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Cheryl D. Miller on inclusion in design: 'They've stolen our history'

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Cheryl D. Miller on inclusion in design: 'They've stolen our history'

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Cheryl D. Miller is an acclaimed New York communications designer, artist, and theologian. She is the author of the memoir Black Coral: A Daughter's Apology to Her Asian Island Mother and recently submitted a professional archive of her historic visual design work and writings, the Cheryl D. Miller Collection, to Stanford University Libraries. She spoke to Doreen Lorenzo for Designing Women, a series of interviews with brilliant women in the design industry.
Doreen Lorenzo: Coming from a multiracial and multicultural background, what led to you starting your own New York design firm in the 1980s when that was rare for a woman to do?

Cheryl D. Miller: I'm authentically BIPOC. I'm paternally African American in culture, and Danish West Indian and Ghanaian by maternal heritage. My maternal U.S. Virgin Islands family is from Ghanian chiefs, and I have European colonizers' blood as well as a Filipino family of origin. My paternal grandfather is white and Native American. I have four different grandparents, four different places, four different races, four different ethnicities. Each one of them brings a very unique perspective, but growing up my father had political aspirations, so all my family could be was African American in Washington, D.C. But since I'm also my Filipino Danish West Indian mother's daughter, I look different. I don't look like my family.

And throughout all of this, I wanted to be an artist. I could have taught Bauhaus by the time I got to it in my education because I grew up with Danish Scandinavian design as a part of my home furnishings. Denmark once owned the Virgin Islands. So it's a part of my upbringing. I started my freshman foundation studies at RISD [Rhode Island School of Design] but I graduated from MICA [Maryland Institute College of Art]. By the time I found my way to New York City, I was an award-winning broadcast designer in Washington, D.C. for 10 years. I'd been with my husband since I was 16, and after he finished business school he got a job offer in New York and asked me if I wanted to move there. I said yes and then I was in New York.

As a corporate wife, I didn't know how long I was going to be there, but I knew all the schools were in New York, so I thought, Let me go to school. I applied to Pratt [Institute], asked them to review my professional work for credit, and they gave me half a degree based on my experience. I was already a designer, so I focused on business in grad school.

A lot of the tips I learned in business management really helped me formulate a good business template for my New York firm that I established in 1987, Cheryl D. Miller Design Inc. It was a corporate communications design firm, but it has this backstory history of advocacy. I secured Fortune 500 companies in order to introduce people of color into their visual iconography. I designed the original on-air BET brand identity.

I [was] working in social responsibility, equal opportunity, and corporate communications during a period when New York practitioners were bearing down [on] the NAACP and the Urban League for change. But I always take pride in the fact that the reason my practice became so prolific is because I'm a good businesswoman.

DL: What do you do next after establishing a successful Black woman-owned New York design firm?

CDM: I accomplished all of that by the time I was 35. I found myself with this prolific career, and then I walked away from it. Seemingly, it was just a pause. I dissolved the corporation in 2000. I took a brave step and stopped practicing to raise my kids. I just had to stop if I was going to have anything else in my life besides this legacy story. My kids are such a blessing, and I loved every moment of being with them. I would have missed that if I hadn't been brave enough to leave the future to its own path.

But this legacy work called me back, and I'm really honored that my work waited for me after the good Lord gave me a chance to raise a family. The sad part about this is that I literally took 20 years away from this advocacy and it was like marching in place. The needle of design justice didn't move until the pandemic and George Floyd. I found myself right where I left off. I hadn't missed anything. What's a shame is that kids today experience what I experienced 50 years ago.

During my sophomore year at MICA, I kept going and going to class, putting my work up, and I wouldn't get a critique. The professor just walked around my work. One day I decided I was going to come in early, put my work up, and then leave so he could not associate me with the work. He finally critiqued it. I got him after class and said, "What's wrong with you?" He told me he'd never met anyone like me before. I told him, "Does that mean you have to ignore my work? Don't do that to me again. Tell me if it's good, bad, or indifferent and we'll be just fine." I'm not new to this, I'm true to this.

The fact that kids are still experiencing this today, getting passed over, well it's not fair. What we're in is a season of reparation. I've been through this before, riots and burnings. I haven't been through a pandemic, but I've been through this season of social unrest. Luckily, there are allies now and this is a season where allies come together. In this world we have now, we can see so much. You can Google anything. You can see what good design is.

When I give online lectures I can feel all the students there from my living room. There is an educational ally movement, and it's growing. On the educational level the reality is your admissions and tuition. I'm contending there needs to be some affirmative action. It's like the abolitionist movement. The allies that are protesting with the Black designers at every corner, every age, every generation, they're helping the needle move.

DL: You wrote an important thesis in grad school that in light of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement is still very relevant today. Could you tell us about it?

CDM: At the end of my graduate program at Pratt, the chair of the department, Etan Manasse, decided I wasn't doing a design thesis project to finish out my degree. Instead, he wanted me to make a contribution to our industry. I knew exactly what that meant. I was going to have to write my way out of this. And I knew what to write about.

I had come out of the mid-Atlantic, and I had seen despair. I saw a fine arts community which was extremely disillusioned. There were all these strong MFA programs out of Washington, D.C. But Washington, D.C., is not a corporate town, it's a government town, so to get government work or a job as a designer, there was a protocol. You had to pass a civil service exam to even get into the system, to even get your name in a lineup. Then you had to have specialized training.

All these aspiring artists were running around Washington with MFAs trying to get commercial work, and I saw this disconnect between the academic environment and the job market. The two weren't lining up for the mid-Atlantic geography. The jobs were going to go to those who were trained, and the most disenfranchised of this community were going to be the Black kids looking for jobs. I'm like, "We have a problem."

I wrote my capstone thesis, "Transcending the Problems of the Black Designer to Success in the Marketplace," in 1985. The thesis is rich in cross-references and quotes in areas outside of design, like sociology and history. It's full of scholarship that analyzes the African American community and professional-type census. I unpack the problem and offer suggestions. The editor of Print magazine, Martin Fox, got a hold of it and told me, "I'd like to make this a magazine feature article." After a contract and a check, Print published my first article about the thesis in 1987 called "Black Designers: Missing in Action."

DL: When did you realize just how impactful this thesis, your contribution, was to society?

CDM: That thesis and article are the thesis and article that just absolutely keep giving. I had stopped servicing design and was having a blast in Connecticut as a mom, not thinking about any of this. Then in 2016, Print dug me up for a quote for Black History Month. I offered to write an update to my original piece instead. That's when Print published my second article, "Black Designers: Still Missing in Action?" where I revisited Black designers that I had featured 30 years before the update to show where they were now.

That led Michael Grant, a young design scholar at Stanford who now works for Google Labs, to ask the director of the special collections at the Stanford Library, Regina Roberts [pictured with Miller below], about getting the original thesis. She found the thesis at Pratt, and then had to find me for the copyright because this whole group of scholars wanted to read it. After I met her she told me, "By the way, when we searched for your thesis, it popped up in engineering and all these different disciplines." I had no idea. It was only supposed to be an art thesis. Little did I know, the thesis and article had become an annotated cross-reference across disciplines.

Next thing I knew, [Roberts] came across the country to pick up 50 years worth of my work that Stanford wanted to archive for their anthropology, feminist studies, American history, political studies, and design schools. Design was the least of it! I had captured so much history through the work I had saved. Now all of my firm's corporate work, the interviews, cassette tapes, drafts, everything for my thesis and the article is now in the Cheryl D. Miller Collection at Stanford University.

Then here we are today. Print asked me to write a third article because, as [the designer] Maurice Cherry asked, we're all still wondering " Where Are the Black Designers? " They contracted me to write 1,500 words, and I submitted 14,000. They broke down my third article, "Black Designers: Forward in Action," into four parts. At the end of the article I answer once and for all: Where are the Black designers? Why aren't they in the history books? What happened? And I'll tell you, when I found where the Black designers were, I found where the women designers were, too.

DL: Where were the Black designers? Where were the women in design?

CDM: My research led me into Union notes. We're talking about a period of time right at the conclusion of the Civil War. I'm reading these Typographic Union footnotes, and they wanted to rescind emancipation. Why? Because the Black man had become competition, a threat to their livelihoods. There was an image in these runaway slave ads that transforms all the way through the type ornament books and becomes woodcuts.

Turns out the slave artisan is making his own runaway slave ads. This is why he's missing from Hollis and Meggs's [classic reference book] History of Graphic Design. He's in slavery. The history is in slavery. The slave artisan had been in the back of the print shops making his own ads since the transatlantic slave trade, but our history of typesetting and design runs parallel to those same countries who are colonizing the Afro-Caribbean/West Indian slave diaspora. They've stolen our history. And you can't decolonize unless you have the content to decolonize with.

In these Union notes, the white men are having a fit because they think slaves are going to take food off their tables. In these discussions, they're asking "What are we going to do with the free slaves who have become competition here?" At least they discussed the slaves. In the paragraphs before that, they brought up the women. In the footnotes about women they start with, "We're not discussing them at all. The women are not in this at all." It was like one or two sentences. They shut them out. The free slaves got more conversation and consideration than the women. It's right there after slavery, at emancipation, where the unions are trying to figure out what to do with the women and the slaves.

Fast-forward all the way to 1994, I was in New York and I went to meet with the legendary [designer] Paul Rand, and he told me the future of design is with women. He said, "The girls in my classes are better than the boys. . . . It's always been like that. . . . Girls can be real terrific designers." ( Transcribed from the actual recorded interview now found in the Cheryl D. Miller Collection at Stanford University.)

DL: Looking back, is there anything you would do differently?

CDM: No. After raising my two kids with my husband and this journey of advocacy, I'm doing exactly what I'm supposed to be doing. My motto is, to live your life is your story, to live your life for others is your legacy. Leave a legacy.

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'They've stolen our history': Why one designer has been fighting for inclusion for 50 years

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Cheryl D. Miller is an acclaimed New York communications designer, artist, and theologian. She is the author of the memoir Black Coral: A Daughter's Apology to Her Asian Island Mother and recently submitted a professional archive of her historic visual design work and writings, the Cheryl D. Miller Collection, to Stanford University Libraries.

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What’s the Difference between an E-Textile, Smart Fabric, Functional Fabrics and Smart Textiles? — LOOMIA Soft Circuit Systems | E-textiles

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What’s the Difference between an E-Textile, Smart Fabric, Functional Fabrics and Smart Textiles? — LOOMIA Soft Circuit Systems | E-textiles

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LOOMIA Soft Circuit Systems | E-textiles

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Naturally, we would say yes! This circuit is laminated to a piece of satin fabric to perform a function. It has a connector and lights, so it is an entire system that consists of conductive and resistive parts.

Now that we know what an e-textile is and isn't, let's explore some frequently used words.
WORDS THAT WE WILL EXPLORE: Overview:
E-textiles is a more technical term that seems to be used by both the maker and engineering communities. One can find this term used to name papers such as "E-Textile Technology" (E. Ghandi et al.) and to define projects on the popular maker website, Instructables . It is also used by standards groups, such as IPC (the Association Connecting Electronics Industries), and the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC).
FUNCTIONAL FABRICS and TECHNICAL TEXTILES
AFFOA ( Advanced Functional Fabrics of America ) prefers the term functional fabrics, which covers a wide range of active and passive materials. Yoel Fink, the CEO of AFFOA, has a background in fiber optics and focuses on making fiber optic threads that have the function to be woven into textiles. IFAI ( The Industrial Fabrics Association ) prefers to use the term smart fabrics. Both terms, technical textiles and functional fabrics, include passive materials in their definitions.
SOFT CIRCUITS
Soft circuits is a term that is mostly used by makers in the industry. This term mostly represents conductive thread or handmade circuits that are developed onto or into a textile substrate. Famed makers in this space include Hannah Perner Wilson of Kobakant and Lara Grant, as well as Maggie Orth. Ben Cooper of FLEX is expanding the definition of this term with the term soft systems. Soft is also used by Stretchsense to define their soft sensors.
WEARABLE TECHNOLOGY
Others in the space are technical designers who focus less on the enabling technology and more on the larger category of wearable technology. Yuchen Zhang and Hellyn Teng at Wearable Media Group are great examples of this category.

Many companies selling products (e.g. WearableX, Bonbouton, and Athos) that include these technologies never refer to the textile circuitry within. Once an e-textile has entered a product, it will often be called wearable technology or smart fabric.
SMART FABRICS / TEXTILES
So, why isn't a smart fabric or textile always an e-textile? On July 29, 2019, ASTM's D.13 Group released a standard set of definitions called "Standard Terminology For Smart Textiles" that defined this word as something much broader. In their standard, they do not include the word e-Textile, but they do define the following:
PRINTED ELECTRONICS/ ULTRAFLEXIBLE CIRCUITS
The printed electronics industry has started printing conductive traces onto a thin, plastic film called TPU. Printing on this film can make a very drapable and flexible circuit-an ultraflexible circuit-that can bond well to textiles. These circuits can be engineered for textile integration, making them e-textiles, or they can be engineered for other use.
WEARABLE FABRIC
Sometimes people have the intuition to combine the term wearable technology and fabric. In the end, they come up with terms like wearable fabric or wearable clothing. These terms make an incorrect use of the word "wearable" which is a useful adjective next to a non-wearable thing like technology. Next to a normally wearable thing like clothing, it's just redundant.

In conclusion, using the terms "e-textile", "e-textile system", or "soft circuit" will generally result in something that is an electronic system integrated into or made with the intent of integrating into a textile. Much broader words like wearable technology, functional fabrics, and technical textiles can also mean this, but may also mean something that is chemical or passive.

However you describe e-textiles, you'll probably get your message across. Just don't say wearable fashion!

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LOOMIA LANGUAGE GUIDE
LOOMIA's Definition:

An electronic textile (e-textile) is a circuit that is either constructed into a textile or created with the intention of integrating into a textile.

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What's the Difference between an E-Textile, Smart Fabric, Functional Fabrics and Smart Textiles? - LOOMIA Soft Circuit Systems | E-textiles

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The e-textiles industry has a lot of jargon floating around to define the space. Some of it can get rather confusing, and currently, there only exists one official standard to clean up how language around e-textiles is used.

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Black Woman Creates Comics Universe Where all the Superheroes are Women of Color

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Black Woman Creates Comics Universe Where all the Superheroes are Women of Color

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Jazmin Truesdale's pitch rings with an upbeat optimism. Like many Black women with backgrounds in the corporate sector, her assertive personality reflects experiences that have required her to be more competent than those around her just to gain a seat at the table.

In a strong, yet humble tone, Truesdale paints the picture of a society where the media is filled with complex images of brown people, reaffirming their humanity and a sense of pride in their diverse cultures. Thanks to her imagination, an entire literary universe of empowerment now exists where the superheroes are nonwhite women.

Truesdale's path to becoming the owner of AZA Comics, a Black-owned comic imprint, was anything but a straight one. Although DC Comics had planted the seeds of storytelling in her childhood, Truesdale was on course to becoming a doctor while attending the University of North Carolina. After realizing her passion was not in health care, but in business, the undergraduate shifted her focus to finance.

"At that point, I envisioned myself as the chief financial officer of a corporation," Truesdale reflects. After amassing an impressive amount of experience interning at various companies, Truesdale found herself overqualified for the job market. It was then that she felt the itch of entrepreneurship.

Being a boss is often romanticized, especially in the Black community where Black enterprise is viewed as a solution to upward mobility. The first few years of a small business are the most crucial to determining its success. According to the Small Business Association , 67.2 percent of businesses survive their first two years in operation, but only about half of that number are still in operation at the five-year mark. Truesdale's first attempt at starting a businesswas not a rousing success,but it provided her with valuable information and solidified her desire to be an entrepreneur.

"It was the best internship of my life. ... I thought, 'Now that I know what failure is like and I'm okay with it, I can do something I always wanted to do,' which was storytelling, particularly superheroes."
The AZA Universe Is Born
It was 2013. Armed with little knowledge of the comic business, the long-loced writer got to work contacting as many experts in the field as she could. Networking earned her knowledgeable mentors who passed on invaluable advice gleaned from years of experience and Truesdale absorbed as much as she could. Although she did not yet know it, her background in business training had prepared her to manage a team of creatives, and her love of storytelling insisted she become an author. Truesdale knew she could create an imprint of her own, so she went to work researching the comic industry to find her niche.

The writer quickly observed that not much had changed since her Wonder Woman fangirl days. There were still few comics catering to women, specifically nonwhite women. "I wanted to create something that women could have for themselves, something they could have a voice in," Truesdale said. "A lot of the things I write and the characters that I develop are what women tell me they want to see."

Truesdale said she was deeply touched by an email from an Afro-Latina supporter who made a strong case for a Latina character in the AZA Universe. The letter inspired the creation of Ixchel, a technological prodigy raised in Bogota, Colombia.

The entire AZA Universe, down to the publishing format, is designed with nonwhite women in mind. Unlike most comics, which are issued weekly or monthly, Truesdale's superhero novels are full-length books with illustrated action scenes dispersed throughout. Her readers, many of them working women and mothers with limited time, appreciate being able to hold onto a book and read it at their own pace. Illustrated scenes provide an engaging visual experience that attracts comic lovers.

"The Keepers" series centers around a group of gifted superheroes who, because of danger in their own realm, migrate to Earth and stick around to save humans from themselves.

The Keepers' leader, Kala, was the deciding factor in whether Truesdale would weave illustrated action scenes into the novel or deliver it purely in prose. Apparently, finding an illustrator who could do justice to Black women's bodies was no easy task. Truesdale envisioned Kala, an unrivaled warrior and heir to the Arjana realm, having smooth cocoa brown skin and endless locs. She was inspired by the African warrior women of Dahomey and the abundance of historical female leaders in Africa. Truesdale knew that Kala's look had to be just as precise as the legacy she represents. Fittingly, the hero bears a striking resemblance to Truesdale.

"When it came down to Kala, [the illustrators] were essentially giving her Eurocentric features and putting brown skin on her," Truesdale said. "They did not have a concept of what Black women's bodies look like."

While scrolling on Instagram , Truesdale found Remero Colston, a Canada-based graphic artist from Detroit. Colston and Truesdale bonded over their shared interest in strong female characters and a desire to see nonwhite people better represented in comics. When asked for a sketch of Kala, Colston sent it over in an hour and was hired the same day. In January 2016, Truesdale rolled out the first edition, " The Keepers: Origins."

Truesdale and Colston began with an idea, three interns and a website. Now, on the heels of its' two-year anniversary, the AZA Comics Universe is still thriving. The CEO reports that book and merchandise sales are steadily growing between 25-30 percent each month. Still, growth can be sporadic at times. Truesdale notes that things may slow down, but after every speaking engagement, article or press coverage, new orders for Kala T-shirts fly in about a month later. Word-of-mouth referrals also play a big role in the company's development.

"Right now, we're trying to put the word out and make a name for AZA Comics," she said.
Saving the World One Young Entrepreneur at a Time
Truesdale's trials and successes with entrepreneurship exposed her to how difficult it can be for Black people to gain access to the resources necessary to build a successful startup. While working as a consultant for a group of venture capitalists, the superhero creator was given an opportunity to assess business plans for hopeful entrepreneurs. She was the only nonwhite person and the only woman with a seat at the table. When the group decided to create programs to build business skills for young people, Truesdale was excited. It was an idea she had nurtured on her own for a long time. During a focus group for the program, Truesdale suggested that the venture capitalists engage students at North Carolina Central University. She was immediately met with resistance.

"To actually see firsthand the level of racism, how we're literally excluded from discussions at the table... it really hit home for me," she said. Truesdale knew that in order to encourage more young people of color to become entrepreneurs, she would have to do it herself.

From that moment, Jazmin Truesdale conceived the Dare to Be Legendary program. Launched in May 2017 by Mino Enterprises (AZA Comics' parent company), Dare to Be Legendary is a free, online-based learning lab that teaches business basics to young people who want to start their own companies. Truesdale narrowed in on nonwhite youths and schools in urban communities to pilot the program. She was astonished by the large amount of feedback and the willingness of other entrepreneurs to contribute lesson plans to the program. (For those interested, DBL is currently accepting schools and students . Entrepreneurs and investors interesting in volunteering their time, talents and donations are encouraged to contact Jazmin Truesdale .)

Truesdale's mission for Dare to Be Legendary fit right in with the vision of AZA Comics: that youth can grow up in a multicultural world where nonwhites have a sense of mutual respect and support for each other, like she was raised.

"A lot of the oppression we face, especially as women of color ... overlaps," Truesdale said. "With ' The Keepers I just wanted to show that these girls are sisters.

"They respect each other's differences and struggles, they listen to each other and support each other."
Read The Keepers: Origins and find merchandise at AZAComics.com.

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Black Woman Creates Comics Universe Where all the Superheroes are Women of Color

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Jazmin Truesdale's pitch rings with an upbeat optimism. Like many Black women with backgrounds in the corporate sector, her assertive personality reflects experiences that have required her to be more competent than those around her just to gain a seat at the table.

