Wearable Electronic

We have introduced to our reader last week the remarkable work of Rachel Bagley, a final year fashion student at South East Essex College (UK). Today we would like to share with you the interview we had with Rachel which is full of highly interesting views from her about the combination of Wearable Electronic and [...]

I am ‘borrowing’ part of my headline from an initiative of Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum in New York City which run last year an exhibition called: ‘Design for the other 90%‘. This exhibition touched on the fact that most cutting edge technological developments are accessible to only 10% of the world population while the other 90% [...]

Spring has officially arrived although in some areas there is not much of it to see yet. Nevertheless you have to plan ahead for the summer beach or pool season meaning: get in Shape now. For a starter, running is the most easiest to do which makes you loose some pounds on the way and you [...]

For a seamless integration of electronic into clothing solutions have to be found that conform with the surrounding material, in the case of Wearable Electronic this means with textiles. Most textiles are stretchable, at least to a certain extend. If the textiles would not stretch the wearing comfort would be very limited. The clothing will not [...]

Leah Buechley the Innovator and Creator of the most advanced e-textile kit, the LilyPad Arduino, keeps on surprising the world with new ideas fusing electronic and clothing. Her latest work a turn signal biking jacket is an excellent example how e-textiles can add high value to ‘conventional’ clothing. Safety and visibility while cycling in low light [...]

The most visible use of Wearable Electronic technologies is in consumer products like clothing and bags. The value here is convenience, adding individuality or giving interactive decoration options. But the potential of Wearable Electronic technologies go far beyond the fashion market. Take for example the health care and medical sector. Nobody likes to get sick or [...]

Our last Top 10 Christmas gift guide for Wearable Electronic gives a kaleidoscopic view on items ranging from books to DIY kits and other practical products. For book lovers among our reader we have or ‘Read This‘ section in our blog that gives an overview of interesting book about and around Wearable Electronic. You can find short reviews on this page as well as links to shopping sites to order our Christmas gift. My hottest tip for a Wearable Electronic book is Fashioning the Future from Suzanne Lee. A fabulous overview of the past, present and future of Wearable Electronic with many illustrations and inspiring text. Available by Amazon for $ 35.70 The second book tip is Extreme Textiles: Designing for High Performance by Matilda McQuaid. This book is not specific about Wearable Electronic but an excellent source of inspiration for future Intelligent Textile engineers and designer. Available by Amazon for $ 21.87 If you or the person you want to give a Christmas gift li

I found a cute, simple electronic sewing kit offered by aniomagic.com that can make the perfect Christmas gift for the creative people among our reader. You might not be able to create with this kit such attention magnets like Moritz Waldermeyer did recently but you can create cute little Wearable Electronic fashion accessories for your bag or shirt or jacket. The site has some examples to demonstrate how the electrical sewing kit can be used and offers a detailed description with many photos to show how to work with the different components of the electronic sewing kit. No worry, it’s much easier as you might think thanks to the simplicity of this kit. The electronic sewing kit contains: two hand-made “LED sequins”, a fabric switch, soft battery holder and battery, conductive thread and a patch of fabric. The complete kit can be ordered here and goes for $ 15.- and shipping is free! Nwanua Elumeze, CEO and researcher on customizable clothing and jewelry is behind

O’Neill’s H4 design team has made video clips of the entire H4 Wearable Electronic range showing how to set up the jackets, backpack, glove and Audio Beanie. Certainly time well spend watching those video clips to get you an impression how Wearable Electronic clothing is used. No one less than O’Neill’s Mr. Wearable Electronic, Christiaan Roos, the designer and driving force of O’Neill’s Wearable Electronic product line, demonstrates how to get the H4 products up and running in no time. As the term Wearable Electronic implies, it’s a fusion of stuff you wear and electronics. Imagine getting a new Jacket and a new electronic gadget and get it ready for the first use. Actually you don’t have to imagine any more if you have seen those videos. As example I have added the video guide for the more complex but, as Christiaan will show you, easily to set up Comm Ent Jacket: A great gesture from the O’Neill team to put up online tho

