2012: a designer meets digital year in review

Well what a year it’s been…

From designer musical chairs to the launch of the Nike FuelBand, not to mention Facebook’s overhyped IPO, the increasing use of animated GIFs in online communications, and Burberry as our ever-present tech powerhouse, one thing after another has rapidly impacted the role of innovation in this niche fashion x digital space.

Below, then, are the 10 posts you loved the most on fashion & mash this year. It’s an interesting collection, seemingly tied together by tangible experiences over purely inspirational concepts. We’re talking physical pop-up platforms, real-time shoppable integrations, heavily interactive images and of course, wearable technology hitting the catwalk.

Thank you for reading and look out for a very exciting update from us early on in 2013!

• C&A Brazil puts Facebook likes on store hangers to push Mother’s Day collection

• DVF introduces Google Glass to NYFW catwalk

• Topshop #LFW show to offer customisable, instantly shoppable looks online

• Physical Pinterest board pops up at Westfield UTC mall

• ThingLink’s interactive Twitter images could be a natural fit for fashion brands

• Levi’s launches first brand magazine on Flipboard

• Asos partners with Aurasma on scan to shop app

• Chloé launches digital archive for 60-year celebration

• Harrods launches Pinterest contest for Queen’s Diamond Jubilee windows

• Shoppable films: fad or future?

Physical Pinterest board pops up at Westfield UTC mall

How’s this for a nice example of digital meets physical… Pinterest has set up a life-size pop-up board in San Diego to help celebrate the renovated Westfield UTC mall.

The outdoor concept sees a billboard-like frame housing both images and actual products as though they’re pins. Various brands and retailers from the mall are represented, with the same shown online on the WestfieldUTC Escape Everyday Pinterest page.

Fans are then invited to create their own board for a chance to win all the items (as shown with the rules below). Included is a pair of Oakley sunglasses, a $500 Splendid shopping spree, a $500 J.Crew gift card with a personal shopper, an ArcLight private screening for 20 people with refreshments, a Seasons 52 Chef’s Table for eight with wine pairings and more.

[LaJollaMom]

Digital snippets: Louis Vuitton, Project Runway, Westfield, Nike, Macy’s, Ikea

Some more great stories from around the web surrounding all things fashion and digital over the past week:

 

• Louis Vuitton’s Yayoi Kusama app turns pics into polka dot art prints (as above) [PSFK]

• Virtual Heidi Klum rates outfits of visitors to New York’s High Line via interactive Project Runway billboard [AdWeek]

• Westfield pits East against West in social media Olympics campaign [Campaign]

• Nike to run real-time Olympics Twitter ads [The Drum]

• Macy’s rolls out Shopkick mobile rewards app nationwide [AllThingsD]

• Ikea’s 2013 catalogue goes interactive [BrandChannel]

• Why Stylecaster changed its site [Fashion's Collective]

• Retail brands can benefit from greater reach on Facebook by targeting their fans’ friends [Media Week]

• B2B fashion sites on the rise [WWD]

• Spoonflower lets users design and sell own custom fabric [TechCrunch]

French Connection trials Google Goggles in store windows

French Connection has become one of the first brands to experiment with Google’s visual search technology, Google Goggles, in a bid to provide shoppers with quick and easy access to video content from its UK store windows.

Users need only take a photograph of the high-street retailer’s posters with the app to access a host of videos created by the brand, including the autumn/winter 2011/12 campaign (as below), alongside additional exclusives.

The application is integrated with Google search on Android devices and the iPhone. It scans images and then matches them against a library of virtual images, pulling in all relevant search information.

“We are lucky as a brand as we make a lot of content, but sometimes we can’t afford to get it all out there. By snapping a window with your Android or iPhone you can be delivered content that is not only relevant and engaging but is actually quite cool as well,” said William Woodhams, director of marketing and PR at French Connection.

The scheme was launched on September 19, initially as a trial in the retailer’s Westfield Stratford City and Westfield London destinations.