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Hear stories from maker educators and discover creative ideas & projects.

The Maker Education Initiative is a 501c3 non-profit organization. EIN# 83-4594261

Unless otherwise noted, all the materials on this site are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike 4.0 license.

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Hear stories from maker educators and discover creative ideas & projects. The Maker Education Initiative is a 501c3 non-profit organization. EIN# 83-4594261 Unless otherwise noted, all the materials on this site are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike 4.0 license.

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3D Printing Industry-The Authority on 3D Printing & Additive Manufacturing

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3D Printing Industry-The Authority on 3D Printing & Additive Manufacturing

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AM finishing system manufacturer DyeMansion has released 17 new colors specifically for post-processing 3D printed grey HP MJF parts made of Polyamide 12 (PA12). The vibrant color range is expected to...

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3D Printing Industry-The Authority on 3D Printing & Additive Manufacturing

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AM finishing system manufacturer DyeMansion has released 17 new colors specifically for post-processing 3D printed grey HP MJF parts made of Polyamide 12 (PA12). The vibrant color range is expected to...

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The Creative Cookie (TCC), founded in 2008, is a quirky peek into the life of an easily inspired New York based fashion blogger.

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Ruth E. Carter's unparalleled ability to develop an authentic story through costume and character has made her one of the most sought after and renowned costume designers today.

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Due to COVID-19 and the increased need for sewing machines, our service levels have suffered and we are working around the clock to catch up and provide assistance to your most frequently asked questions (FAQ). Inventory levels are also limited due to this unprecedented demand but we are making updates frequently, just as soon as new deliveries arrive.

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SINGER Sewing & Embroidery Machines | Singer.com

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SINGER Sewing & Embroidery Machines | Singer.com

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Best 3D printer for beginners and budget creators to buy for 2020 - CNET

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Best 3D printer for beginners and budget creators to buy for 2020 - CNET

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pandemic has thrown a spotlight on the incredible versatility of 3D printing as well as the sharp need for expertise about them. Both individual makers as well as large companies like HP and Formlabs are using 3D printers to design and create PPE such as face shields, clips for masks (surgical and homemade), and even hands-free door handle add-ons to help in the fight against the virus.

After several weeks of working-from-home without 3D printer access, I finally got my hands on an XYXPrinting da Vinci Jr. 1.0 A Pro. So far, I've made a couple of fasteners for home-made cloth masks and some face shield headbands. The former are already in use, the latter will have to wait until my clear plastic face shield material arrives in a few days.

My interest in 3D printing started back in 2018, when I got pretty deep in the weeds, creating everything from smartphone stands to tabletop game accessories to a sweet mini Millennium Falcon. Since then, I've doubled down, getting into 3D scanning and even laser cutting, which lets you sculpt real-world designs from wood and leather.

There are plenty of 3D printing options to choose from, so finding the best 3D printer that meets your needs and is within your price range can be tricky. That's why we're here to help. We've considered the pros and cons of each 3D printer, along with printing speed, print quality, noise level, design, resolution, and more. These creative tools, which range from affordable (under $300) to high end (over $3,000), are awesome gifts for a creative person in your life -- or even better -- they're great for you to craft your own personalized designs.

Once you find the best 3D printer and you end up getting completely addicted to 3D printing, don't blame me. (But if you do, here's a handy 3D printing FAQ that should answer some of your questions).

Dan Ackerman/CNET

The ambitious da Vinci Jr. 1.0 A Pro is a step-up 3D printer with a big 6.9-inch square build surface and optional add-ons for both laser engraving and using specialized material like carbon-fiber filament. It's $449 with just the standard equipment, or $579 with the extras. That said, the lack of built-in Wi-Fi on this printer is a major hassle, and for this price a nonheated bed is a serious omission. Some of the company's printers are locked to proprietary filament, but fortunately, this model is not (which is good, because the sample roll of PLA included in the box wasn't great).

Despite some extra troubleshooting required during setup, I liked the modular nature of the printer, its big, easy to use buttons, and frankly, the cheerful bright orange color.

Sarah Tew/CNET

This is my go-to best 3D printer for balancing price, easy use and print quality. Setup is easy, and I had it assembled and was ready to start printing in less than 30 minutes after opening the box and gathering materials. Read more.

Originally published in 2019 and updated periodically.

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The best 3D printer for beginners and budget creators in 2020

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pandemic has thrown a spotlight on the incredible versatility of 3D printing as well as the sharp need for expertise about them. Both individual makers as well as large companies like HP and Formlabs are using 3D printers to design and create PPE such as face shields, clips for masks (surgical and homemade), and even hands-free door handle add-ons to help in the fight against the virus.

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DesigningAdd a personal touch.
No matter how small.

Start from scratch or get a head start. Design Space lets you edit and personalize your project with ease. Access the library to find images and fonts, or upload your own artwork. Then arrange and rearrange until you've got something you love.

Selecting materialsThe more, the merrier.

Refined, exotic, ornate, humble ... beautiful projects come from materials of all types. Choose from hundreds of options - everything from leather to pleather, felt to foil, scrap denim to spare chipboard. Then let the machine work its magic.

Using the machineEvery little detail
gets noticed.

Because Cricut machines use professional cutting technology, no detail is too detailed. Cut the most intricate shape, add a "handwritten" note in ink, or expertly score a pop-up card. With Cricut's unmatched precision, each piece will always be exactly what you want.

FinishingBring it all together.
Enjoy the OMGs.

Ready for the big finish? Cricut Essentials make putting the pieces together a joy. From tweezers that handle delicate parts to Cricut EasyPress ™ for foolproof iron-ons, every Essential makes a great project even greater, every step of the way.

You've got this.
And you've got us.

With a product this prolific, it may take some time to learn all of its tricks. So here's what we promise with every Cricut machine:

Step-by-step setup, including hands-on practice projects

Software that's easy to use, even if you don't use it every day

Plenty of instructional videos for each skill and technique

Extended chat support and phone support

A fabulous, welcoming, helpful, creative Cricut community

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XYZprinting | da Vinci 3D Printers - MAKE 3D POSSIBLE

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XYZprinting | da Vinci 3D Printers - MAKE 3D POSSIBLE

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3D Design Software | 3D Modeling on the Web | SketchUp

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3D Design Software | 3D Modeling on the Web | SketchUp

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Your authority for smartwatch, fitness tracker, sports tech, running watches, VR and all wearable tech news, reviews and guides.

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Get Started With CircuitPython

This guide gets folks started with CircuitPython, a version of Python particularly suited to use on hardware like microcontrollers and single board computers like Raspberry Pi.

Curated Adafruit products, unique collectibles, and exclusive discounts. All delivered quarterly. Make outside the box!

2987 tutorials total and counting

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Get Started With CircuitPython This guide gets folks started with CircuitPython, a version of Python particularly suited to use on hardware like microcontrollers and single board computers like Raspberry Pi. Curated Adafruit products, unique collectibles, and exclusive discounts. All delivered quarterly. Make outside the box! 2987 tutorials total and counting

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Creativebug - Craft Classes & Workshops - What will you make today?

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Creativebug - Craft Classes & Workshops - What will you make today?

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creativebug has free online craft classes

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crafting techniques. learn how to paint with watercolors

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Creativebug - Craft Classes & Workshops - What will you make today?

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Creativebug offers online video arts and crafts workshops and techniques. Learn how to paint, knit, crochet, sew, screen print, and more.

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Overview | Make It Glow: How to Solder NeoPixels, A Beginner's Guide | Adafruit Learning System

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Overview | Make It Glow: How to Solder NeoPixels, A Beginner's Guide | Adafruit Learning System

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This guide is for beginners who are ready to take the next step in DIY electronics: putting that soldering iron to use to add NeoPixel or other addressable LED lights to your project.

You don't have to be able to solder to use NeoPixels! Here is a beginner tutorial that shows how to use NeoPixels with no soldering: Make it Glow - Your First NeoPixel Project

However, there are times when soldering is really the best option. If you want to use NeoPixel rings, or individual pixels, or create more elaborate or complicated designs with multiple strips, there's really no way to do it without soldering.

The good news: it's not as hard as you think! There are a fair number of tools to acquire, but once you've got your station set up, a whole world of creative possibilities will open up for you.

In this guide, we'll recommend some tools and equipment that every DIY electronics maker should have in their workshop. Then, we'll go over the techniques and skills needed to get a good solder connection, and how to secure your connections it so they are sturdy and reliable.

Finally, we'll cover some techniques for repairing broken strips, and troubleshooting help for when your project just won't behave the way you want.
This guide assumes you're making a fairly small project, with fewer than around 250 NeoPixels and just one NeoPixel strip. Once your projects get more ambitious with more pixels and more strips, dive into the NeoPixel Überguide for more advanced techniques.
Roll up your sleeves, Makers, and let's get started.

What is a NeoPixel?

NeoPixel is a fancy name for an addressable LED light that can show millions of colors, and also color animations, when you hook them up to a microcontroller and a battery.

"Addressable" means that every single pixel has its own little brain, so each pixel can show a different color from its neighbors. You may have encountered LED strips that can show all green, or all blue, or even change from one color to the next as a strip -- these are commonly used in everything from fancy architecture to cheap toys you bought on the Internet. NeoPixels are different in that they can show all the colors at once, and can update so fast that they appear to show animations.

What Kind Should I Get?

There are a lot of options out there. Check out this page of the NeoPixel Überguide to learn about the differences between NeoPixel types and their form factors.

This guide will cover soldering NeoPixel strips and rings and pixels and dots, so choose the one that works best with your vision.

If you need bright, pure white lights in your project, use RGBW format. Otherwise, use RGB. And if you need really tight timing, say, for persistence-of-vision (POV) projects, you'll want to use DotStar LEDs instead of NeoPixels. Most costume or home-DIY projects work great with NeoPixels, which are a little less expensive and a bit easier to hook up, since they have just 3 connections instead of 4.

You'll also need a microcontroller and a power source to make the pixels work.

Microcontroller

Which to get depends on your project. If you're not sure, get a Circuit Playground Express. This is my favorite controller for smaller DIY type projects like costumes or artwork. It's really easy to program, there are lots of code samples available so you can just copy-paste effects, and it has sensors, which means you can make your artwork interactive.

If you're on a budget, and don't need fancy motion sensors, sound sensors, or other interactivity-enablers, get a Gemma M0.

Power Sources

If your project will be stationary, plug your microcontroller in to the wall or a USB hub with its onboard USB port.

