3D Printed Chainmail Top (Spring 2025)

Softwares used Autodesk Fusion 360, Cura (Slicer)

Materials used PLA (filament), Montana Black Metallic spray paint, sewing thread & needle
Objective This 3D printed top was a personal project, using tools at the Knapp Makerspace & Interactive Media Center (Wellesley’s Makerspace), in preparation for the annual MIT Gala, which is MIT’s student fashion show, hosted every year in the Spring. The initial objective was to create a dress, in which the “fabric” of the dress would be entirely 3D printed. The type of “fabric” chosen was chainmail because of its flexible nature. Even though made of PLA, the flexibility of the chainmail did mold to the shape of a body. The project shifted to making a crop top for the MIT Gala as the top was paired black jeans and accessories to create y2k inpsired look. For future explorations however, a full dress may be designed.

The Process
The 3D printed chainmail needed to be printed on a raft for proper adhesion, since there were so many small parts. Each section was printed four at a time, and then hand-sewn together using sewing thread. The 3D printed pieces were sewn together to form the general shape of the top. Then for the angled edges and curves, the chainmail pieces were trimmed so there would be more of a natural shape to the top. Lastly, the top was spray painted with Montana Black Metallic spray paint to have a shimmery effect.