Amber Jae Slooten
Co-founder and creative director of The Fabricant
Amber Jae Slooten is a fashion designer and co-founder of The Fabricant, the Amsterdam based company that became known as the first digital-only fashion house. As its creative director she helped prove that clothing designed purely in 3D software could have commercial and cultural value, most famously with the Iridescence dress sold on the blockchain in 2019.
| Role | Co-founder and creative director, The Fabricant |
|---|---|
| Company founded | 2018, Amsterdam |
| Education | Amsterdam Fashion Institute (graduated 2016) |
| Known for | Iridescence digital dress (2019) |
| Award | Dutch Design Award, Fashion (2021) |
Who is Amber Jae Slooten?
Amber Jae Slooten is a Dutch based designer and one of the founders of The Fabricant, a company established in Amsterdam in 2018 that designs clothing that exists only in digital form. As co-founder and creative director she shaped the aesthetic of the house and became one of the most visible advocates of digital fashion as a creative discipline in its own right.
Career
Slooten studied fashion design at the Amsterdam Fashion Institute, graduating in early 2016 with a collection created entirely in digital form. During her studies she interned with the designer Hussein Chalayan in 2015. At her graduation she met Kerry Murphy, who came from a background in 3D animation and motion graphics. After around two years of development the pair launched The Fabricant in 2018, with Adriana Hoppenbrouwer also named as a co-founder in later company coverage.
Key milestones associated with her work include:
- 2019: The Fabricant sold Iridescence, a digital-only dress, on the blockchain for 9,500 US dollars, a sale that drew global attention to digital fashion
- 2019: nomination for a Dutch Design Award in the Young Designer category
- 2021: Dutch Design Award in the Fashion category
- Collaborations with brands including Tommy Hilfiger, Adidas and Puma
Influence on the fashion business
Slooten's work helped move digital clothing from a technical tool for sampling into a product category and a form of self expression. The Fabricant's projects showed brands how 3D garments could be used for campaigns, virtual worlds, avatars and customer co-creation, and how digital design could reduce the need for physical samples. She has also stressed open access, with the company sharing 3D files and running educational formats so that new designers can learn digital workflows.
Amber Jae Slooten and technology
Her entire practice is built on 3D software, real time engines and digital distribution. In an interview with Dutch Design Week she described the appeal of designing in software: "You don't need scissors; you just click control+Z." In the same piece she said that in this new reality "a kid in Dakar has as much chance as a kid in Paris of becoming an influential fashion force", summing up her view that digital tools lower barriers to entry. She has also described a future in which augmented reality layers digital fashion over physical clothing.
Why it matters
Slooten is one of the designers who defined digital fashion as a category. Her work with The Fabricant offers an early reference point for brands now exploring 3D design, virtual products and AI assisted creation, and it shows how creative direction, not only technology, determines whether digital garments resonate with audiences.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Amber Jae Slooten?
Amber Jae Slooten is a designer and co-founder of The Fabricant, an Amsterdam based digital fashion house founded in 2018. As creative director she became one of the leading voices for clothing designed purely in digital form.
What is Amber Jae Slooten known for?
She is best known for The Fabricant's Iridescence dress, which in 2019 became the first digital-only dress sold on the blockchain, for 9,500 US dollars. She also won a Dutch Design Award in the Fashion category in 2021.