3D printing is all the rage at the moment. It started off simply with chess pieces, then got more sophisticated with bone joints and moving toys, and then fully high tech like milk caps that tell you when milk has gone bad and a real skull, implanted into a baby’s head.

“What’s next” you ask? Cars? Rockets? Televisions?

What about clothing? Danit Peleg, who knew nothing about 3-D printing before she began, decided to give it a shot. She did plenty of research online and found a lab in Tel Aviv where she was able to experiment and learn more about the process.

Peleg’s first challenge – and the main reason why there is so little 3-D printed clothing – was that the materials most commonly used in 3-D printers tend to be very stiff. She eventually discovered FilaFlex, a new filament that is softer and more malleable. She began by creating her pattern on Optitex, a fashion design software, then transferring it to Blender, a 3-D graphic design software. She was able to print sheets of lace-like “textiles,” which she then glued together to create the final pieces.

The end result looks much less crafty than it sounds – granted, it took her a full nine months. “It took more than 2,000 hours to print everything, not including the tests and trials I was doing before,” she said. “It’s about 400 hours [of printing] per piece.”

What do you think? Would you wear her 3D printed clothes?

http://youtu.be/k1bRsuRA0c8

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