US researchers have developed a new software system that lets clothing be taken apart and rebuilt into new items. The project, called Refashion, introduces a modular approach to garment design that turns fashion into a process of reassembly rather than disposal. Recently presented at an international computing conference, the tool demonstrates how digital design can support circular, sustainable fashion.
- Refashion breaks fashion design into modules that users can rearrange, resize, or combine, producing garments that adapt to changing styles and body shapes.
- The Pattern Editor lets designers connect panels digitally, previewing how components attach or detach before any fabric is cut or stitched.
- A simulation feature displays the garments on 3D mannequins of varied body types, helping users visualise fit, shape, and reassembly options.
- The study Refashion: Reconfigurable Garments via Modular Design was authored by Rebecca Lin (MIT CSAIL), Michal Lukáč (Adobe Research), and Mackenzie Leake (Adobe Research), and presented at the ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology.
THE PROJECT: The research explains how each clothing piece can be divided into components that users draw, connect, and adjust on screen. By linking computational modelling with pattern-making, the system encourages reassembly and reuse instead of replacement, turning garment construction into a sustainable, repeatable process.
- The paper describes an algorithmic framework that lets designers plan garment structures through connected panels, reducing trial-and-error and material waste.
- Each digital blueprint defines panel dimensions and connectors, supporting easy resizing and transformation of finished items.
- In tests, participants quickly produced garments that could shift between multiple shapes, such as dresses converted into tops or jumpsuits.
- The authors highlight how combining computation and design practice can make custom fashion more accessible and environmentally efficient.
INSIDE THE EXPERIMENTS: Testing of Refashion involved both trained designers and non-specialists exploring the system’s interactive features. The participants created prototypes that could change shape or function, often completing designs within half an hour. Their results demonstrate how modular, digital planning can make clothing design faster and more accessible while supporting reconfiguration and sustainable use of materials.
- Designers and novices assembled garments such as asymmetric tops that extended into jumpsuits or converted into formal dresses during a short trial.
- The system’s visual grid helped users outline each panel, identify connections, and refine patterns without manual cutting or sewing.
- Observations from the trial indicated that digital pattern planning improved efficiency and reduced the material required for physical prototyping.
- Participants’ feedback suggests Refashion could bridge creative design and technical construction, encouraging more flexible and durable clothing practices.
BEYOND THE PROTOTYPE: Refashion aligns with a growing movement in sustainable design that merges technology, creativity, and resource efficiency. By translating traditional garment-making into digital modules, the project illustrates how fashion’s environmental footprint can be reduced at the design stage itself. The system also reflects a wider cultural shift towards adaptable ownership, where clothing evolves alongside the wearer rather than being discarded.
- Experts view computational design tools as crucial for lowering textile waste and supporting personalisation within sustainable production systems.
- Refashion shows how software-led design can extend garment lifespans by simplifying repair, adjustment, and creative modification.
- Similar research across design disciplines highlights how algorithmic processes can connect sustainability goals with aesthetics and innovation.
- The work situates circular fashion within digital practice, linking environmental responsibility to evolving definitions of craftsmanship and style.
WHERE IT’S HEADED: The Refashion team plans to expand the system’s capabilities to include more complex garment structures and materials. Future work will explore curved panels and stronger connectors that make digital designs suitable for long-term use. Researchers also aim to integrate colour, texture, and patchwork features so users can create distinctive, personalised clothing while minimising production waste.
- Planned updates will allow Refashion to handle heavier fabrics and assess how modular components withstand repeated wear.
- The next phase includes evaluating new connectors that can be repaired or replaced easily without altering the garment’s structure.
- The researchers are testing whether the interface can further reduce material use by optimising pattern placement and module layout.
- Longer term, the team intends to study how computational tools can encourage designers to remix existing garments rather than produce new ones.
What They Said
We wanted to create garments that consider reuse from the start. Most clothes you buy today are static and discarded when you no longer want them. Refashion instead makes the most of our garments by helping us design items that can be easily resized, repaired, or restyled into different outfits.
— Rebecca Lin
PhD student, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS)
MIT CSAIL and Media Lab
This is a great example of how computer-aided design can also be key in supporting more sustainable practices in the fashion industry. By promoting garment alteration from the ground up, they developed a novel design interface and algorithm that helps designers create garments that can undergo a longer lifetime through reconfiguration.
— Adrien Bousseau
Senior Researcher
Inria Centre at Université Côte d’Azur
