Crafting Wearables: Blending Technology with Fashion - Paperback

by Sibel Deren Guler (Author), Madeline Gannon (Author), Kate Sicchio (Author)

Crafting Wearables promotes interest and excitement around the growing field of wearable technology. As wearables become embedded in more consumer products on a micro-level, people are losing touch with the basic craft of fashioning clothes and accessories. From learning how to repair a button to learning how to design light-up shoes, readers will learn the importance of honing their sewing and crafting skills and passing them on to future generations. Written for hobbyist, beginner, and expert alike this book provides a fundamental understanding of how electronics and digital media are becoming a natural part of our "second skin". It's important as our clothes and devices become smarter and more connected to understand the possibilities wearable technology presents for monitoring health, disrupting the fashion industry, and more! Crafting Wearables imparts that understanding and helps convert readers from passive bystanders to active shapers of the future in fashion.

Back Jacket

This book introduces the exciting intersection of technology and fashion known as wearable computing. Learn about the future of electronics in clothing and testiles, and be a part of creating that future! Crafting Wearables begins with the history of the field, then covers current practices and future trends. You will gain deeper insight into the strategy behind the design of wearable devices while learning about the tools and materials needed to start your own wearables toolbox.

In a time when consumer electronics are becoming smaller and seamlessly integrated into our lives, it is important to understand how technology can improve and augment your lifestyle. Wearables are in a sense the most organic and natural interface we can design, yet there is still doubt about how quickly wearable technologies will become the cultural norm. Furthermore, skills that have become less valuable over the years, such as sewing, are making a return with the wearables movement.

• Gives a better understanding of wearable technology and how it has evolved
• Teaches basic skills and techniques to familiarize you with the tools and materials
• Showcases breakthrough designs and discoveries that impact our everyday interactions

Author Biography

Sibel Deren Guler is a physicist, designer, and educator based in New York. She researches and develops technology that uses interactivity and computation to explore nature and create playful experiences. Designing accessible tools to improve the quality of life and empower the user is her key motivator. She has led design and engineering-based workshops around the world and has been exploring wearable technology for several years through personal research and collaboration. She is creator of a series of toolkits under the Teknikio brand enabling you to embed smart materials and electronics into clothing and craft projects, and employs those kits to fill a gap in hands-on science and engineering products for children, especially for young girls. She uses e-textiles in Teknikio to teach concepts of fashion design and engineering. Guler has a personal interest in fashion design that she credits to her mother and grandmother who are incredible seamstresses. She is a co-founder of the FatCatFabLab, and adjuncts at Parsons the New School for Design.