shape little by little. As my time in Boulder is coming to an end soon, I wanted to leave the place where I spent my last 5 years, with a resource that can support hands-on material learning, experimentation, and exchange. Eco material libraries around the world have contributed so much to material literacy, and have deeply shaped my own research and practice. With this library, I’m happy to give back to the open-source biomaterials community through DIY recipes, documentation, samples, equipment, and tools that lower the entry point for hands-on making. The library currently includes 20+ open-source recipes, along with tools and equipment to support experimentation. What you need to bring is curiosity, care, and the wish to create change in your field and community. This initiative is supported by @ecentercu . Many thanks to @btulab_cu and especially Zack Weaver for his stewardship of this initiative and for being the point of contact at @cu_atlas after I leave. Thanks also to @shirps.laboratory for making the first set of eco material samples, @ayesha.rawal for the design and fabrication of the sign, and to my colleagues and friends @bethjferguson and @samedens from the @ecomaterials.collective , whose insights and expertise setting up and managing eco material libraries in their respective institutions, helped inform the final shape of this library. If you’re in Boulder and want to learn more about this initiative, how to access or contribute to the library, and its broader goals and vision, please feel free to reach out. I’ll be based in Boulder until the end of August 2026. ••• #ecomaterials #materiallibrary #biomaterials #opensource

Ecological designer Beth Ferguson (@bethjferguson ) returned to Deer Isle for our first Winter #MakerResidency! Beth spent two weeks pursuing her own research and experimenting with digital fabrication, sustainable materials, and new hybrid craft processes, as well as assisting with the after-school Creative Makers program. Frequent collaborator Eldy Lázaro (@sust_ainable ) worked with Beth to expand Haystack’s biomaterials library using lobster, crab, and oyster shells in addition to sugar kelp foraged from Causeway Beach Preserve. The residency culminated with a public hands-on workshop on 3D-Printed Weaving, developed in partnership with Deer Isle Adult & Community Education (@deerisleadulted ). 📸: Beth Ferguson, Eldy Lázaro + Phoebe Zildjian, Fab Lab Coordinator Haystack’s Winter Maker Residency is supported in part by Haystack’s Program Endowment, with additional funding provided by grants from G. W Bailey Foundation and NEA Our Town. #FabLab #STEAM #HaystackMountainSchoolOfCrafts #HaystackAt75

Orange peels collected from CU Campus Dining as a food by-product for biomaterial sample making. 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗧𝗘𝗫𝗧: Building the CU Eco Materials Library 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗖𝗘𝗦𝗦: The peels were first set out to dry in the sun, with some also placed in the dehydrator. The pith was left on at first, but after about 18 hours it became clear those pieces were holding much more moisture and drying more slowly. 𝗨𝗡𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗗: Wind and rain interrupted the outdoor drying setup, so the process had to shift. 𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗜𝗡𝗚: Removing the pith and cutting the peels into smaller pieces helped speed up drying. 𝗡𝗘𝗫𝗧: Fully drying and grinding into different particle sizes. #biomaterials #materiallibrary #biodesign #materialliteracy #ecomaterialslibrary

This pictorial explores biomaterial absorption as body–material interaction. Through an autoethnographic account of a lactating body, body mapping, and two speculative garments, it reflects on how bodily leakage might be made perceptible rather than concealed through its interaction with a biomaterial that changes shape as it absorbs fluid. #biomaterial #caseinbioplastic #bodymaterialinteraction #bodymaps

Bioactuated Tapestry Installation will be exhibited during the Arts & Performance Session at @tei_conf Viola and Katerina (co-authors) will be showcasing this installation. Stop by and engage in conversations about the future of Bioactuated Textiles and Moisture-Responsive Biomaterials ✨ 💦 #biomaterials #biodesign #weaving

Documenting casein bioplastic colors for our soon to launch Eco Materials Library at CU Boulder. Biomaterial makers: @violafromthesea and @kynwaynechan Curated by: @sust_ainable Thanks to the Environmental Center Sustainable CU Fund @ecentercu ••• #ecomaterials #biomaterials #ecomaterialslibrary

What a week! Co-chairing the ISWC Design Exhibition #iswc2025 (with the amazing @narrativize @emmipouta @mirela.alistar2020 ) and presenting a new collaborative project: 𝑩𝒊𝒐𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒖𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝑻𝒆𝒙𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒆𝒔. We developed a milk-based bioplastic, laser-cut it into strips, and explored its shape-changing potential through woven structures, expanding how we think about passive actuation in interactive textiles. Feeling grateful for the inspiring conversations and the incredible community that made this week so special! 🌿✨ More info about our paper and material exploration in the bio. 2025 – Eldy S. Lazaro Vasquez, Viola Arduini (@violafromthesea ), Etta W Sandry (@ee_teetee_ay ), Srujana Golla (@wabisabi.003 ), Laura Devendorf (@unstabledesignlab ), and Mirela Alistar (@livingmatterlab ). 2025. Bioactuated Textiles: Exploring Reversible Actuation of Casein Bioplastic in Woven Textiles. UbiComp Companion ’25, October 12–16, 2025, Espoo, Finland. ••• #ubicomp2025

Working with milk-based bioplastic for interactive textiles… more to come 🔜 ••• #bioplastic #wearabletech #biomaterials #interactivetextiles

It’s been a fantastic day ✨ I successfully passed my defense yesterday August 27, 2025. I’m so thankful to my friends, family, and the ATLAS community @cu_atlas for their support in such a life milestone. I’m deeply grateful to my dissertation committee members for their guidance and support: Laura from @unstabledesignlab , Mirela from @livingmatterlab , Michael from @utilityresearchlab , Katia from @interactiveorganismslab , and Martyn from @livingconstruction.hbbe I feel extremely happy and loved 🥰 Thank you social media community for sharing this moment with me 😌☺️

✨ Big news from the Unstable Design Lab ✨ Our PhD researcher @sust_ainable is defending her dissertation “Biodesign for Interactive Textiles: A Material-led Design Approach” on Wednesday! 🗓 Wednesday, August 27, 2025 ⏰ 10:00–11:00 MT | 9:00–10:00 PT | 17:00–18:00 UK 📍 In person: The Hackery, ATLAS Institute, CU Boulder 💻 Online: DM this account for the Zoom link We’re thrilled to celebrate this milestone with our community. Eldy’s work explores biodesign, material-led design, and interactive textiles, and we invite you to join the public presentation. Gratitude goes to her incredible committee: Laura Devendorf, Mirela Alistar, Michael Rivera, Katia Canepa Vega, and Martyn Dade-Robertson.

A quick summary of what it was to be presenting at @tei_conf in Bordeaux last week. It’s been a blast and super lovely to meet with friends and colleagues across the globe, who’re doing amazing work. 🌟 —- See you next year in Chicago! #biodesign #bio-e-nails #sustainabledesign #wearabletechnology