On July 7, Seattle’s Living Computers: Museum + Labs will be hosting the Techbound Fashion Show with local shop Outsider Comics and Geek Boutique. A fashion show might not be the first event that comes to mind as a perfect fit for such a museum, but learning more about the event and partnership between the two will make you wonder why such a show hasn’t happened before now.

Matisse Fletcher, event coordinator for the museum, told GeekFold the idea for the event came about after she was a model in one of the fashion shows Outsider Comics founder Jill Taplin was coordinating. The museum’s mission is focused on computing, technology, and programming which meant any show held at the museum had to have a theme that tied into those aspects.

“With the fashion show, we really had to think about how to bring fashion into that very specific sort of context,” Fletcher said. “I put that to Jill and said we need to have sci-fi, tech themes. Otherwise. as the events person, I can’t justify it happening at the museum.”

Taplin started thinking about potential designers and the one that came to mind was Svaha. She called Svaha “one of the key tech designers out there.”

“They really have an online presence. They don’t work wholesale with a lot of people. I started a relationship with them, getting pieces of their stuff in the store [and] really figuring out that it’s a great price point. It’s 100 percent organic cotton and it looks great on a lot of people,” Taplin explained. “Once I had that designer in mind I of course thought of Catherine Elhoffer who’s been our featured designer in the last two fashion shows and really sort of used the technology as a jumping off point towards science fiction and the science fiction evolved a little bit into sort of magic and science and things related to those two themes.”

The designs on the runway will embrace these main themes and related areas like engineering, space, and math. A core element of this show, which Fletcher said is similar to all the shows Taplin has done, is being inclusive and representing every body, shape, and “just diversity of gender presentation.”

“Even on our poster, that is right at the forefront that we are celebrating fashion across the spectrum and fashion for everybody and that lends to the museum as well because we believe in technology for everybody,” Fletcher said. “It’s just a really beautiful and fortuitous partnership that we’re able to kind of champion that message.”

Attendees will be able to see the theme well beyond the runway as well, as the event will have much more for them to explore. Svaha’s founder Eva Everett will be present as a special guest and there will be a pop up shop along with a cash bar. Cosplayers will be at the event and you can even purchase a VIP package with special perks. There will also be live demos, including one with circuit thread.

“Let’s say you have a dress that has a butterfly design. With circuit thread, if you touch the butterfly it will light up or there will be a sound,” Fletcher explained. “What we’re doing on the museum side of things is we’re actually building an entire outfit that is around circuit thread. Everybody can go and interact with that wearable tech.”

It’s exciting to see such a partnership between the museum and Outsider, which is why it’s welcome news that it won’t end with this event. Fletcher said the museum is expanding its apparel in the gift shop with a featured curated collection from Taplin, who told GeekFold she’ll start the new line with 3D printed jewelry from Sci Chic, recycled circuit board jewelry from local designer Christine Stoll, and some Svaha clothes.

Hopefully even more will grow from this partnership between the two, but for now the Techbound Fashion Show sounds like a must see for geek fashion fans in Seattle!

You can learn more on Facebook and purchase tickets here.

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