Our reader tamberg pointed us to the ‘digg me’ Shirt, a very well documented Wearable Electronic Instructables project and just the right stuff to write about at the end of the week when we switch to an more relaxed mode. The ‘digg me’ Shirt is a truly Wearable Electronic DIY project combining the usage and creativity of e-textiles, clothing and electronic elements. Besides many tips and tricks you will see on how to create your own DIY ‘digg-me’ shirt you will find a concept for making your own e-textile switch, very interesting and it looks that this switch works perfectly. The ‘digg-me’ shirt comes from Instructables member thydzik who has created an excellent instruction down to the smallest details on how everyone can/could create his/her own digg-me Shirt. A couple of YouTube hosted videos will help you to make your own shirt. The video below shows how the ‘digg-me’ Shirt works: working ‘digg me’ tshirt

Leah Buechley created in cooperation with Sparkfun the next generation of e-textile modules for the Wearable Electronic DIY enthusiasts: the LilyPad-Arduino set. To introduce Leah Buechely might not be needed for our regular readers and everyone interested into Wearable Electronics just so much, Leah is a Ph.D. student in Computer Science at the University of Colorado and a member of the Craft Technology Group. Her research interests in electronic textiles, wearable computing and human computer interaction paved her way to create the now famous LED tank top. Since then, Leah continuously developed further her tool kit for e-textiles which resulted in the latest and most sophisticated DIY kit for e-textiles I have ever seen before, the LilyPad. The LilyPad is designed with large connecting pads, to create an interface between small electronic components and textiles, to be sewn into clothing. Various input, output, power, and sensor LilyPads are available. Sparkfun started in 2002 fro

It was hard not to hear about the Wearable (Electronic) art from Star Simpson, an MIT student, that caused a security alert on Logan International Airport last Friday. I am not going to comment on the freedom art needs or takes, nor the creative free room ones needs to progress. The reason for me to pick this up is to avoid people thinking Wearable Electronic, the great passion of talk2myShirt, is in the same category as this recent demonstrated piece of art. Stitching a breadboard, commonly used for electronic design development and quick testing, onto a T-Shirt does not make it a Wearable Electronic consumer item, it is what it was originally designed and created for: a work of art. Using a work of art, any work of art, in public places requires to take into account social rules, call it etiquette, and more important, consideration for safety and security. Airports are very sensitive against any remotely suspicious looking object and persons. This is correct and gives us a relative

Barbara Layne from Studio subTela designed the Jacket Antics, a Wearable Electronic concept that addresses the sensual part of our life, the softness of textiles, the love and romantic dreams. Barbara has developed a pair of his-and-hers jackets that use embedded LEDs on the back to send messages using scrolling words. The clothing senses when the wearers hold hands, allowing the message to run across both jackets. Traditional black linen yarns are hand woven alongside light emitting diodes, micro controllers and sensors. When the wearers hold hands, the LED arrays presents a third, synchronous message that scrolls from one to the other, presenting a new pattern of communication and expression. When the wearers release hands, the message reverts back to the individual themes. The capacity for interactivity in the animated cloth displays extend the narrative qualities of cloth and provide new possibilities for dynamic social interaction. Although we concentrate in our Blog mainly on We

Wearable Electronics business news coverage from this week: Get your snowboarding action on YouTube in an instant with the H4 Campack from O’Neill. O’Neill Europe announced the launch of the H4 Campack, one of seven pieces from its groundbreaking 4th generation wearable electronics line. The suggested retail price is €269.- (US$ 367.-) and designed to be used as a fully functional snowboard backpack, the H4 Campack features an integrated portable media player and external camera lens. There’s simply no better way to film freestyle and freeride snowboarding action before sharing the footage over the internet with friends and fellow web surfers. A must have for YouTube addicted action boarders. The portable media player is positioned in the backpack’s top pocket. Serving to record all footage captured by the goggle strap or helmet mounted camera lens, the portable media player writes the files directly to an SD card, which can then be inserted easily into any PC for insta

