Liquid Corset
Liquid Corset explores the visual representation of blood rushing through one's veins at heightened levels of anxiety.
The Liquid Corset began as a spontaneous exploration of techniques, evolving from my previous piece, No One Nose. Initially shared online as a casual experiment in weaving tubing, it quickly went viral—amassing tens of millions of views across social media. The response, feedback, and ideas shared by the community led to a year-long research project that included six different prototypes, finally culminating in this wearable art piece.
The Liquid Corset is a personal reflection on both anatomy and emotion, drawing inspiration from my upbringing. With my father being a cardiologist, the incorporation of anatomical elements like blood vessels and the rib cage felt like a natural progression. But as I worked on the piece, it also became a means of visually expressing my own experience with severe anxiety.
The sensation of tightness in the chest, the racing heart during an anxiety attack—these were embodied through the circulatory flow of liquid through the corset’s tubing, mimicking blood through veins. The constrictive design of the corset itself represents the overwhelming pressure I’ve felt during moments of anxiety.
The Process
Each prototype was shared online, letting my community engage with the design challenges I faced and contribute to its evolution. The technical side of the project pushed me to innovate ways of embedding technology seamlessly into a wearable piece. I concealed the hardware in a spine-like leather structure, compacting the electronics to mimic vertebrae. This blend of organic and mechanical elements—leather, tubing, and hidden technology—created a cohesive and elegant design.
Pump Selection
Choosing the pump required balancing several criteria: quiet operation, low power consumption, compact size, and the ability to avoid mixing the two liquid solutions. After testing multiple pump types—from gear to centrifugal—I ultimately selected a diaphragm pump. It consumes minimal power, maintains a compact form factor, and moves the liquid smoothly without creating turbulence. This allowed the red "blood-like" liquid and clear solution to remain separated, preserving the visual effect of blood circulating through the veins.
Material Compatibility and Tubing
To achieve the look of suspended "blood cells" in motion, I used a mixture of water, food coloring, and mineral oil. However, the initial tubing began to degrade as the oil seeped through its walls. After hours of reviewing chemical compatibility charts, I switched to Tygon PVC tubing, which resists oil. Maintaining the original 1/8" inner diameter was crucial for smooth liquid circulation, especially near the pump's inlet and outlet. The switch to Tygon tubing also had the side effect of easier staining by the food coloring, which subtly added to the piece’s visual evolution.
Assembly Process
Every Liquid Corset is crafted by hand, reflecting the attention to detail and craftsmanship that goes into each piece. The process begins with hand-cutting the leather, ensuring the precision needed for both structure and aesthetics. I personally create the pattern, tailoring it to fit the corset’s unique form.
Using a leather hole puncher, I meticulously punch every hole needed for the tubing to be threaded through, as well as for the button snaps and rivets that hold the piece together. This labor-intensive process ensures that each hole is placed with exact precision, allowing the tubing to flow seamlessly through the design and the hardware to fit securely. The manual assembly and hand-cutting of materials make each Liquid Corset a unique, handcrafted work of wearable art.
Power Management and Battery Protection
For efficient power delivery, I selected a 2S Li-ion battery configuration, which allowed me to use a buck converter to step down the voltage rather than boost it. This reduced heat generation and provided consistent power to the pump. The Battery Management System (BMS) ensured safety by protecting against overcharge, over-discharge, overcurrent, and short circuits. With a battery life of 12+ hours, the Liquid Corset can operate continuously throughout an event or exhibit. The BMS operates using voltage thresholds across its pins, as specified in the HY2120 datasheet. Resetting the system by reconnecting the charger was required when the battery was disconnected.
Battery Level Indicator
The default battery capacity indicator didn’t map accurately to the Li-ion battery’s voltage, so I conducted tests to calibrate the LED indicators. Although I considered designing a custom circuit, I chose to modify the existing module by soldering the push-button contacts to keep the LEDs on continuously. This provided a balance between practical usability and accuracy.
Thermal Testing
I conducted thermal tests on the USB charging board to ensure the system did not overheat during extended charging. I monitored the temperature of the components while charging over time, confirming that the Liquid Corset could be safely charged for long periods without risk of overheating.
Charger Selection
I initially used a 7.4V 600mAh Li-ion battery, which I later upgraded to 800mAh for better capacity. After switching to Li-ion cells due to their safer cylindrical casing, I paired the system with a 1A charging board that outputs 0.55A. This allows the corset to be safely charged using common household chargers. I also found that a USB A to C cable is necessary to ensure proper power delivery since the charging board lacks a USB Power Delivery (PD) sink chip, which would otherwise allow for USB-C to USB-C connections.
