3D Printed Fashion

The Biomimicry Shoe The “Biomimicry shoe” is a 3D printed shoe made from 100% nylon/polyamide. It is the result of a unique collaboration between Dutch fashion designer Marieka Ratsma and American architect Kostika Spaho.

It highlights the shape of the bird skull, along with the characteristics of the lightweight bone structure within the cranium. Such a structure requires less support material, resulting in optimal efficiency, strength and elegance. The shoe is a vision on design and material use in the future.

3D Printed Dress

Architect Francis Bitonti and designer Michael Schmidt designed a 3D Dress for Dita  von Teese.

Schmidt designed the dress on his iPad and then worked with Bitonti via Skype to create 17 uniquely crafted pieces. Shapeways, a New York-based 3D printing company, then printed the jigsaw puzzle of parts with hardened powdered nylon. Last, the hollowed pieces were painted black, garnished with crystals and carefully assembled to create the gown.

Iris van Herpen's 3D dresses stand for a reciprocity between craftsmanship and innovation in technique and materials. She creates a modern view on Haute  Couture that combines fine handwork techniques with digital technology .Van Herpen forces fashion to the extreme contradiction between beauty and regeneration.