Jan 30, 2008 5:06 pm US/Eastern
Fashion Show Features Weather-Inspired Designs
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
We all try to dress for the weather, but what if the weather was dressing you? Weather inspired fashions will be featured Wednesday night at the
Museum of Science in Boston as high-tech meets high fashion.
The runway show called "Seamless: Computational Couture" premiers at 8pm and is part of an ongoing effort at the Museum to make science cool for adults.
Why not take a spin in a tornado dress inspired by a storm chasers image of the real thing.
"He sent me this wonderful image of a tornado which we then printed on this dress," said Canadian designer Barbara Layne. "On the outside, there are some solar cells. These are photo cells that detect the amount of ambient light."
They are connected through a series of circuits embroidered into the lining, which harbor a set of LEDs -- different lighting from bright sun to shadows trigger different light patterns.
"It's under the lining so it is very transparent and subtle, much like you might see heat lightning or some kind of distant event," Layne said.
A wind-swept, full-length gown gives new meaning to a windy day.
"This particular dress channels wind fluctuations," said Canadian designer Valerie Lamontagne. "These are fans and these are networked with various pockets."
Connected to a weather station, wind patterns outside cause different pockets in the dress to billow, allowing the dress to literally take on a life of its own.
"It's incredibly wearable. The battery is probably the heaviest part of it all and you get a little vibration around the waist, so that's not bad," Lamontagne said.
The dress may not be right for the office, but a polite umbrella could win you a few points.
"It is really simple mechanics," said Korean-born designer JooYoun Paek. "There is a string attached to the end of the frames. That string travels through the pole and comes to the bottom of the handle."
Pull the handle and the sides of the umbrella pull in so you don't poke your neighbor in the head.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Stumble It!