If your project is mobile, like a costume, get one of these 5v AAA battery packs. This is a great option because it's got an on/off switch, which is very handy.

Here's a kit that has a Circuit Playground, a USB cable and a battery pack! Score.

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Make It Glow: How to Solder NeoPixels, A Beginner's Guide

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This is an intro guide for those who are ready to learn how to solder NeoPixel strips and rings, with a focus on costumes and DIY artwork. Choose your soldering iron, heat it up, and get ready to practice your skills. You'll be creating amazing glowing projects in no time.

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Video | Collin's Lab: Multimeters | Adafruit Learning System

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Video | Collin's Lab: Multimeters | Adafruit Learning System

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The multimeter is your greatest ally when working with electronics. Learn how to measure voltage, resistance, current, & continuity - as well as which meter works best for specific tasks.

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Collin's Lab: Multimeters! The multimeter is your greatest ally when working with electronics. Learn how to measure voltage, resistance, current, & continuity - as well as which meter works best for specific tasks.

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Video | Collin's Lab: RFID | Adafruit Learning System

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Video | Collin's Lab: RFID | Adafruit Learning System

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Tiny tags that send & store data, powered by radio waves and small enough to be embedded under the skin - RFID is used all over, but it remains a fascinating technology.

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DIY Double-Sided Head Wrap - A Beautiful Mess

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DIY Double-Sided Head Wrap - A Beautiful Mess

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Hi guys! LaTonya here with another easy and fun DIY to share with you all! I love wearing head wraps. It's something that has become a style comfort zone for me, and instantly brings a bit of color and happiness to my outfits. Wearing a head wrap can truly be a stylish addition to any wardrobe. Some head wraps are quite expensive to purchase, but with this DIY, you can make your own double-sided head wrap in just a few minutes. Half the cost, double the wear!

First, choose your fabrics. This is the fun part, besides wearing the wrap of course. Since the wrap will act as two wraps in one, choosing fabrics that are total opposites and can be worn with completely different outfits is key. I chose a plant-based fabric and a blue floral fabric. Each fabric should be cotton.

Supplies:
- sewing machine
- scissors
- measuring tape
- two yards of each fabric (I always like to purchase more than enough fabric just in case.)

Step One: First things first, measure and cut your fabric! The fabric length is the most important part. For your head wrap to be fully functional, each piece of fabric needs to be measured and cut to 62″ x 17″. Depending on your hair, you'll end up having a lot of extra fabric to wrap, or you'll just have enough to tuck under after you wrap. The more of the wrap you have after tying the better. You want to be able to create large knots if you would like to in the future.

Step Two: Now for some easy sewing! Lay your two pieces of fabric down so the back sides are facing out and pin. (Before pinning, I also suggest that you iron your fabric. This isn't necessary, but it makes the fabric look so much neater). Sew completely around, leaving one of the width sides open. Flip the double-sided wrap right side out and finish sewing the gap.

Once you're completely finished with sewing, your wrap is complete! Wasn't that easy?

The great thing about a head wrap is you can wear it so many ways. Sometimes, I like my hair fully covered, so I pull it all in and have a tucked-in knot like above. Sometimes, I like a little bit of hair in my face and let it hang out. Other times, I like a lot of my hair shown and fold the length of the wrap one time, and then tie it. Then it shows most of my fro. Enjoy! xo. LaTonya

Credits// Author: LaTonya Staubs. Photography: Belle Savaransky . Photos edited with Valentine from the Signature Collection .

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DIY Double-Sided Head Wrap - A Beautiful Mess

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Hi guys! LaTonya here with another easy and fun DIY to share with you all! I love wearing head wraps. It's something that has become a style comfort zone for me, and instantly brings a bit of color and happiness to my outfits. Wearing a head wrap can truly be a stylish addition to any wardrobe.

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Your Next T-Shirt Will Be Made by a Robot - IEEE Spectrum

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Your Next T-Shirt Will Be Made by a Robot - IEEE Spectrum

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IEEE Spectrum: Technology, Engineering, and Science News

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Illustration: MCKIBILLO

Sometime later this year, dozens of robots will spring into action at a new factory in Little Rock, Ark. The plant will not make cars or electronics, nor anything else that robots are already producing these days. Instead it will make T-shirts-lots of T-shirts. When fully operational, these sewing robots will churn them out at a dizzying rate of one every 22 seconds.

For decades, the automation of the sewing of garments has vexed roboticists. Conventional robots excel at manipulating rigid objects but are rather inept at handling soft, flexible materials like fabric. Early attempts to automate sewing included treating pieces of cloth with starch to temporarily make them stiff, allowing a robot to manipulate them as if they were steel sheets. This and other approaches, however, never became commercially viable, mainly because the clothing industry has resisted automation by relying on cheap labor in developing countries.

Now a Georgia Tech spin-off, SoftWear Automation, in Atlanta, claims to have built a practical sewing robot. And it doesn't need starch. Rather, it's based on a much higher-tech approach, one that combines machine vision and advanced manipulators. At the Arkansas factory, owned by Tianyuan Garments Co., one of China's largest apparel manufacturers, SoftWear's robots, called Sewbots, will equip 21 production lines, designed to make 23 million T-shirts per year for Adidas.

"Around the world, even the cheapest labor market can't compete with us," Tang Xinhong, chairman of Tianyuan, told China Daily last year, referring to the cost of producing each T-shirt, which he expected to be only 33 U.S. cents.

The fact that a Chinese company will use robots to make T-shirts in the United States appears to be a watershed moment for the clothing industry. Satyandra K. Gupta, director of the Center for Advanced Manufacturing at the University of Southern California, in Los Angeles, says sewing robots will ultimately allow factories to produce clothing not only faster and cheaper but with greater customization. "You'll get clothes made based on your body size and fashion tastes," he says. "This has potential to significantly change the industry."

Today, if you walk into a garment factory, you'll find workers performing almost every task required to make a piece of apparel. What happens when robots take over their labors? While some observers warn that millions risk losing their jobs, others argue that in the long term automation will decentralize manufacturing, creating new, better jobs in many more places.

Photos: SoftWear Automation

Sew Nice: SoftWear Automation's sewing robot [top] monitors the deformation of fabric using high-resolution cameras [bottom] to track the movement of individual threads.

"Our vision is that we should be able to manufacture clothing anywhere in the world and not rely on cheap labor and outsourcing," says Palaniswamy "Raj" Rajan, the chairman and CEO of SoftWear, which has raised US $7.5 million from venture capital firm CTW Venture Partners. When manufacturers are located nearer their customers, he says, they can design and deliver new products faster and also reduce transportation and inventory costs.

But the changes won't happen overnight. Automated sewing, despite the progress demonstrated by SoftWear and others, remains extremely challenging. Fabric comes in many different weights and textures, and handling such a wide variety is still tricky for robots. "Wherever there's a need to manipulate fabric-for example, to load the sewing machine-then the human is still very much in play," says David Bourne, a principal scientist at Carnegie Mellon University's Robotics Institute who focuses on building intelligent systems for automated manufacturing. "The material-handling part of this whole thing is missing."

The approach SoftWear came up with to solve this problem is rather ingenious. (The company has three issued patents and several more patent applications.) Instead of trying to manipulate a piece of fabric by keeping track of its overall dimensions-which is tricky because textiles stretch and deform-the company decided to track individual threads in the fabric. To do that, it developed a specialized camera capable of capturing more than 1,000 frames per second, and a set of image-processing algorithms to detect, on each frame, where the threads are.

At the same time, the company built robotic manipulators to mimic the way sewing-machine operators use their fingers to handle fabric. These micromanipulators, powered by precise linear actuators, can guide a piece of cloth through a sewing machine with submillimeter precision, correcting for distortions of the material.

In addition, SoftWear came up with two other systems to move fabric panels around: One is a four-axis robotic arm with a vacuum gripper that can pick up and place fabric items on the sewing table; the other is a 360-degree conveyor system that uses spherical rollers embedded on the table to slide and rotate the panels at high speed.

The company's current Sewbots can make bath rugs, pillowcases, towels, and other products that are flat and mostly round or square in shape. Rajan, the CEO, says 2 million such products are already for sale at Target, Walmart, and other major retailers, and that before year-end "our robots will be making 30 million pieces a year."

SoftWear is now improving its sewing robots for operation at the Tianyuan factory. Making a T-shirt is much more complicated than making a rug because a T-shirt requires multiple seams and hems that are not flat. If all goes as planned, the Sewbot will be able to carry out the same tasks that 10 workers currently perform, like sewing a sleeve or attaching a label, in a conventional production line-except the robot will be able to make the same T-shirt in about half the time.

After T-shirts, SoftWear wants to focus on jeans, dress shirts, and uniforms, which are even harder to make. Will robots eventually sew every piece of clothing we wear? No, Rajan says: "High fashion, bridal dresses, things like that-those are still going to be done by humans." So for now it appears that "robot couture" will have to wait.

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Your Next T-Shirt Will Be Made by a Robot

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Sometime later this year, dozens of robots will spring into action at a new factory in Little Rock, Ark. The plant will not make cars or electronics, nor anything else that robots are already producing these days. Instead it will make T-shirts-lots of T-shirts.

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Revolutionary 3-D Fashion Show Showcased By African Designer Anifa Mvemba

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Revolutionary 3-D Fashion Show Showcased By African Designer Anifa Mvemba

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Kinshasa Backless Mini Dress
Courtesy of Hanifa

With the coronavirus resulting in the cancelation of many scheduled fashion events across the world and news regarding a great volume of large retailers filing for bankruptcy, the industry has been hit hard. And while fashion icons, designers, and manufacturers, in many ways have scurried to transform given the evolving news of the pandemic, Congolese fashion designer Anifa Mvemba of the contemporary brand Hanifa Official was ready for action.

After sharing news regarding the launch of her collection with 3-D models, Mvemba's new line streamed live on Instagram, Friday, May 22nd, as a virtual runway that innovatively raised fashion standards both nationally and internationally. As percussion-based music illuminated each moment of the show, in a masterful way, it challenged the norms that have traditionally been set for show delivery to date.

And as her showcase of the Pink Label Congo collection ensued, featuring vibrantly colored pants and dresses, fashion spectators could all agree that it was a great example of the future of runway fashion.
Prepared to Launch
Mvemba's innovative show is very fitting given society's current climate, however, the designer held plans to launch her show long before COVID-19 led the masses to stay at home. When speaking to editors, the designer mentioned that: "The news came out about how serious things were and I started to feel a bit anxious about everything going on. I started feeling like maybe it would be insensitive to create and share a new collection online while people were facing very difficult realities." Mvemba's team encouraged her to persist nonetheless and the designer realized her ability to positively impact her community by sharing her new line through an immersive media mode that she was determined to see to fruition.

