From a tech standpoint, last night’s Met Gala red carpet was somewhat underwhelming. With the exception of Claire Danes’ glow-in-the-dark Zac Posen dress and Karolína Kurková’s Marchesa x IBM Watson (yes, the super-computer) gown, the incorporation of tech wasn’t as standout as it could have been. Like Katy Perry, we were expecting (and hoping) that Lady Gaga would arrive on a drone.
Disappointment aside, the anticipation surrounding last night’s arrivals and the Met’s new Costume Institute exhibit serves a much larger purpose: It is expanding the conversation about the increasingly important role that tech plays in fashion.
Why should you care? Because your closet is about to change drastically, and that change is likely going to happen much sooner than you think.
Let’s preface this by saying that technology’s integration with fashion is nothing new. As Apple's Chief Design Officer, Jony Ive, reminded the crowd at the Met's press preview, sewing machines were once viewed as high-tech. And if you look back at Katy Perry and Lady Gaga’s concert ensembles, the two have been rocking costumes embedded with LED lights and controlled by remotes for years now.
What is new is the reality that even though these kinds of clothes look otherworldly now, they’re already becoming more commonplace and widespread. In the same way that Apple has integrated itself into the fashion world by tying its name to the Met Gala, more and more designers are making tech a part of their collections. And if the rise of fast fashion has proven anything, it’s that what’s showing up on the runway can show up in your wardrobe far sooner than ever before and at much more affordable prices.
The future of fashion is interactive clothing that responds to your needs in the same way your iPhone does. It doesn't just look cool for the sake of looking cool (although Danes definitely pulled that off) — it actually does things for you and makes some part of your day easier.
So, what are some of the high-tech trends you’ll be wearing soon? Click through to marvel at the future of wearables.
This 3-D printed dress, created by Dutch designer Iris van Herpen, looks like something better suited to Gaga than for everyday wear. But thanks to advances in 3-D printing, you too may be able to print your own clothes at home soon. "3-D printed clothes are experimental, but they're moving along," says Lauren Whitley, the co-curator of the fashion-and-tech exhibit #techstyle at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. "You might soon scan your body in your house, print out a dress, and then wear it." And it's not just clothes: New Balance just released a limited-edition pair (only 75 were for sale) of 3-D printed shoes.
Photograph: Museum of Fine Arts, BostonClothing that responds in real time to your social networks? Yes, please. Wearable tech line CuteCircuit created waves with its Twitter Dress, which lights up (thanks to fabric embedded with micro-LEDs) featured tweets, so you have an even easier way of staying connected. Who needs apps when you can just look at your skirt?
Video: YouTube.
Having a shirt that offers emotional support when you need it might sound crazy (or at least like something out of a Disney movie), but that's what CuteCircuit created with its HugShirt. The shirt has Bluetooth sensors that connect to an app. If a loved one wants to send you a hug, they can send you one through the app. Sensors in the shirt mimic the warmth and strength of an actual hug, providing you with a loving boost of support anytime, anywhere.
Photo: CuteCircuit
Charging your phone with your shirt is so much easier than having to carry around a separate charger. Dutch designer Pauline van Dongen's Solar Shirt is a remarkably normal-looking shirt with embedded solar cells that can charge your phone or any other USB-compatible device. In daylight, your phone will be fully charged within just a few hours. This is, hands-down, one of the coolest takes on sustainable fashion yet.
Photo: Pauline Van Dongen, Instagram.
Soon, fashion designers may even be drafting their creations in 3-D spaces as opposed to on paper. Google's new virtual-reality technology Tilt Brush lets you use handheld devices that look like video-game controllers to "paint" in thin air (while wearing an HTC Vive headset). You can even walk around your piece of art, working from different angles and admiring your creation. A variety of colors, brushes, and special effects such as floating stars are at your disposal. It's like a trippy coloring book come to life. Our novice creation looked like a series of random lines rather than a dress, but don't be surprised if you hear that Zac Posen's next showstopping piece started in a virtual world.
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