Copyright Ian Pearson, BT Futurologist

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The future of fashion

August 2000

I'm no fashion guru and can't comment on what sort of styles we will be wearing, but we will certainly have the capability to put lots of new technology into clothing. Today, many people wear T-shirts with pictures on them. At some point, someone will make some with video panels instead, so some fashion victims might look like a bit like teletubbies. Polymer screens will certainly provide the technology. Of course, kaleidoscopic colour change fabrics will be possible using materials sensitive to electricity, but we've already got bored with those that change with body heat. Watches or even phones could be easily incorporated into sleeves, but I personally can't see much reason for doing so.

We could also see clothes that echo the emotional state of the wearer, perhaps changing patterns according to our mood. Imagine clothes that suddenly brighten up when you see someone you like. They could even display messages. Similarly, we'll have emotional jewellery. Imagine meeting someone at a party and your personality badges instantly tell you both that you are compatible. Even LED arrangements can be very pretty, and miniature displays may find their way into all sorts of jewellery.

Personally, I think that jewellery (including wrist based stuff) is the much more likely form for most new gadgets. Building devices into clothes may be possible, but it makes cleaning them much trickier.

Most materials 100 years from now will be based on very high technology (by today's standards). In just a few decades, information technology will be completely ubiquitous but largely invisible. We may have all sorts of devices around our body, monitoring our health, transmitting and receiving data, keeping us in touch, and identifying us. Whether these will be built into clothes or worn as separates is down to designers. It won't be a technology problem. 100 years from now, who knows what the political and social landscape will be like? That will dictate what we wear much more than technology. Some devices could even be compulsory.

Mainly, our clothes will still serve to protect us from the elements and provide decoration. Extra functions might be power generation for the various gadgets that we will carry with us, and perhaps networks to link them together, though the body itself acts as a fairly good connector anyway. Solar power, body heat and even body movement could all be used. Sensors in clothes could detect our movements and be used to enhance interaction in virtual environments. Other sensors may warn us of pollution, tell us where we are and perhaps warn us of approaching danger.

Teletubby shirts, and the like will be just fads, but lots of other gadgets will be very useful so we will wear them most of the time just like wristwatches today. Things like communicators, navigators, portable computers, emergency beacons, and identification devices to name a few. Some people won't want to carry lots of gadgets, but all you really need with you is an interface to the network. A communication device could then provide access to all the information, processing, navigation and communication you need so really nothing else is essential. But some will be fashionable so we'll probably carry them anyway. Again, they could be carried in pockets or handbags, worn as jewellery or incorporated into clothes.

Wearable computers are more likely to catch on when they become lighter and more compact, with more communications built in. Designs will come and go, but the computer will one day be a permanent companion.

Early generations of some gadgets may be specialist but people have a history of making creative use of new technologies. As technologies reach mass market, more manufacturers and designers get involved.