Although having used 3-D designs mockups for quite some time for samples, Mvemba expressed that the level of attention-to-detail was magnified when she endeavored to execute on a virtual show for an entire collection. Mvemba had been working to create the computer-generated models over a seven month period.
An Ode to the African Congo's Seamstresses

Mái Maxi Dress resembles the Congo River where the Atlantic Ocean meets the land. This floor-length ... [+]
Courtesy of Hanifa

As the live stream launched, a count down loaded, and the room filled with viewers. And when the video began, the show's designer, Mvemba, shared her inspiration for the line prior to 3-D models eloquently gracing the screen covered in illustrious garments.

For the line, each outfit served as a representation of the Congo, a country in central Africa that is home to the brand's designer. For example, as a 3-D model image of a backless mini dress ran across the screen viewers learned that this dress was made to represent the Congolese flag colors. Additionally, as a floor length maxi dress in green and blue walked across the screen, the visual of the dress was said to be symbolic of the Congo river where the Atlantic Ocean and land meet.

Mvemba drew attention to these features within her designs as she shared that for African seamstresses great meaning can be found in the details of each fashion creation. The three things that Mvemba highlights are important are: the detail, color, and prints. As a designer, she was very intentional about these elements.
Mvemba's Homage to the Congolese Mines
In addition to raising awareness around African seamstresses, the Hanifa brand designer found it important to start the show with a short documentary shedding light on the Congolese mines. In the opening documentary, Mvemba illustrated the experiences of underaged children working in the mines to dig for cobalt under very harsh conditions.

Over 60% of the world's production of cobalt occurs in the mines of the Congo. The chemical element cobalt is used to produce smartphones, electric vehicles, and more. In her pursuit to shed light on these conditions, the designer endeavored for the fashion collection to support and benefit the families most affected by dire mining conditions.

KOLWEZI, DRC: A miner fills a bag with cobalt at the CDM (Congo DongFang Mining) Kasulo mine. Cobalt ... [+]
Corbis via Getty Images

Mvemba's Hope for The Congo
In her replay post for viewers following the stream Mvemba highlighted:

"Riddled with a painful history, the beauty of Congo is often untapped and overlooked. The gentleness, beauty, history, poise, majesty, strength, power, and hope of the Congolese spirit inspired this collection. When creating each piece, I was reminded of the stories my mother told me of the women she knew back home in Congo. Women who suffered great loss but still, mustered every ounce of strength everyday to show up.

My hope is that this collection inspires all women to stand tall in their power and like the Democratic Republic of Congo, to use their history, whether pretty or painful-to redesign their future. My country, the land of Congo, is ripe with an abundance of natural resources-the greatest of which are its people-its women."

... Read More

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Revolutionary 3-D Fashion Show Showcased By African Designer Anifa Mvemba

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With the coronavirus resulting in the cancelation of many scheduled fashion events across the world and news regarding a great volume of large retailers filing for bankruptcy, the industry has been hit hard.

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Hanifa (@hanifaofficial) • Instagram photos and videos

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Hanifa (@hanifaofficial) • Instagram photos and videos

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Collections :: Explore: Mask Design | Smithsonian Learning Lab

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Collections :: Explore: Mask Design | Smithsonian Learning Lab

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In this collection, explore the history, evolution, and meaning of masks through multiple perspectives. Harvard Project Zero Thinking Routines are included at the end to help guide discussion and reflection of design choices, local and global impact, and ways that masks protect and conceal the wearer.

Suggested instructions for use: This collection was designed to be modular and a survey of the masks available at the Smithsonian. Each section begins with an essential question, followed by several masks that help explore the key concept. Teachers may facilitate Project Zero Thinking Routines before and/or after students look closely at each section. Students may want to jot down notes in response to the essential question in preparation for a group discussion.

Additional questions to guide investigation:

How does belief shape our response to worldly concerns?

How does the body's needs and shape dictate the designs we create?

How does new knowledge change our decisions? What "old" knowledge gets carried forward and why?

Where are we vulnerable in our bodies?

This collection was created in collaboration by:

Elizabeth Dale-Deines, Smithsonian American Art Museum

Alexa Griffith, Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

Ashley Naranjo, Smithsonian Center for Learning and Digital Access

Diana N'Diaye, Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage

Stephanie Norby, Smithsonian Center for Learning and Digital Access

Katherine Ott, National Museum of American History

Tess Porter, Smithsonian Center for Learning and Digital Access

Emily Szasz, Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

To read more about the research process the team used in creating this collection, please visit the supplementary Smithsonian Learning Lab blog post.

Keywords: cfch, chsdm, nmah, saam, sclda, ppe, face covering, protection, design, making, community, fashion, production, identity, inquiry, art, culture, medicine, science

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In this collection, explore the history, evolution, and meaning of masks through multiple perspectives. Harvard Project Zero Thinking Routines are included at the end to help guide discussion and reflection of design choices, local and global impact, and ways that masks protect and conceal the wearer.

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Iris van Herpen Fall 2018 Couture Collection - Vogue

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Iris van Herpen Fall 2018 Couture Collection - Vogue

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Haute couture is not without its sweeping gestures. For Fall, Iris van Herpen said she was interested in a version of the opposite, what she explained as "slowing down the movement of a fabric." To reinforce this time-lapse concept, the runway of the blacked-out venue featured In 20 Steps by artists Studio Drift, whereby as many articulated glass tubes suspended from the ceiling very slowly simulated the movement of wings in flight. If the 17 looks came and went in roughly 10 minutes, the overhead installation would have represented less time than it took you to read this sentence. "Often I like to zoom out, but this was really about zooming into almost one second of my whole process," she said.

Van Herpen is haute couture's chief scientist and perhaps also its leading futurist, and you can inevitably detect how biology, physics, and a ton of algorithms inform her designs. This latest lineup evolved on techniques she has previously developed while framing the forms within the show's title, Syntopia, which, in her words, refers to "biology merging with technology." Thus, her signature parametric patterning now appeared as gray wool thanks to laser-cutting from complex file-making. The two coats that opened the show were as close to classic tailoring as we've seen from the designer, so the addition of woven leather somewhat complicated an otherwise essential and masterfully executed piece.

The stack of flash cards featuring illustrations and descriptions of the creations that always accompanies the show notes helped to decipher a dynamic minidress that rippled with two-tone dyed red organza heat-bonded to laser-cut Mylar and black cotton. Like several other looks, these material waves nodded to Victorian-era chronophotography, and specifically here to the lines of bird wing movements. Picture them on the red carpet and their symbolism gets lost; picture them in a museum and the movement is thwarted. And yet, the effect remains strong. Meanwhile, compared with the cage shapes in stainless steel and cotton, two cape designs in liquid-coated organza from Japan made for ethereal expressions of fluidity. In spite of their sheerness-always a practical concern-the pleating shifted around the body with goddess beauty.

An interesting postscript to the word "syntopia" is that its meaning also apparently suggests a bridge between utopian and dystopian ideals, which still dovetails well with Van Herpen's work. As bestselling books Homo Deus and Life 3.0 explore the possibility of human gods and the rise of artificial intelligence (naturally, she's read both), her designs are significant, even when they aren't conducive to wearing (see the fully restricted arms of the final dress, which was "layered like a feather's architecture"). Rather than imagined as some runway science fantasy, they are inextricably linked to science. And this creates an altogether different rapport with time than the usual seasonal collection. As Van Herpen summed up best, "These pieces are not necessarily here and now. They both connect to something that is coming and something that has already come."

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Iris van Herpen Fall 2018 Couture Collection

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Iris van Herpen Fall 2018 Couture collection, runway looks, beauty, models, and reviews.

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Lupita Nyong'o Wears Light-Up LED Dress to Star Wars Event | PEOPLE.com

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Lupita Nyong'o Wears Light-Up LED Dress to Star Wars Event | PEOPLE.com

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Though she's only been a red carpet presence for two years, it feels like there's almost no fashion frontier Lupita Nyong'o hasn't conquered. She's worn capes! Fringe! Pearls! And a million twirly skirts! But Wednesday night, Nyong'o went where almost no woman has gone before - to a fashion galaxy far, far away - in a dress that glowed, flashed and blinked with dozens of LED lights.

Paul Bruinooge/PMC/Sipa

Designed by Zac Posen in collaboration with Google for his ZAC Zac Posen line, the dress was previously worn by Coco Rocha on Posen's runway and was a part of Google's Made With Code program, which encourages girls to get into coding.

Nyong'o selected it for the Star Wars:Force 4 Fashion event in N.Y.C. The actress, who stars in the upcoming film The Force Awakens, checked out designs by DVF, Rag & Bone, Parker and more, all of which will be auctioned by Bloomingdale's to benefit the Child Mind Institute. "It's a great collaboration, and one that is only expanding what is the Star Wars universe," Nyong'o told reporters about the event. "I'm super excited to be here because I love fashion and I love Star Wars."

How excited was she? Well, excited enough to wear a light-up dress. (As stylist Micaela Erlanger pointed out on Instagram, it's "the power of fashion!") Say an onlooker at the event, "She bee-lined to her costars in front of one of the showcased designs before walking the carpet and whipped off this black coat, like 'BAM! Check out my starry dress!' [Costar John Boyega's] jaw dropping reaction was priceless!"
RELATED PHOTOS: Obsessed or hot mess? Celebrity styles that need your vote!
The LED bulb circuit was designed and physically built into Posen's dress fabric by Maddy Maxey, 22, who told PEOPLE she was nervous watching Rocha make her way down the catwalk. "It's exactly as if she was carrying a microwave down the runway," Maxey said. "It's an entire circuit on a textile, so if one connection had come lose, the dress wouldn't have worked. But, it did! And it was so deeply rewarding."
RELATED VIDEO: Check Out These One-of-a-Kind Designer Fashion Items Inspired by Star Wars!
Nyong'o also wore the dress on The Daily Show, where she explained to host Trevor Noah why she was to step out in something so, well, science-y. "I think I might have been attracted to it because of my experience on Star Wars," she said. "It's about encouraging girls to try computer science by showing them how it merges with fashion, how it can."
Do you love the dress? - Alex Apatoff

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lupita nyong'o wears light-up led dress to star wars event

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Lupita Nyong'o's Dress (Literally) Lit Up the Room at Star Wars Party

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Though she's only been a red carpet presence for two years, it feels like there's almost no fashion frontier Lupita Nyong'o hasn't conquered. She's worn capes! Fringe! Pearls! And a million twirly skirts! But Wednesday night, Nyong'o went where almost no woman has gone before - to a fashion galaxy far, far away - in a dress that glowed, flashed and blinked with dozens of LED lights.

