This research begins by developing a stabilization method for repurposing oyster shells through knitting. By leveraging knitting’s inherent curling behavior, we designed a set of soft yet robust gripping modules driven entirely by stitch structure and yarn material properties. This exploration also revealed that grip and stretch are coupled: both arise from the textile’s elastic response, allowing controllable gripping to activate under tension. Using CNC knitting to programmatically distribute modules with different stretch thresholds across a continuous surface creates a programmable tensioning system and opens pathways to integrate additional materials into a hybrid knitted assembly. Looking forward, we envision this approach scaling beyond shells and supporting a wide range of irregular aggregates, regardless of the inserted material, the surface consistently reads as a shell cladding protecting the textile substrate beneath.
