3-D printers create new hype in fashion(2)

A 3-D-printed pair of glasses created by Finnish designer Pekka Salokannel. Provided to China Daily

Three years ago, TIME magazine included 3-D-printed dresses on its annual list of the world's 50 Best Inventions. The collection was created by Dutch designer Iris van Herpen and presented at the January 2011 Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week.

The black, white and gray outfits-with sections that resemble ram horns, wings, sponges, skeletons and feathers-are an exact replica of the original sketched version, the magazine says.

Fashion industry insiders also hail 3-D printing for its low financial risk (products are printed on demand rather than mass produced), ability to be customized to a person's unique proportions and faster delivery of products (no need to wait for factories to churn them out or for shipments to come from abroad).

These factors are especially helpful to young and independent designers, such as Salokannel, who do not have the deep pockets to pay for shipping and storage fees or for the costs involved in traditional manufacturing.

"I can 3-D design and make the products by myself," Salokannel says. "Before, you had to make a mold or you had to ask for a sample, which might have cost thousands of euros or dollars."

Three-dimensional printing, or stereolithography, was invented in 1983 by American engineer Chuck Hull while devising a way to prototype plastic parts. His first creation was a miniature cup, and since then the technology has been used in industries as varied as weaponry, medicine, advertising, food and, of course, fashion.

The 3-D printing market worldwide amounted to $2.5 billion last year, according to research firm Canalys. The figure is expected to reach $3.8 billion this year.