I’m grateful to be selected for the Startup Catalyst Future Founders Mission, a ten day, fully sponsored trip to Silicon Valley with 19 other fantastic young Aussies between the age of 18-29. I’m absolutely blown away by this opportunity. A big thanks to my sponsor, Technology One, for making this happen.
As part of the trip, we will visit the many offices of companies like Google, Facebook, Twitter, and more.
When I recieved an email shortlisting me for the program, I found out I had a fifteen minute interview, in competition with 71 others for 20 positions. I decided to put a plan into action I’d been thinking about for awhile – I was going to make a 3D printed jacket. In one week. To wear to the interview.
This was over the long weekend, and to get the amount of 3D printing done I needed, I had to bring my 3D printer home on my visit to mum’s house. It ran 24 hours a day to make around ~15 swatches, taking around 6-8 hrs per piece.
The fabric is very different to work with. It stretches, moves and sits differently depending on where it is on the garment. It has it’s own energy and tends to bounce when worn.
I joined all the pieces by hand, and finished it off with some white trim around the outside.
I’ve got a 3D printed gold wallet to match. 
And a lovely, new clutch featuring 3D printed fabric made by my adventurous mother. Keep an eye out for an online, 3D printed fabric store on the horizon 🙂
Check out my twitter if you’d like to stay up to date with my Silicon Valley trip, and I look forward to sharing all my learnings when I return to help our beautiful SEQ maker community grow.