When Stone Island says its new jacket is made from metal, the Italian brand is being deadly serious.
Stone Island has used nanotechnology to infuse aluminum into Cordura 500 polyester organza, so that the metal is attracted into the yarn. For those interested in the nerdy details that go behind this: the metal in the solid state is vaporized to then deposit as a nanometric film on materials.
Honestly, the science behind this jacket goes straight over my head, however, one thing everyone can appreciate is the futuristic-looking finish this nanotechnology brings to the fabric. Appearing like liquid metal, the final silver look is imbued with shiny rippled patterns.
The liquid-like effects of this material are something heavily featured in Stone Island’s fashion show in Milan at the start of the year, where full metal mesh looks were presented — together, the matching pants and jacket were reminiscent of those silver ‘60s NASA spacesuits.
Now, almost 12 months later, the 45799 Metal Mesh jacket from that collection is available (costing a hefty $2,530; that’s the price of cutting-edge technology, I guess).
The jacket, decorated with Stone Island’s black and white fabric research badge on the arm, is presented through a campaign with Sage Elsesser where Stoney asks the skateboarder 100 questions — a format it’s been using in many of its campaigns, with everyone from Liam Gallagher to the brand’s president.
Stone Island, a brand that prides itself on innovation, has been playing with nanotechnology and liquid metal materials for several years, this is just the latest experiment to emerge from its science lab.