Is that an arse on your head or are you just wearing a coat of leaves? Either way, I'm pleased to see you.

When I look at this picture of the mythical Chinese sovereign Fu Xi, I’m not sure which strikes me more: the arse shape of his head, or the fact that his coat is made of leaves. Despite straining my brains, I can’t come up with any ideas relevant to Fu Xi’s former facet, so this idea will be related to the latter: the leaf coat.

Idea #19: Bio fashion

The leaf coat is an under-explored item of outerwear, and you know it is. When was the last time you ever saw anyone wear a leaf coat? Was there even a first time? Fur coats left, right and centre, yet not one soul in this so-called age of eco recycled sustainable organic stuff have I, personally, EVER seen wearing a coat of leaves. I have not even seen leaves featured in a coat!

A 'Weedrobe' by Nicole Dextras

(See Inhabitat for more bio fashion.)

You can already see that the true human clothing cycle should be fur coats in the winter and leaf coats in the summer. Add in even mild ethical concerns and we’re just left with a unisex coat of eco recycled sustainable organic leaves, a perfect fit for the current climate-concern culture.

From a business point of view, too, does it not make total sense? Once you invest in a sewing machine (pedal powered – carbon footprint, exercise), your raw materials can be obtained gratis from the park. Yes, probably a fair few man hours needed until you get the hang of it, but what could be more relaxing than sewing a coat of leaves?

Then, will you not find it easy to spread the word about your new product? Through the worldwide network of optical fibres, will you not be able to find one solitary, quivering nutcase to buy your ridiculous creation for a premium? Of course you will!

Yet you can also see that a leaf coat will barely be a practical solution in the long-term. With a pang of injured pride, I can feel the first tears in the seams of this idea within a week, I can see the dry and withering mess it will become.

But there is a solution!

The key market for bio fashion lies in one-off garments. That means wedding dresses and designer dresses for things like celebrities.

And the great thing is this just means you can sell your bio fashion for an even more ridiculous price!

• Why do they get it from you? Because you’re the only person doing it, therefore your creations are renowned and you quickly become the expert and leader in your field.
• Why do they get it at all? Because in a world of mass produced artifacts, people who can be bothered are desperate to find unique, exclusive items. What could be more exclusive than something that can only last a few days and simultaneously displays their trendy at-oneness with nature?

As you become more comfortable with your new found abilities, you can turn your ambitions to bio fashion flower dresses. None of this is as ridiculous as it sounds. Here’s a creation from Bio Fashion Week, held a few months ago in Columbia:

Risk of anaphalactic shock

A girl told me to write this.

Update (18/2/10)

It seems that the Dutchman Mr. Marc Frencken was ahead of the times on this one. He sent in this photo of himself sporting a very respectable unisex garment of bio fashion:

A wedding portrait for the 21st century

Mr Frencken, how did you construct this bio garment?

This bio garment is constructed of the actually (and I know I am letting you down here) not-so-bio material called plastic. It is a more robust prototype of a future-to-build real leafy version.

Was there a special occasion?

The occasion was last year’s halloween. Dressing up in this ‘leaf suit’ I gave myself the simple name: Bush!

And the lady?

The lady, logically, is sexy Mrs. Bush!

Anyone interested in getting their hands on a pair of the shutter shades Mr. Frencken is sporting in tasteful combination with his bio garb, please contact him at marc [doot] frencken [aat] gmail [doot] com.

In my work for Springwise.com, two of the most interesting trends that keep bubbling to the surface are mass customisation and (what I’ll call) remote participation. Mass customisation - the trend that sees consumers customising their environment and products en masse – has already inspired two ideas:Design your own bar, and Pimp My Village). Remote participation refers to people engaging with formerly inaccessible aspects of the real world via newly available online channels. Examples of this are remote-controlled organic vegatable gardens in rural Italy, shares in New Zealand beehives and, of course, lobster trap adoption schemes.

Combine these two trends, and what do you get? Remote graffiti – obviously.

Think about it, people fell in love with Web 2.0 because they could upload whatever they wanted – writing, photos, videos. Now everyone is doing that, it’s nothing special. It’s like writing a post-it note.

Now what people want to do is use all the new tricks they’ve learned on Web 2.0 to leave their mark on the real world. And what’s the best way of leaving your mark on the real world? No, not that. I meant graffiti. The problem is that the darkness of the graffiti underworld is forbidden to most people who have to be up for work in the morning. But don’t worry folks – we have the internet!

