Feb
15
2012
The American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists’ 2012 International Conference will be held this year at the Hilton University Place in Charlotte, N.C., March 21-23. The conference will feature three educational tracks which mirror the Association’s interest groups: Chemical Applications, Concept 2 Consumer (C2C) and Materials.
The Chemical Applications track will address new advances in preparation and dyeing, antimicrobials and performance finishing. Sessions in the C2C track will include pathway to sustainability, beyond the borders, the power of social media, and “see it, wear it, explore it.” The Materials track will focus on protective textiles, medical materials, specialty materials, and innovative technologies. Also featured is a poster session covering all areas of textile and materials research.
Feb
08
2012
When Kelly Slater stormed to his history-making 11th world surfing title late last year, a team of scientists at Deakin University in Geelong were watching intently and taking notes. And not just because of the 39-year-old’s unrivalled mastery of the surf.
Slater had paddled out for his heat in the 2011 ASP World Tour off the San Francisco coast wearing a prototype, anatomically designed wetsuit that surfing giant Quiksilver is hoping will make big waves in the surfing industry.
Feb
03
2012
Paris — In just two months, Donatella Versace has gone from touting $39 hot pants to five-figure gowns.
On the heels of a sold-out collection for retail chain H&M last November, the designer returned to the Paris haute couture catwalk this week after an eight-year absence. “After the success with the mass market, I wanted to say, ‘Don’t forget who we are!’” said Ms. Versace.
More than ever, high-end fashion houses are selling to the full spectrum of prices and customers. And, surprisingly, cheap-chic brands may be giving couture — astronomically expensive made-to-measure clothing — a new lease on life.
The more a brand peddles to the mass market, the greater the need to offset it on the high end. It’s the yin and yang of fashion. Couture is “one of the ways of keeping the balance in the middle, of maintaining the epicenter of the brand,” says luxury-goods consultant Armando Branchini.
Feb
02
2012
Australia Day typically includes dubious sartorial statements involving the national flag but this year, a new-media player is attempting a more stylish approach.
Named after a supply ship in the First Fleet, Supply is an online magazine being launched today as a celebration of Australian and Australasian design and fashion.
A fashion shoot reinterpreting the first convicts setting foot in Australia, an essay on Ned Kelly and fashion by Pamela Golbin, senior fashion curator at the Musee des Arts Decoratifs in Paris, and coverage of architect Nick Tobias and artist Murray Hilton are included in the inaugural issue overseen by fashion writer and consultant Stephen Todd and design writer and consultant Amanda Talbot.
Feb
01
2012
Researchers have “cloaked” a three-dimensional object, making it invisible from all angles, for the first time.
However, the demonstration works only for waves in the microwave region of the electromagnetic spectrum.
It uses a shell of what are known as plasmonic materials; they present a “photo negative” of the object being cloaked, effectively cancelling it out.
The idea, outlined in New Journal of Physics, could find first application in high-resolution microscopes.
Most of the high-profile invisibility cloaking efforts have focused on the engineering of “metamaterials” – modifying materials to have properties that cannot be found in nature.
The modifications allow metamaterials to guide and channel light in unusual ways – specifically, to make the light rays arrive as if they had not passed over or been reflected by a cloaked object.
Jan
24
2012
The stock has risen sharply on the double-breasted suit, that vestige of the all mighty power-suit era. Though the linebacker-like shoulders have had the air let out of them and the jacket shape is significantly softer, that signature button stance remains the same.
Jan
23
2012
Although most events are aimed at trade representatives and the fashion press, there is a specific effort to draw in the public, with a series of “Showroom Days” where various exhibitions, fashion shows and performances will be open to all. Escada Sport will be the first big name to put models on the runway, with its show at the Brandenburg Gate on Wednesday, while German designer Michael Michalsky is set to close the week on Friday with a show at the Tempodrome venue, usually used for concerts. Potsdamer Platz metro station will be temporarily turned into a runway by Unrath & Strano, while Chinese designer Wang Yutao will make his European debut with a show.
Jan
19
2012
Changing the way we make clothes could reduce our impact on the environment. From shoes made out of car tyres in Ethiopia to fabric produced from stinging nettles in The Netherlands, France 24 looks at how both protecting the environment and sporting the latest trends is possible
Jan
16
2012
The Textiles Library will be open from
9am -6pm today.
Information for Students, Latest News | Stefanie Keto | 
Comments Off 