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Met Gala 2016: Claire Danes’s Glow-in-the-Dark Gown Upstaged a Red-Car | Vanity Fair

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Met Gala 2016: Claire Danes’s Glow-in-the-Dark Gown Upstaged a Red-Car | Vanity Fair

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The Official Everpurse. The purse that charges your iPhone wire-free.

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The Official Everpurse. The purse that charges your iPhone wire-free.

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The Official Everpurse. The purse that charges your iPhone wire-free.

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The original designer iPhone charging bag. Never run out of power. Stay charged all day. Pretty and powerful just like you. Everpurse x Kate Spade New York.

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How It Works - Wearable Tech Company | Wearable X

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How It Works - Wearable Tech Company | Wearable X

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How It Works - Wearable Tech Company | Wearable X

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Get to know how Nadi X combines the comfort of yoga pants with the technology of wearables.

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EL Wire/Tape/Panel : Adafruit Industries, Unique & fun DIY electronics and kits

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EL Wire/Tape/Panel : Adafruit Industries, Unique & fun DIY electronics and kits

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tools gift certificates arduino cables sensors leds books breakout boards power el wire/tape/panel components & parts lcds & displays wearables prototyping raspberry pi wireless young engineers 3d printing neopixels kits & projects robotics & cnc accessories cosplay/costuming halloween reseller and school packs internet of things - iot media development boards batteries gift ideas feather circuitpython circuit playground crickit ecommerce

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EL Wire/Tape/Panel : Adafruit Industries, Unique & fun DIY electronics and kits

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Adafruit Industries, Unique & fun DIY electronics and kits : EL Wire/Tape/Panel - Tools Gift Certificates Arduino Cables Sensors LEDs Books Breakout Boards Power EL Wire/Tape/Panel Components & Parts LCDs & Displays Wearables Prototyping Raspberry Pi Wireless Young Engineers 3D printing NeoPixels Kits & Projects Robotics & CNC Accessories Cosplay/Costuming Halloween Reseller and School Packs Internet of Things - IoT Media Development Boards Batteries Gift Ideas Feather CircuitPython Circuit Playground Crickit ecommerce, open source, shop, online shopping

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Timberland | SensorFlex™ Comfort System from Timberland

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Timberland | SensorFlex™ Comfort System from Timberland

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Timberland | SensorFlex™ Comfort System from Timberland

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Uncomfortable shoes? We think not. Our footwear is made for long days and nights with our specially designed comfort system.

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Overview | Best Beginner Boards for Teachers | Adafruit Learning System

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Overview | Best Beginner Boards for Teachers | Adafruit Learning System

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Microcontrollers are small programmable circuit boards that supply processing power to many kinds of electronics projects.

They're also a great way to introduce kids to coding and building. Just add a few components and everyday crafts or recycled material and you can build everything from a simple circuit to a fully-functional robot!

If you've got a bit of electronics background, or you're up for a challenge, there are plenty of microcontrollers to choose from.

But if you (and your students) are new to coding and electronics, your best bet is something powerful, expandable -- and simple enough to use right out of the box.

Luckily, getting students started with microcontrollers is easier than ever before! Here's a look at three boards -- the Circuit Playground Express, the Gemma M0, and the PyBadge -- that are great for teachers who are ready to learn coding and electronics themselves, and/or working with students who have little or no coding background.

Adafruit's beginner boards are newbie-friendly in many ways:

They can use MakeCode drag-and-drop block programming (and toggle back and forth to text-based Javascript).

They are designed with clip-able connections.

They include built-in inputs for physical control, like sensors that can register tilt or sound.

They include built-in outputs like speakers and lights.

When students are ready to move on to the next level, the boards can be programmed with more advanced languages like CircuitPython and Arduino.

Keep reading for tips on which boards are best for beginner educators and students, and suggestions for how to get started!

Suggested Boards

Adafruit caters to educators by offering boards and the accessories you need to get started individually as well as in classroom sets and in kits that include all the basics and more.

On Adafruit's Educator Page, you'll find links to products and information on educator discounts. Combine them with discounts for bulk purchases for extra savings.

The list below is just a sample of the options available!

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Microcontrollers are small programmable circuit boards that supply processing power to many kinds of electronics projects. They're also a great way to introduce kids to coding and building. Just add a few components and everyday crafts or recycled material and you can build everything from a simple circuit to a fully-functional robot!

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Sew Electric - BOK-12019 - SparkFun Electronics

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Sew Electric - BOK-12019 - SparkFun Electronics

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If you're interested in interactive toys, smart accessories, or light-up fashions, this book is for you! Sew Electric is a set of hands-on LilyPad Arduino tutorials that bring together craft, electronics, and programming. The book walks you through the process of designing and making a series of quirky customizable projects including a sparkling bracelet, a glow in the dark bookmark, a fabric piano, and a monster that sings when you hold its hands. Play with cutting-edge technologies and learn sewing, programming, and circuit design along the way. It's a book for all ages. Explore the projects with your friends, your parents, your kids, or your students!

With this book you will learn how to:

Make fun and easy to use e-textile projects

Program a Lilypad Arduino

Implement simple skills to sew any e-textile board

Info:

Author: Leah Buechley & Kanjun Qiu

Illustrator: Sonja de Boer

Publisher: HLT Press

Paperback: 185 pages

ISBN-10: 0-9897-9560-8

ISBN-13: 978-0-9897-9560-9

Core Skill: DIY

Whether it's for assembling a kit, hacking an enclosure, or creating your own parts; the DIY skill is all about knowing how to use tools and the techniques associated with them.

Skill Level: Noob - Basic assembly is required. You may need to provide your own basic tools like a screwdriver, hammer or scissors. Power tools or custom parts are not required. Instructions will be included and easy to follow. Sewing may be required, but only with included patterns.
See all skill levels

Core Skill: Programming

If a board needs code or communicates somehow, you're going to need to know how to program or interface with it. The programming skill is all about communication and code.

Skill Level: Rookie - You will need a better fundamental understand of what code is, and how it works. You will be using beginner-level software and development tools like Arduino. You will be dealing directly with code, but numerous examples and libraries are available. Sensors or shields will communicate with serial or TTL.
See all skill levels

Core Skill: Electrical Prototyping

If it requires power, you need to know how much, what all the pins do, and how to hook it up. You may need to reference datasheets, schematics, and know the ins and outs of electronics.

Skill Level: Rookie - You may be required to know a bit more about the component, such as orientation, or how to hook it up, in addition to power requirements. You will need to understand polarized components.
See all skill levels

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If you're interested in interactive toys, smart accessories, or light-up fashions, this book is for you! Sew Electric is a set of hands-on LilyPad Arduino tutorials that bring together craft, electronics, and programming.

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Soft Circuits: Crafting e-Fashion with DIY Electronics - BOK-13089 - SparkFun Electronics

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Soft Circuits: Crafting e-Fashion with DIY Electronics - BOK-13089 - SparkFun Electronics

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Soft Circuits introduces students to the world of wearable technology. Using Modkit, an accessible DIY electronics toolkit, students learn to create e-textile cuffs, "electrici-tee" shirts, and solar-powered backpacks. Students also learn the importance of one component to the whole -- how, for example, changing the structure of LED connections immediately affects the number of LEDs that light up.

This book provides great activities to help people make new and exciting e-textile and wearables projects while still being able to build a strong understanding of electronics basics.
Info:

Author: Kylie Peppler, Melissa Gresalfi, Katie Salen Tekinbas, & Rafi Santo

Publisher: MIT Press

Hardback: 392 pages

ISBN-10: 0-2620-2783-6

ISBN-13: 978-0-2620-2784-7

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Soft Circuits: Crafting e-Fashion with DIY Electronics

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Soft Circuits introduces students to the world of wearable technology. Using Modkit, an accessible DIY electronics toolkit, students learn to create e-textile cuffs, "electrici-tee" shirts, and solar-powered backpacks. Students also learn the importance of one component to the whole -- how, for example, changing the structure of LED connections immediately affects the number of LEDs that light up.

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Short Circuits: Crafting e-Puppets with DIY Electronics - BOK-13090 - SparkFun Electronics

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Short Circuits: Crafting e-Puppets with DIY Electronics - BOK-13090 - SparkFun Electronics

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Short Circuits offers students opportunities to undertake physical computing projects, providing tools and methods for creating electronic puppets. Students learn how to incorporate microprocessors into everyday materials and use them to enhance their language and writing skills with shadow puppet shows featuring their own DIY flashlights.

This book provides great activities to help people make new and exciting e-textile and wearables projects while still being able to build a strong understanding of electronics basics.
Info:

Author: Kylie Peppler, Katie Salen Tekinbas, Melissa Gresalfi, & Rafi Santo

Publisher: MIT Press

Hardback: 408 pages

ISBN-10: 0-2620-2784-4

ISBN-13: 978-0-2620-2783-0

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Short Circuits: Crafting e-Puppets with DIY Electronics

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Short Circuits offers students opportunities to undertake physical computing projects, providing tools and methods for creating electronic puppets. Students learn how to incorporate microprocessors into everyday materials and use them to enhance their language and writing skills with shadow puppet shows featuring their own DIY flashlights.

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Make: Wearable Electronics - BOK-14530 - SparkFun Electronics

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Make: Wearable Electronics - BOK-14530 - SparkFun Electronics

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What if your clothing could change color to complement your skin tone, respond to your racing heartbeat or connect you with a loved one from afar?

Welcome to the world of shoes that can dynamically shift your height, jackets that display when the next bus is coming and neckties that can nudge your business partner from across the room. Whether it be for fashion, function or human connectedness, wearable electronics can be used to design interactive systems that are intimate and engaging.

"Make: Wearable Electronics" is intended for those with an interest in physical computing and creating interfaces or systems that live on the body. Perfect for makers new to wearable tech, this book introduces you to the tools, materials and techniques for creating interactive electronic circuits and embedding them in clothing and other things you can wear.

Each chapter features experiments to get you comfortable with the technology and then invites you to build upon that knowledge with your own projects. Fully illustrated with step-by-step instructions and images of amazing creations made by artists and professional designers, this book offers a concrete understanding of electronic circuits and how you can use them to bring your wearable projects from concept to prototype.
Info:

Author: Kate Hartman

Publisher: Make: Media

Paperback: 257 pages

ISBN-10: 1-449-33651-6

ISBN-13: 978-1-449-33651-6

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What if your clothing could change color to complement your skin tone, respond to your racing heartbeat or connect you with a loved one from afar? Welcome to the world of shoes that can dynamically shift your height, jackets that display when the next bus is coming and neckties that can nudge your business partner from across the room.

