Ink pens and calligraphy aren’t exactly the go-to for communication any more, so two designers have given 795 pen nibs a new lease of life in the world of fashion. In the above video and Wired UK’s gallery, you can see the remarkable construction of the originally named Pen Nib Dress, a shiny, pointy stunning garment created by creative technologist John Nussey and Central St. Martins Womenswear student Steven Tai for his final degree show.
The two blended their creative and technical talents to create an A-line dress that uses moveable, vibrating pen nibs as an alternative to sequins or beading.
Speaking to Wired.co.uk, Nussey said that the final result was achieved through a lot of trial and error: “We looked at a number of different ways to make the pen nibs move and how to wire up that number of nibs. Steven had strong ideas as to how many he wanted, and we had to get enough of the nibs to make an impact. It was finding a balance between the technical possibilities and the creative idea.”
Fortunately, Tai is “fascinated with technology” and has worked with Nussey on his work before. The pair decided to use the tiny motors used to make mobile phones vibrate to animate the nibs — “they’re cheap and low-power,” says Nussey — and link these up in rows of nibs with a transistor, acting as a switch, at the end of each row.
“This really cut the work down,” said Nussey, as the pair were working against Tai’s degree show deadline, “meaning we didn’t have 795 nibs to individually wire, but 42 rows. It can always be upgraded to have each motor working independently.”These rows can be switched on and off by an arduino, and subsequently programmed and sequenced. The whole lot is powered by a rechargeable lithium battery, “so it doesn’t have to be plugged in,” explains Nussey — attachment to the wall not being the hottest look when heading down the catwalk.
All in all, the dress weighs around 13 pounds, and looks amazing. “It’s like some kind of armor,” says Nussey.
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