With 3D disrupting the world of fashion more than ever before, top fashion schools around the world are eager to gear up their students with the right skill set to thrive in a rapidly changing industry, from both a practical and environmental perspective. One of Israel’s most well sought after fashion institutions, WIZO Haifa Academy of Design and Education , recently incorporated Browzwear’s 3D fashion design software VStitcher into their third-year Natural Resources course, within the Fashion Design Program, to demonstrate how the implementation of digital tools enables designers to cut back on resource-intensive tasks and double down on environmental sustainability. Spearheaded by Shimon Amar , President of Wizo Academy, the institution passionately supports digital transformation across all faculties.
Through a combination of on-site intensive training led by Valentin Karabanov, Digital Fashion Designer and Lecturer at Wizo Academy, alongside Browzwear’s e-learning platform Browzwear University, the students took on the challenge of learning the basics of 3D garment creation in VStitcher and putting it into practice instantly, producing outstanding projects. With a heavy focus on environmental conservation, each student was asked to research a natural resource that they would base their collection on, such as plants, water, or solar energy, understanding the importance of its preservation. They would then create their collection using 2D sketches, selecting one outfit to develop in 3D CAD before producing the physical piece.
“To begin the process, we started by covering the basic concepts of 3D garment creation in VStitcher, from pattern making and colorways to creating accurately measured avatars that would represent the real-life model,” says Valentin. “As this was the students’ first time working with 3D in such a short timeframe, there were undoubtedly several challenges to overcome along the way. Nevertheless, the results were outstanding and it was a major success. ”
After chatting with several of the third-year students who participated we were able to gain insight into their experience as first-time 3D users. “ At first, I was skeptical about the concept of developing my designs in a totally different way,” says Liraz Yosef , Fashion Design student at Wizo Academy, who based her project on solar energy. “ However, after getting the hang of the software it was incredible to see the fabrics of the garment come to life right in front of me on my screen before we could even touch and feel them” she adds. “As someone passionate about pattern making, VStitcher is extremely useful for developing patterns with flexibility, and I have to say I was shocked at the results when comparing my digital garment to the physical piece.” After completing VStitcher 101 on Browzwear University, Liraz is ready to move on to the next level and further her skills in 3D apparel design.
Another student on the program, Shirel Abergel , based her collection on natural minerals and as you can see, much of her garments are inspired by the appearance of the mineral stone, the Amethyst, with an activewear edge. “After the initial training sessions, I was able to learn more about the software as I was creating my designs, discovering new features on the go. I found Browzwear University particularly helpful when it came to sizing the garments according to the measurements I was working with and getting an accurate fit ,” says Shirel. “Toward the end of the course, it was clear that digital design brings so much opportunity for creativity that cannot always be found when crafting patterns by hand, not to mention the amount of time and resources that are saved throughout the process,” adds Shirel.
After the success of the first 3D apparel design project, the academy plans to introduce 3D design tools to first-year students in the upcoming year, enabling them to gradually build upon their skills and thus complete their studies with proficiency in VStitcher and embark on their careers with 3D under their belts.
Here are some of the students’ final designs, as created in 3D and showcased as physical garment:
