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Spies Like Us: Haute Tech Fashion

Fans of the ABC television series "Alias" knew that no covert operation would be complete without a suitcase containing at least one high-tech outfit change - and an identity-obscuring wig - for Sydney Bristow, the spy played by Jennifer Garner.

Whether it was a computer chip hidden in a tube of lipstick or infrared sunglasses, Garner's character was always ready for intelligence gathering dressed as an unsuspecting fashionista at an underground club or five star hotel bar.

As it turns out, there's a history of covert clothing worn by female spies, as designer Angel Chang explained at an exhibition of her Spring '08 collection at Ralph Pucci International on Wednesday, Dec. 6.

"I'd been watching a lot of 'Alias,' said Chang, but her latest collection was also inspired by a visit to the International spy museum in Washington D.C., where she discovered that female spies during WWII often smuggled intelligence in their clothing - a message might be written in the clothing, for example.

A graduate of Barnard College, a women's college in New York, Chang animatedly pointed out that many of the spies hailed from Barnard, which added to her interest in exploring a contemporary version of "secret spy" wear for the cool, independent jet-setting woman that Chang sees as her customer.

"They were worldly, they knew different languages, they were independent and they had travelled," said Chang about why so many Barnard students were recruited during the war.

In some pieces, Chang's collection incorporates technology developed by the military, such as a linen jacket lined with a silver anti-microbial fabric. In the army, Chang said, socks are made out of the same silver thread, making them odor-free.

"Silver acts like a bandage," said Chang, explaining how silver in army clothing can prevent potential wounds from getting infected. "And metal has cooling properties." Making it an ideal fabric for a spring collection, in other words. Other fabrics in the collection have incredible wicking properties, making sweat virtually non-existent.

"In theory, you never have to wash it!" she said.

Beyond the high tech materials, Chang also designed a series of scarf prints that looked to the adaptations of the military in the past.

"During the war, people used to have maps printed on chiffon scarves, because they wouldn't make any noise when they were unfolded," said Chang.

Chang's scarves use prints provided by Red Maps, a design-oriented publisher of maps featuring the best shopping, restaurants and art galleries in various cities, all done as plain red schematics.

The inventive designer, who is based in New York and previously worked for Donna Karan, recently won the Cartier Women's Initiative Award, given to five women worldwide to recognize innovative business projects. Her past collections have incorporated everything from heat-sensitive fabrics that change based on body temperature, to jackets with built-in iPod controls, to perfumed furs.

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