Idea #9.5: Remote graffiti

1. A web interface allows anyone to create their own graffiti on their computer screen.
2. If they’d like to see their work out there, they can specify a spot by entering location details/ uploading a ‘before’ photograph, and making a request for proposal. 
3. Real graffiti artists then place bids, specifying how much they’ll do the work for and when they’ll do it.
4. Users make a decision based on comparison of the bids, reputations and portfolios of the graffitists.
5. User and graffiti artist enter into a contract for the work.
6. When the work is complete, graffitist uploads ‘after’ photos and receives payment.

All the ingredients for this are already out there on the web.  There are free graffiti creators you can use, allowing you to customise classic graffiti fonts with your own text, colours and styles. Here’s something I made with the OldSchool font on http://www.graffiticreator.net:

Whoever sprays this on a wall gets a tenner

For people who like to keep their tagging habit a bit more freestyle, there’s http://graffiti.playdo.com, which lets multiple users spray on the same tiles at the same time so they can scribble over each other’s work… or work alone to create masterpieces like this:

Many a highlighter was exploited on such designs during the history lessons of my low-tech youth

Not only is remote graffiti the creative solution for bleeding edge closet rebel cowards, there’s also a potential business in it for anyone with the nouse and Nicky Blackmarket connections to make it happen.

If you really want to rack up the profits like balls in a ghetto poolhall, I’d also suggest letting users order canvas graffarti prints of their personal creation – the essential accessory for any Camden Town sitting room.

Legality might be a slight sticking point, but why are you asking me about that? I’m no lawyer.

While you save up the money to speak to one, have a look at Banksy’s website. When you’ve finished looking at that, buy his book “Wall and Piece” and despair that you are not as cool, successful or rich as he. He is, simply, a better person:

Imagine if you could do that for anything you wanted.

Like the idea? You need a Fab Lab.

A mobile FabLab (thanks to Matt at No-retro.com)

The Fab Lab – fabrication laboratory - is a concept developed by Neil Gershenfeld of MIT’s Center for Bits and Atoms. (Have a look at Neil Gershenfeld’s TED talk here, if you can handle his 900 mph jargon bursts.)

Basically, a Fab Lab is a room full of computers and machine tools just like those used in industry, which enables people to make more or less anything they need. Typically, a Fab Lab will include:

	Design Tools CAD/CAM Linux-based software bank Web and CMS for websites
	Tools to design and make circuits and microcontrollers
	Moulding machines Injection moulding Vacuum forming Wax moulding
	Cutting machines Lathes Routers CNC machines Laser cutters Vinyl cutters Waterjet cutters
	2D and 3D printers

(Details and prices of all machines at http://fab.cba.mit.edu/about/fab/inv.html) 

But here’s the curious thing… Are you ready? A complete Fab Lab only costs about $20,000.

Imagine, you can make anything you want. Need a solar panel for your house? Done. Wireless antennae to keep track of your reindeer? Norwegian herders beat you to it using their Fab Lab. Or do you just want to make a circuit board for… something? Easy! This 8-year-old from Ghana did it:

Valentina Kofi - just an ordinary girl with access to industrial tools

Well, I don’t know about you, but as soon as I get my hands on $20,000 I shall be installing a Fab Lab in my caravan. Think of the potential ideas:

1. Have an idea, make it.
2. Set up a website where other people can submit their ideas and pay you to custom build them in your Fab Lab.
3. Sell the products from 1 and 2 to anybody else who wants one.
4. Rent out your Fab Lab to other people who want to make stuff.
5. Don’t have the $20,000? Get some other people to chip in and share the Fab Lab.
6. Let local schools use your Fab Lab.

The last point is a big one. When Neil Gershenfeld let his kids mess around in his FabLab they ended up creating a 3D construction system that’s simple to produce and trumped the designs that MIT students were able to come up with. The design is now going into mass production:

Nice. But... What is it?

The great thing about Fab Labs is that MIT have written programs and guidelines to make everything so simple that even kids can quickly understand how to make what they want (see their website for more info). And doesn’t that make the world much more fun? Even MIT students managed to come up with a Fabaroni pasta printer that prints any shape in pasta dough:

Look! They got it to print MIT!

There are also huge potential applications for Fab Labs in international development. In fact,  partly due to $14 million worth of funding from the U.S. National Science Foundation, Fab Labs have already been established in India, Ghana, South Africa, Costa Rica and Afghanistan. These labs not only enable local engineers to solve problems unique to their region, but also open up all sorts of entrepreneurial opportunities around selling the products they come up with.

If you really had to, you could probably make a gun though...

So, basically, FabLabs are an all-round good idea. Neil Gershenfeld thinks it's just the beginning though, he envisages Fab Labs developing into something like a Star Trek replicator…

The future of Fab Labs?

Did I just ruin it all by saying that?

Anyway, if you still trust the man, you could have a look at his book:

And if you have any ideas for potential uses of Fab Labs, leave a comment!