Giles, SS12, London.
Lasercutting fabrics and leather is a clever technique that can be used to create lace-like effects out of more solid base cloths. The effect of laser cutting fabric completely changes the drape of the fabric, in the same way that a fabric with a wider looser weave is more fluid, so too is lasercut fabric effected in a similar way.
In the images above and below from the Giles show, the cutouts are used to great effect in combination with the highly metallic surface of what appears to be a silver coated leather. There also appears to be small studs, or beads that puncture the designs which helps to break up the flatness of the surface and make the fabric look more like a piece of metal with small rivets.
The jagged cut out designs are also echoed in woven fabrics, while the mirrored effect is also used in simpler garments with accents of red provided through small amounts of contrast binds from the digital print of a swan.
When working with lasercutting, you should always do tests on small pieces of your chosen base cloth before going ahead with the full design, as different fabrics will leave different amounts of burned outlines around the edges of the cut holes. Some fabrics will be effected more than others, and like with any experimental technique it is worth ensuring that you get the effect that you want before you invest a large amount of time and money into the wrong material. Some fabrics will end up with better sealed edges than others as well, while others may end up becoming more tattered and frayed – which can be useful depending on the effect that you want.
Images from Vogue.co.uk»