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Making the Case - Maker Ed's Resource Library

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Making the Case - Maker Ed's Resource Library

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Making the Case - Maker Ed's Resource Library

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The Making the Case category of Maker Ed's Resource Library contains resources that demonstrate the impact of the maker education movement and provide inspiration for what's possible. These stories, articles, reports, videos, and other information may help funders, administrators, fellow educators, facilitators, and community members see how making in education affects learning for all.

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Maker Shed: Arduino | Raspberry Pi | 3D Printers | Microcontroller Kit

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Maker Shed: Arduino | Raspberry Pi | 3D Printers | Microcontroller Kit

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Maker Shed: Arduino | Raspberry Pi | 3D Printers | Microcontroller Kit

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Shop the online store of Make: magazine & Maker Faire. Find great DIY projects for the whole family - 3D Printing, Arduino, Raspberry Pi, drones, robotics, STEM

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Watch SciGirls clips and episodes, stream video here

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Watch SciGirls clips and episodes, stream video here

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SciGirls videos feature real girls putting science and engineering to work to answer real-life questions and make discoveries in the world around them.

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PBS SciGirls—Science Fun for Tween Girls

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PBS SciGirls—Science Fun for Tween Girls

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DIY Girls inspires girls and women to explore engineering, play & learn with technology and make real products http://www.diygirls.org

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Creative Commons (CC) is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to helping build and sustain a thriving commons of shared knowledge and culture. Together with an extensive member network and multiple partners, we build capacity, we develop practical solutions, and we advocate for better open sharing of knowledge and culture that serves the public interest.

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Copyrights and Wrongs (9-12) | Common Sense Education

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Copyrights and Wrongs (9-12) | Common Sense Education

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Interactive lessons and activities for all students!

Use digital citizenship lesson plans to address timely topics and prepare students to take ownership of their digital lives. Browse lessons by grade and topic below, or see an overview of the curriculum.

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Digital Citizenship Curriculum | Common Sense Education

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Use digital citizenship lesson plans to address timely topics and prepare students to take ownership of their digital lives. Browse lessons by grade and topic below, or see an overview of the curriculum.

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The Right Stuff: Teaching Kids About Copyright | Common Sense Education

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The Right Stuff: Teaching Kids About Copyright | Common Sense Education

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The Right Stuff: Teaching Kids About Copyright | Common Sense Education

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Help kids learn how to find and use other people’s creative works legally and ethically.

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Tinkercad | Create 3D digital designs with online CAD | Tinkercad

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Tinkercad | Create 3D digital designs with online CAD | Tinkercad

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Tinkercad | From mind to design in minutes

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Tinkercad is a free, easy-to-use app for 3D design, electronics, and coding.

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XYZprinting 3D printers | da Vinci | Nobel

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XYZprinting 3D printers | da Vinci | Nobel

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Safety Precautions

PART NUMBER: RS1AWXY100A / RS1J0XY105E/ RS1JAXY100D/ RS1SWXY100B/ RSCM1XY100F

LASER CLASSIFICATION: CLASS 3B

PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY BEFORE PURCHASE

GUIDELINES FOR LASER SAFETY

Only individuals having knowledge regarding operation and safety of laser products shall operate the laser module.

Laser safety eyewear is required during the whole process of laser engraving.

DO NOT look directly at the laser engraving process to prevent eye discomfort.

DO NOT engrave specular reflecting objects when operating laser engraving, such as a mirror.

DO NOT open the printer front door when the laser engraving is operated.

Mild odors may be generated during the laser engraving process. Operating the laser engraving in a well-ventilated and open area are recommended.

To keep you safe and avoid damages from the 3D printer, please power off the 3D printer before installment or replacement of the laser engraving module.

Please shut the 3D printer off immediately if the 3D printer is overheating or processing unusually.

MATERIAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR LASER ENGRAVER MODULE

We recommend using only the following materials for laser engraving: Paper, cardboard, leather, wood, and plastic (PP, ABS, and PE).

Do not laser engrave on materials that are transparent/ translucent, reflective, or white.

For the best engraving results, use materials that are gray, or darker in color.

Laser engrave only on materials that are flat (not bent, warped, or curved, etc.).

IF YOU FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THE INSTRUCTIONS ABOVE, YOU SHALL BE SOLELY LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES RESULTING FROM USING THE LASER MODULE. IN ADDITION, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHALL XYZPRINTING, INC. BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OR LOSSES RESULTING FROM USE OF THE LASER MODULE.

For more detailed information about classes of lasers, please refer to

http://www.iec.ch/ (IEC 60825-1:2014)

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Safety Precautions PART NUMBER: RS1AWXY100A / RS1J0XY105E/ RS1JAXY100D/ RS1SWXY100B/ RSCM1XY100F LASER CLASSIFICATION: CLASS 3B PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY BEFORE PURCHASE GUIDELINES FOR LASER SAFETY Only individuals having knowledge regarding operation and safety of laser products shall operate the laser module. Laser safety eyewear is required during the whole process of laser engraving.

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The best smart clothing: From biometric shirts to contactless payment jackets

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The best smart clothing: From biometric shirts to contactless payment jackets

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Smart clothing is still to go mainstream after first popping to the surface in 2015, but we're slowly seeing more companies play around with the concept of connected garments.

Much more than just strapping gadgets to our wrists, faces, ears and feet, smart clothing can constantly track our heart rate, monitor our emotions and even pay for your morning coffee - all without grabbing a phone or even tapping a smartwatch screen.

But what are the best bits of smart clothing to buy? Well, below are some of the top tech garments we've seen so far, as well as a few that are coming soon.

Nadi X yoga pants

Yoga can be difficult, especially if you're just beginning. How do you move your body? How long do you hold your positions?

If you don't have a good instructor, or if you try to do it yourself, you could find yourself in over your head. Sydney-based startup Wearable X's Nadi X pants, however, want to solve that.

The fitness pants come with built-in haptic vibrations that gently pulse at the hips, knees and ankles to encourage you to move and/or hold positions. It syncs up via Bluetooth to your phone and, through the companion app, gives you additional feedback. It comes in four sizes - XS, S, M, L - and four styles - Midnight, Midnight with black, Black/White with mesh and Navy/Gray with mesh. Ships in August 2017.

Check out our full review of the Nadi X smart yoga pants for more.
$179, wearablex.com | Amazon
Google's Project Jacquard

Levi's Commuter Trucker Jacket is the first piece of connected clothing to launch from Google's Project Jacquard platform.

By building touch and gesture sensitive areas on the jacket sleeve, users will be able to interact with a variety of services including music and map apps. You'll be able to dismiss phone calls with a swipe or double tap to get directions - all without reaching for your phone.

After a delayed launch, the smart denim jacket is finally ready to smarten up your commute in more ways than one.
Wareable verdict: $350, projectjacquard.com Google Jacquard smart jacket review
Ambiotex

Ambiotex's smart shirt is built with serious athletes in mind, whether you're a runner, cyclist or live in the gym.

The compression-style fit means you need to be in pretty decent shape already to pull it off. With the help of the integrated sensors into the garment along with the clip-on box to record the data, it'll measure heart rate variability, your anaerobic threshold as well as fitness and stress levels.

Data can be viewed in real time on the companion smartphone app where you can additionally benefit from individual training programs and get insights into your biometric data and what it means for optimising training and recovery.
$284, ambiotex.com
The heart rate accuracy seemed to measure up in our testing and while it doesn't entirely break the mould for fitness-based smart garments, it does do a solid job of pushing out the stats and helping out those numbers to good use.

AIO smart sleeve
Read this: Komodo smart sleeve gets serious about heart rate monitoring
Despite a failed Kickstarter campaign, Komodo Technologies still found a way to launch its compression sleeve that uses electrocardiogram (ECG) technology to monitor heart rate activity.

Aside from offering accurate heart rate data, it monitors sleep, workout intensity and is available in two different models. Its module also has sensors on board to monitor body temperature, air quality and UV rays.
From $116, komodotec.com
While it sounds like a perfect fit for fitness lovers, the startup behind AIO hopes that it can also measure stress levels and even help detect heart inflammation and coronary heart disease as well.

Supa Powered Sports bra
Read this: Supa is here to make the quantified self cool
Sabine Seymour's fashion tech startup, Supa, mashes up neon, a heart rate sensor and AI to give you a smart bra with a tonne of personality. It's water resistant and syncs to the Supa.AI app via Bluetooth. It'll use "invisible biometric sensors" and AI to not only keep track of workouts, but track things like UV levels, too.
$120 (Supa Bra) / $60 (Supa Reactor), shop.supa.ai

You can get the Supa in three sizes - small, medium and large - and it comes in three distinct styles. There's the Supa heavy stripes, a blue-tinted mix and the very colourful 'colours'. You can pick up the bra for about $120, but you'll also need to get the Supa Reactor to actually keep track of your health data.
$299.99, owletcare.com
Owlet Smart Sock 2

The second generation Owlet Smart Sock has all the features you know and love from the original. It uses the same pulse oximetry technology used in hospitals to monitor the little one's heart rate, making sure his or her sleeping and breathing haven't been interrupted. It also comes in three sizes, charges via a base station and syncs to your iPhone or Android phone to deliver data in real time.

New additions include improved Bluetooth range - up to 100 feet - and better placed sensors so that there are fewer false notifications. It'll also work with Owlet's new Connected Care platform, which will help you identify potential health issues like sleep irregularities, RSV, pneumonia, bronchiolitis, chronic lung disorders and heart defects.

Spinali Design smart bikini
From $162, spinali-design.com
This French fashion tech company has been busy creating connected clothing, including jeans, dresses and bikinis.

The Neviano UV Protect swimsuit collection is equipped with a removable medallion-style waterproof sensor that aims to stop you staying too long in the sun.

Once you've entered your skin type in the companion iOS or Android smartphone app, it'll continuously monitor the temperature throughout the day and will send out warnings when it's time to apply some more sunscreen or get into the shade.
$169 (shirt only)/$399 (full kit), hexoskin.com
Hexoskin Smart

The Montreal-based smart clothing startup recently unveiled its latest connected shirt that's laced with sensors. Along with monitoring heart rate, breathing and movement, it's now fitted with a Bluetooth Smart sensor so you can pair your favourite fitness apps such as MapMyRun, RunKeeper and Strava, as well as a whole host of third-party accessories.

