The Technology Behind Bella Hadid’s Spray on Dress
During the 2022 Paris Fashion Week, Coperni’s finale featuring Bella Hadid surprised the crowd. The audience shock-factor came from the garment that Bella Hadid wore, which was a spray-on dress. Hadid walked slowly onto a platform in the middle of the runway. Here she was sprayed by two technicians with a white material. With a little cutting and folding, the material solidified into a white fabric. In less than 10 minutes, Bella Hadid was walking the runway in an elegant, asymmetrical off-the-shoulder dress.
So, what’s the story behind this elusive spray-on garment?
Who created the dress?
The dress technology was created by Fabrican Ltd, a London based company founded by Manel Torres in 2003. Fabrican stands for “fabric from a can.” When sprayed, this substance can instantaneously create various items of clothing. The brand has discovered a method to use liquid fibers in a solvent that evaporates to form a piece of clothing.
How does the technology work?
The technology is at the forefront of material science innovation. The fabric is formed by using an aerosol can or spray gun to cross-link the fibers into a web, which then creates a fabric as it solidifies. This technology creates a non-woven fabric in the shape of what it is sprayed on. The texture of the material can be altered by changing the properties of the fibers in the spray. The fiber can be synthetic such as polyester or cotton, and it can also be made from recycled materials and fibers. The fiber mixture is then put into liquid suspension, and this liquid is placed in an aerosol can or spray gun.
Future uses of Fabrican
The Fabrican technologies allows the potential for an accelerated and non-traditional way of creating clothes. It also has many uses for repairing and readjusting clothing. The possibilities are endless; instead of having to bring a shirt to the tailor, you fix it with Fabrican instead. In addition, this fabric gives the consumer control over their clothing, and consumers can customize your clothes by adding pockets or patterns. They are even able to add UV protection or reflective material to their garments. It is also worth noting how these advancements in spray-on fabric could increase the efficiency of the clothing supply chain and decrease its carbon footprint.
Outside of fashion, Fabrican has many exciting uses with potential for products in healthcare, automotive, and hygiene industries. Specifically, the fabric’s sterile nature means it can be used in medical and hygiene settings, for example, hospital wipes, sponges, face-masks, or towels. Fabrican can even be used to make casts for broken bones. As far as the environmental side, there is increasing conversation about the potential use of Fabrican in cleaning up oil spills since the fabric actually absorbs oil.
We can see how the simple spray on dress ties to a complicated and intriguing new technology that may actually shift the way we think about clothing itself. But beyond fashion, while spraying Bella Hadid in fabric created an eye-catching moment, Fabrican’s technology could have a farther reaching impact at the intersection of fashion and other industries.
If you want to learn more about the technology of Fabrican check out the BBC series “The Imagineers”!
Featured Image: Bella Hadid courtesy of Julien de Rosa via Getty Images