Press Release: Fashion Genius Zang Toi and Epson Innovate with Digital Textile Printing at Malaysia Fashion Week 2016

[Kuala Lumpur, 10 November 2016] – Today, the internationally acclaimed Malaysian designer label Zang Toi and Epson Malaysia, -the world leader in digital imaging and printing solutions, showcased the fruit of their innovative collaboration through the collection called, Toi -The Dressmaker, the bridge line of Zang Toi of New York at this year’s Malaysia Fashion Week.

Presenting for the first time at the Malaysia Fashion Week, Toi - The Dressmaker collection for Spring/Summer 2017 features a special dedication to women empowerment. It will display 18 looks of women in power suits for day and Epson digital prints for cocktail and evening pieces.

The coming together of the two brands resulted in six pieces of the Toi - The Dressmaker collection featuring special ‘wayang kulit’ designs created with the fabric that is digitally printed by Epson’s SureColour digital textile printers.

Epson’s SureColor digital dye-sublimation textile printer was used to print the designs, which were printed on taffeta fabric, which the Toi’s dedicated team custom-created for this occasion.

The designs for Toi-The Dressmaker collection took inspiration from the Zang Toi New York Spring Summer 1990 Collection, and it is all about bringing back the Malaysian Heritage.

“This is the digital era and we need to keep up with the current trends in technology especially for fashion. Trend, technology and fashion work hand in hand. This collaboration with Epson will stand for unrivaled glam and unrelenting approach to perfection and craftsmanship. Fun with technology has never been more fashionable”, said Zang Toi. “I think that the high quality digital textile printing will ultimately replace the silk screen printing for the mass market.”

“Working with the Epson digital textile printer was truly exciting. It’s just amazing that the machine uses the silk screen technique but works more like a photocopy machine. I will definitely consider digital textile printing for my future work. Based on my experience, it complements the fashion industry and hopefully will eventually cater to the couture market too,”,” he added.

Where the traditional silk screening process is costly, labour-intensive, requires large minimum yardage and can sometimes be restrictively repetitive; digital textile printing allows for fabric to be printed in remarkably small runs, with no barrier to design and is environmentally clean. Digital photography, photos and even paintings can be embraced in the creative process, allowing designers to produce unique, breathtaking works.

For Epson, the chance to work with the Zang Toi label was a great opportunity to showcase the versatility of its range of SureColor digital textile printers that are able to print on a range of fabrics. With the wide colour gamut that Epson printers offer, the colours printed are accurate and vibrant, matching exactly what the designer wanted to achieve.

“We are honoured to collaborate and break new grounds in digital printing with Malaysia Fashion Week and with such an acclaimed international label as Zang Toi,” said Danny Lee, General Manager, Sales & Marketing, Epson Malaysia. “Our intention is to showcase the amazing capabilities and versatility of our digital textile printers and the opportunities for digital textile printing in the fashion industry. We intend to fully support creative designers to transform their ideas into any possibility they can imagine, and leverage those as viable business ideas too.”

“What we see here today is the future of digital printing and an inflection point for the textile industry. Today’s showcase of Toi – the Dressmakers' collection demonstrates that Epson is able to create high quality textile prints that meet the most stringent standards of fashion designers. We can do this with our dye sublimation printers that are powered by advanced technology such as Micro Piezo^TM and PrecisionCore™ technology,” he said.

Epson digital dye sublimation printers use Epson’s proprietary technology known as Micro Piezo™ and PrecisionCore™ TFP head technology. The Micro Piezo^TM printheads, unlike thermal inkjet systems, eject droplets of ink via mechanical pressure and do not use heat, making it compatible with a far wider variety of inks and mediums. By precisely controlling the volume of ink contained in each droplet of ink, Epson Micro Piezo^TM printers not only generate virtually no wasted ink, they also ensure that sharp, rich and virtually grain-free images are rendered at all times.

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About the Toi- The Dressmaker Collection Theme

The woman’s power suit has many more variations than the 80s women executive suit. The power suit has evolved and shifted over the last century in ways that did not necessarily evolve around the usual nine-to-five grind. At Toi–The Dressmaker, it all starts with exquisite tailoring, creating a classic style with a sexy twist, mix of fabrics and palettes – all contained within a signature body hugging suit. This is all about a dash of Hollywood glamour and charm, - chic and elegant way to dress from day to night. Women, mature or young are made to feel like the only woman in the room. Celebrating the epitome of elegance with feminine grace, that is clean, bold tailoring and sophisticated. Fun with tailoring has never been more fashionable.