Data is captured in real time and sends it all to the companion app, providing insights on a range of sporty metrics including intensity and recovery, calories burned, fatigue level and sleep quality.

OMsignal Bra
$169
Fellow Canadian company OMsignal supplied the tech behind the Ralph Lauren smart shirts at the US Open. Now, with women firmly in its sights, its mission has been to finally fix the sports bra once and for all - and make it smart in the process.

The OMbra records distances run, breathing rates and heart rate, and even tells you when you're recovered enough to head back to the gym. And it links it up with all the fitness platforms you'd expect, just in case you're not that into OMsignal OMrun.

The bra is adjustable at almost every thread, with straps, padding and cups all designed to fit your needs.
From $398, liveathos.com
Athos

Athos is based on expensive medical tech but designed for gym bunnies. Its range of training clothes comes woven with micro-EMG sensors that detect which of your muscles are working and transfer this workout data to a smartphone via a Bluetooth core.

Muscle effort, heart rate and breathing are all tracked and the app provides insights to help you to exercise correctly and avoid injury. This could be the personal trainer in your pocket you've been waiting for.

Sensoria running socks 2.0

Sensoria's second gen connected socks aim to track your runs in detail, offering information on pace, distance and time as well as your running style. They can help users run with better form thanks to a new AI coach, which can lead to faster times and a reduced risk of injury.

The socks feature three textile pressure sensors, which measure the pressure placed on the foot during running. The new Sensoria Core module, which does the brain work, is now also smaller and lighter to wear than the original. A new monthly subscription also unlocks a new dashboard and new training plans.

Siren

Not every bit of smart clothing is trying to help you get fitter, with the Siren socks instead aiming to detect and prevent diabetics' foot injuries.

The socks feature microsensors woven into the fabric to continuously monitor temperature, and when they detect a rise in heat - a possible sign that inflammation is occurring - they'll alert the user with a smartphone notification or text message.

The idea is to catch injuries before it's too late, since inflammation can lead to foot ulcers. However, with diabetics who suffer from nerve damage often experiencing numbness in the legs, these symptoms are often ignored.

Shipping is expected to commence later this year, though people with diabetes interested in the connected socks can pre-order their plan already.

Samsung NFC suit
$500, samsung.com
Samsung is going big on smart clothing and has already shown off its Body Compass workout shirt, which monitors biometric data, and a golf shirt in collaboration with Bean Pole Golf that includes weather and UV rating monitoring.

The Korean giant also has an NFC smart suit, built in collaboration with Rogatis, that lets the wearer unlock their phone, swap business cards digitally and set gadgets to office and drive modes.

It's already on sale in Korea for roughly $500, under Samsung's wearable brand The Human Fit, with no news yet as to whether it's going to break out into other territories.

Neopenda smart baby hat

We'll round things off with a truly life-saving use for smart clothing. Neopenda's vital signs monitor is fitted inside a hat for newborn babies.

It can measure temperature, heart rate, respiratory rate and blood oxygen saturation. It is being developed by New York-based health startup of the same name, founded by Sona Shah and Teresa Cauvel, two Columbia University biomedical engineering graduates.

Up to 24 baby hats can be wirelessly synced, via Bluetooth, to one tablet which will run custom software. The idea is that doctors and nurses can check up on the vital signs of the whole room at a glance and get alerts if any changes in temperature or heart rate, say, are cause for concern.

After a successful Kickstarter campaign, the team is now in Uganda carrying out pilot studies to make its smart baby hat a reality.

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The best smart clothing: From biometric shirts to contactless payment jackets

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Smart clothing is still to go mainstream after first popping to the surface in 2015, but we're slowly seeing more companies play around with the concept of connected garments. Much more than just strapping gadgets to our wrists, faces, ears and feet, smart clothing can constantly track our heart rate, monitor our emotions and even...

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Learn how companies have used the Movesense platform to build great consumer products that are changing the game.

SUPA is a secure biometric data platform. SUPA AI contextualizes data derived from distributed IoT devices, e.g. digital scale and nutrition app, and biometric data such as heart rate, motion and temperature from SUPA and Movesense sensors in apparel. SUPA Kits include the sensors and data, and are modularly designed enabling SUPA's B2B customers to offer customized digital applications including smart apparel for sports, wellness, and health. SUPA enables highly personalized insights for individuals and data analytics. SUPA is building a secure vault of biometric data to democratize healthcare.

SUPA's current limited-edition SUPA Powered Sports Bra is connected to the SUPA App featuring SUPA Run Like Flash and SUPA Daily Heart Wear, which is part of the SUPA Cardio Kit. Activate your SUPA Powers!

By signing up, we will keep you updated about the latest news, events and offers of the Movesense community.

This website uses cookies to function. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settings OK

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Learn how companies have used the Movesense platform to build great consumer products that are changing the game. SUPA is a secure biometric data platform. SUPA AI contextualizes data derived from distributed IoT devices, e.g. digital scale and nutrition app, and biometric data such as heart rate, motion and temperature from SUPA and Movesense sensors in apparel.

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Getting Started with Adafruit Circuit Playground Express [by Anne Barela] ID: 3944 - $19.45 : Adafruit Industries, Unique & fun DIY electronics and kits

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Getting Started with Adafruit Circuit Playground Express [by Anne Barela] ID: 3944 - $19.45 : Adafruit Industries, Unique & fun DIY electronics and kits

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getting started with adafruit circuit playground express [by anne barela] id: 3944 tools gift certificates arduino cables sensors leds books breakout boards power el wire/tape/panel components & parts lcds & displays wearables prototyping raspberry pi wireless young engineers 3d printing neopixels kits & projects robotics & cnc accessories cosplay/costuming halloween reseller and school packs internet of things - iot development boards batteries gift ideas feather circuitpython circuit playground crickit - creative robotics particle stemma machine learning micro:bit add-ons & accessories bluetooth ppe ecommerce

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Getting Started with Adafruit Circuit Playground Express

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Adafruit Industries, Unique & fun DIY electronics and kits Getting Started with Adafruit Circuit Playground Express [by Anne Barela] ID: 3944 - Make: Getting Started with Circuit Playground Express is written by our friend, Anne Barela, author of G.S.W. Adafruit Trinket.

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Sabine Seymour's startup Supa is here to make the quantified self cool

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Sabine Seymour's startup Supa is here to make the quantified self cool

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Can the quantified self ever be hip? Sabine Seymour seems to think so. One of the leading names in fashion tech, serving as director of the Fashionable Technology Lab at the Parsons School of Design and with 20 years of research, writing and consulting under her belt, Seymour is almost ready to unleash her new venture, Supa, on an unsuspecting wearable tech world.

"If you look at people in the subway in New York, who is really counting their steps? They're usually 'mature' women and then you have guys who are like 'Yeah, I pump this.' Millennials are not thinking 'Oh my god, I have to check my heart'," she tells us over the phone.

"We want to make sure that we get Gen Z to really use it. The app is here to make you move and make you aware of your body but in a really fun and cool way. We want to make a generation move that loves to move: dance, VR, BMX, snowboarding..."

You wanna have outfits

That mission starts with a Supa app that can be used with the Apple Watch, coming in June. Its main Daily Wear feature will be to clearly show you which heart rate zone you're training in, using the smartwatch's optical HR monitor. "It's for interval training, if you do Orangetheory fitness, if you're in the gym for an hour or two," says Seymour. "If you don't elevate yourself to zone 3 or 4, you've done shit."

Then in July we'll get the shipping of the startup's first connected garment, the $120 Supa Powered sports bra. This is made smart by a $60 heart rate monitoring Supa Reactor module that you can buy separately and connects to the companion app. It joins a lineup of 'dumb' clothing - neoprene surf sweaters, onesies and tote bags - on the online store, all with the same neon graphic prints. Plus there's iOS stickers too, obvs.

Seymour made two conscious decisions since she first formed the company, named Supaspot, two and half years ago - to make the smart clothing modular rather than experimental smart textiles and to sell both connected and non-connected threads.

"[With modular] you're talking about a few bucks. You make a bra as a manufacturer, license or buy the sensors for a few bucks - boom - that's it," she says. "I've always been very interested in scaling and not so interested in these one offs in fashion tech.

"And it's about creating a lifestyle. You wanna have outfits. You buy a sports bra, you buy a t-shirt, maybe it's a few dollars more. I'm basically looking at what I want. I want it to look awesome, work easy and be able to use it anywhere I want to use it."

Supa aware

It's worth noting that Supa sells itself as an AI platform, rather than a fashion company, that has built its algorithms in-house and aims to work with the "Supa Powers" of lots of open API devices, sensors, sports equipment and even smart home tech. Seymour says she will be growing the engineering team quickly during the next few months, under head of R&D Sean Montgomery, as they gather feedback from the initial app.

The Supa "package" includes work for Unicef's Wearables for Good challenge on a sensor kit to minimise maternal death in Ethiopia and giving portions of the surf sweater revenue to charity. Cynically this is another millennial-friendly dimension but Seymour says the responsibility to society was always part of the larger mission.

The researcher/consultant/designer/founder feels a strong affinity with millennials partly because, she confesses, she has "zero attention span whatsoever". And during our conversation she can't seem to contain her excitement around how all sorts of biometric and environmental sensors could fit into these sorts of lifestyles, no matter her customers' actual ages. Everyone is welcome to join the "Supa Squad".

It's hard to pin down exactly what will follow the heart rate tracking bra. Seymour tells us to expect "new sensors" designed for "activities that you can't use electronics with" in the next 6 - 12 months. "We'll launch the app then we'll launch with things like heart rate variability, using motion and temperature and external influences," she says, "because humidity in your house, pollution levels, pulse count, oxygen levels in your car everything is influencing your body."

Her whole perspective is a little contagious. It's refreshing to see a new brand that starts from a point of designing clothes and accessories with bags of personality, some of which are enhanced by sensors. Rather, of course, than trying to awkwardly retrofit wearable tech products or experiments onto an existing tech or fashion point of view.

What it all boils down to though is dancing: "We first want to make people super aware of all those things that can influence them but then also, honestly, I just wanna use it at my dance party. Imagine what you can do, you dance for two or three hours, with your movements and with your heart, it's pretty awesome."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Sabine Seymour's startup Supa is here to make the quantified self cool

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Can the quantified self ever be hip? Sabine Seymour seems to think so. One of the leading names in fashion tech, serving as director of the Fashionable Technology Lab at the Parsons School of Design and with 20 years of research, writing and consulting under her belt, Seymour is almost ready to unleash her new...