Check out the latest guide from Erin St Blaine: add NeoPixel seed pixels to a polka dot dress and create an electro-swing, dance-reactive retro fashion delight. This is an intermediate guide that will give you ideas and techniques for lighting up your costume and creating effects that react to your motion.
From the guide:
Put on your dancing shoes and get ready to light up the joint! This project transforms a classic black-and-white polka-dot swing dress into a motion-reactive wearable filled with colorful animated light.
Each polka dot conceals a lightweight, individually addressable NeoPixel on a strand. When the dress is still, the lights give a slow twinkle to the skirt. When you perform an energetic twirl or jump, glowing flares race upward across the fabric, flickering and lighting you up with energy and sparkle.
This is an intermediate wearable project. You’ll need some sewing experience, along with a little patience while laying out and connecting the lights. We’ve provided sample code in CircuitPython, and you can select your colors and animation speeds with easy code variable modifications.
The finished dress is comfortable enough to dance in and dramatic enough for performances, parties, or any night when ordinary polka dots simply won’t do. Choose a dress and color palette that match your style, then get ready to jump, jive, and light up the night.
– Adafruit RP2040 Prop-Maker Feather: https://www.adafruit.com/product/5768 — This is the main controller running the CircuitPython animation and using its onboard accelerometer to trigger motion-based light effects.
– Adafruit NeoPixel Seed LED Strand with JST PH 3-Pin Connectors, 2″ Pitch: https://www.adafruit.com/product/6026 — This addressable LED strand provides the individually controlled lights hidden behind the dress’s polka dots.
– Mini Flat Head Screwdriver Set: https://www.adafruit.com/product/424 — This handy tool is used for the small wiring and assembly tasks involved in preparing the wearable electronics.
Read more at Polka Dot Electro-Swing Dress with NeoPixels