The challenge of creating garments with unconventional materials has become an all too familiar gimmick for most first year students at fashion schools. The end result is more often than not a catwalk of garbage bags, zip ties, plastic bottles and cans, assembled into a menagerie of mediocrity. Enter Jum Nakao. But while the Japanese-Brasilian artist/fashion designer does use an unconventional and impractical material (paper) for his collection "A Costura do Invisivel"(translation: "Sewing the...
Casual Profanity's Fluid Dress 2.0 pumps gallons of blacklight-reactive fluid through 600 feet of knitted tubing. Set to the tune of "Cherry" by Ratatat, but perhaps more fitting for Lady Gaga. Except Robyn went there first (scroll down, 13 seconds in).
Today it's Lady Gaga day! Lady Gaga's outfits and looks are so outrageous that there'll be a million impersonators around on Halloween. But few will be able to perfect the looks properly. That's why we're giving you some assistance with our favorite Lady Gaga tutorials.
Every day of the week, WonderHowTo curators are hard at work, scouring the web for the greatest and most inspiring how-to videos. Every Friday, we'll highlight our favorite finds.
Fashion designer Manel Torres has teamed up with scientists at Imperial College London and designers at the Royal College of Art to invent spray-on clothing, an instant, sprayable, non-woven fabric-in-a-can.
While I don't find Mattijs van Bergen and Anouk Vogel's "Living" dresses aesthetically earth shattering, I'm wowed by the concept. The fashion designer and landscape architect created a collection of dresses made from recycled inner tubes and flowers for a late summer exhibition titled "Fashion & Architecture" at the Amsterdam Centre for Architecture.
Inspired by Jules Verne sea demons, Bea Szenfeld's "Sur la Plage" collection includes 12 pieces handcrafted with cardboard. The idea of unconventional material constraints is a classic art school "test", as well as a typical (and somewhat tired) formula for competitive design reality shows. However, Szenfeld's garments do transcend the material and would surely win any Project Runway challenge.
Wish there were a way to combine the glitz of wax paper with the glamor and status of bacteria? Consider these singular, single-cellular garments by sartorial scientist Suzanne Lee, who grows clothes from cultures of yeast and bacterial cellulose.
Japan rules cosplay culture, and these superfans are no exception to the rule. Tokyo Fashion hits the streets, Fruits style, capturing these top-notch, über stylish fashion homages to the infamous Lady Gaga.
You may have already heard of Zazzle, an online service that allows you to print on a variety of goods (tees, mugs, posters, etc.). You can design-it-yourself, or choose from Zazzle's library of available designs.
Arduino fashion (essentially, electronic textiles that can perform a variety of functions) is certainly not a new idea, but the Ping social networking garment brings a fresh and exciting perspective to the concept.
Aspiring Scottish fashion designer James Faulkner brings all new meaning to the term upcycling. Faulkner uses wings, feathers and furs of actual roadkill for his headgear line. He line employs a variety of taxidermied vermin, including foxes, magpies, rabbits, wood pigeons, pheasants, mallards, crows and peacocks.
Rodarte is an L.A. based fashion brand, headed by the Mulleavy sisters. Their pieces are known for their amazing materiality, gothic deconstruction, and beautifully ombréd fabric. The sisters have collaborated with Target, the Gap, outfitted many celebrities, and have been featured in the New Yorker, among various other publications.
Whimsical shoe design is by far my favorite kind. Cop stilettos, invisible heels - the more out there, the better. Sarajevo designer Belma Arnautovic's delightfully delectable footwear line definitely takes the cake.
Ecouterre posts seven upcycled circuit board fashion accessories, many of which were part of a group show to help raise awareness about e-waste and overconsumption.
Fashion designer Andreia Chaves of São Paulo has created some optically stunning, "invisible" shoes. Constructed with mirrors, the shoes blend into their environment, chameleon-style.
Whether you're inclined to love it or leave it, you've gotta admit one thing about JC de Castelbajac's LEGO fashion line- it's fun. More 80's pop culture revival: LEGO constructed hats and LEGO inspired prints set to cartoon blue skies. Scroll all the way down for JC de Castelbajac's runway videos (one in LEGOmation, the second live footage of the actual runway show).