Julian Turgy, a designer and resident of the first cohort of Tremplin Mode & Textile, is said to have developed a machine that does away with the spinning step to transform French wool. The point of this technique would be to go directly from fibre to non-woven, without producing yarn.
The project, named Studio Toison, was presented in September 2026 as part of the Tremplin(s) Mode & Textile exhibition, held from 16 to 20 September 2026 during Paris Design Week. Seven residents made up the programme's first cohort.
A digital needling machine driven by software
Fed with wool that has already been washed and carded, the machine described uses needles fitted with small barbs to interlace the fibres and form a felt. Julian Turgy has also developed digital control software that makes it possible to determine the density of the material, to work from a pattern and to combine different wools to create patterns.
Vorlette Fakhri, coordinator of Tremplin Mode, explains that «\u00a0cela permet d’éviter les étapes de filature qui sont très longues et coûteuses\u00a0» (this makes it possible to avoid the spinning steps, which are very long and costly).
A response to the diversity of French wools
Facing the decline of the French wool industry, Julian Turgy is said to be exploring another path: that of small, local processing units capable of working with different French wools. The diversity of these wools, which usually complicates their industrialisation, would here become a source of inspiration.
Asked about possible uses, the designer states: «\u00a0On peut tout utiliser, juste avec des usages différents\u00a0» (everything can be used, just with different uses). He is said to have notably engaged Studio Toison in a furniture project made of French wool.
For now, this remains a research project: the outlets being explored would lie more on the side of design than of fashion.