Having the right outfit and tools in business life is very important for any deal. Be it to close a contract with your customer, get a new client or impress your boss to get you noticed and the promotion you deserve. To give you some ideas for your business outfit, we have compiled a list of unique, innovative products that will help you in achieving your business goals by showing that you are ‘in the know’ of the latest developments. The start of our list makes the iPod suit from Marks & Spencer. It has a decent look that will blend into any board room seamless except for the fact that you have a discretely hidden feature at your disposal, the iPod control on the inside of the label. Unfortunately there is no iPod enabled business attire for women on the market yet - Listen up all you clothing companies out there and change that soon! What will you get by wearing this suit: appreciative looks and the image of being someone that likes to add a twist to the game of life

The next Big thing in Wearable Electronic will be light emitting textiles. While the controls (Eleksen) and sound elements (NXT) reached a certain maturity in the integration into clothing and other soft goods, light emitting textiles still have a long way to go. Display like concepts are available from NYX and Lumalive, the former in mono color the later in full color, both work in principle as dot-matrix displays that allow dynamic content. Other technologies such as EL-foils and glass fiber yarn illuminate textiles are on the market but they offer only static light pattern. Getting display like functionality into clothing or soft goods like bags for the consumer market still remains a field to be explored. One of such exploration to bring display functionality into clothing is the European Union Framework 6 project Modecom. Modecom is a €1.3M (around 1.8M US$) three-year project by an international consortium of researchers could help bring to mass market organic light emitting d

Our first follow-up review of the great things around Wearable Electronic on stage last week during Avantex is about the newly introduced control modules from Eleksen. There are 5 ‘ready to sell’ functions like: Volume Control (for any audio device with a 3.5mm headphone socket), the Sony Ericsson Controller, the iPod Controller, the iPod+Bluetooth Controller and the new FM Radio module. You may ask: “what’s the big deal about that?” To start with, this modules are good news for garment companies because the ‘only’ thing they have to integrate into future clothing is the ElekTex fabric keypad with the standardized connector to the modules. No risk in making too much or less clothing items with the ‘wrong’ function. The added value = function of the clothing and other accessories is defined by - you, the customer. You choose a Wearable Electronic ready clothing item or bag and buy the control module you need and like. Even better,

Angel Chang is the most outstanding Fashion Designer who can blend technology and fashion in the most advanced and beautiful way. The way she thinks about fashion and technology is outstanding, head over to the write up we have posted back in January or to her site. Hussein Cahalayan is doing a great job in experimenting with technology and fashion but Angel Chang is creating real world clothing that look like ‘out of this world’. Her Fall 2007 collection include great looking dresses with iPod controls. We like the way she integrates almost invisible those controls. This is what makes her creations outstanding. Angel Chang is not ‘only’ using electronic functions for integration, another part of her collection has Thermochromic ink. This Thermochromic ink print pattern change their intensity/visiblity depending on the surrounding temperature. Those parts of the fabric that are closer to the skin are warmer and the print will ‘disappear’. Other pa

Our headline today may be a little bold but this statement was triggered by a press release from www.prnewswire.com This press release is about UniFirst, one of North America’s largest workwear and textile services companies. According to this release, 33 million people are wearing uniforms on the job and soon some 1.2 million people will begin wearing uniforms this year by joining the workforce. The fabrics used in some uniforms today can whisk moisture away from the skin and repel staining. Other fabrics can destroy illness-bearing bacteria says Robert Isaacson, Director of Marketing for UniFirst. “Proof of that can already be seen in a current trend to develop uniforms using wearable electronic fabrics that can keep tabs on a wearer’s vital signs and even dispense necessary first-aid medications,” Isaacson says. We mainly focus in our postings on talk2myShirt about the use of Wearable Electronic technologies in fashion, clothing and sport but indeed, some of

The most important and likely the biggest event for Wearable Electronic in 2007 will start next week in Frankfurt, Germany. Avantex and Techtextil 2007 will open its doors on June 11 for 4 days of highly interesting seminars and exhibitions on the future of clothing and textile innovation. It is the second time those two events are held at the same time and the same place. Avantex target groups of designers and garment manufacturers, focuses on high-tech apparel textiles and presents developments ranging from the concept to the prototype stages. Techtextil is the world largest Trade Fair for Technical Textiles and Nonwovens. This almost guaranties a highly charged atmosphere for participants from the industry and businesses but also for the visitors of the exhibitions. Unlike the Smart Fabrics 2007 in May which was more focused on technologies, the Avantex 2007 is more about consumer presentation. Companies will show on the floor the latest developments and creation in the Smart Clot

Eleksen, the company we write quite a bit about here, was very active recently in the business section of many online and offline reports. Firstly, there was the announcement during the Intel Developer Forum in Beijing last week where Eleksen announced it has been selected as an UMPC ecosystem partner by Intel to deliver a range of ElekTex-based solutions for Intel based Ultra-Mobile PC (UMPC) and MIDs (Mobile Internet Devices). Eleksen will have an array of working reference designs, prototypes and concept designs based on a variety of ElekTex sensor designs and control electronics that can be easily integrated into an Original Equipment Manufacturer’s (OEMs) mobile computing accessories products. “Interactive soft-goods provide a new capability that complements the functionality and portability of UMPCs and MIDs,” said Kelley Johnson, Marketing Manager at Intel Corporation. “Eleksen stands out as a great choice for new UMPC and MID interface accessories as the Int

OLED’s are not a novelty for some time, but we haven’t seen what they promised us in the first place: flexible displays, that can be rolled like paper, allowing for easy transportation and which can be installed virtually anywhere. But that’s about to change, as a consortium consisting of nine universities and two companies joined in a three years project to research wearable displays. Continue reading article TAGS: display, efficiency, lighing, OLED, wearableRelated articlesTransparent displays are the next big thingMotorazr Maxx V6 Ferrari Challenge - fashion meets racing, againSony STE OLED: 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio at your fingertipsRead magazines on your TV with Color MaxT-Dancer, the latest catch in clubbing fashion

CITA, the biggest Wireless Telecommunication Show opened it’s doors today and with it the highly anticipated Fashion in Motion Show. CTIA has first organized a Wearable Electronic Fashion Show as early as 4 years back and establish itself as the forerunner and promoter of Wearable Electronic. Fashion in Motion is a collection of the most innovative and creative products and prototypes in the wearable and wireless arena. This couture style fashion show features the latest wireless devices, accessories, technical textiles, smart fabrics, and fashions available today, along with the futuristic visions of tomorrow. To emphasize CTIA’s efforts into Wearable Electronic Fashion, sponsors of this years Fashion in Motion show, which will be held every day, are: La Perla, Alexandra Fede, ELLE, ELLEgirl, Stylefuture to name a few. Some of the runway models will show products like the he Zegna iJacket, Koyono’s Blackcoat Sport and the GTech Professional Messenger bag. All of t

We compiled an overview of all the Jackets we have posted over the last few month. This list shows how many different styles are already available in the Wearable Electronic clothing market. We give you also a price indication. You might find some of those Jackets for a lower price, we just selected randomly a online store or the producer itself for a first source of ordering. We do not have any connection to those online stores and we want to be as neutral as possible. There are many other stores, online and off-line that have those Jackets on offer. H3 Series CommEnt jackets from O'Neill Available: yes Price: 750.- Online shop: click here iJacket Sport from Zenga Available: yes Price: from 390.- up to 650.- Online shop: click here Audex Jacket from Burton Available: yes Price: from 150.- up to 600.- Online shop: click here Power Jacket for iPod from Jansport Available: yes Price: from 140.- Online shop: click here Wired Puffer Jacket for iPod from Jansport Available: yes Price: