Workwear Fashion, Human Anatomy, Transparency & Technology: A National Security Professional's Journey to Functional Women's Workwear Part 1: Dissects popular women’s workwear designs through the lens of anatomy, exploring what tight waistlines mean for digestion and offers reflection on how workwear can be better designed for menstrual cycles and hot flashes of menopause. Part 2: Reflects on the polluting nature of fast fashion and the sustainable fashion initiatives that are coming about to combat this. Part 3: Explores the exciting new technologies that are emerging in the field of fashion such as 3D printing, nanotechnology, and digital fashion. Part 4: Expands on what the purpose driven brand "Empowering Workwear by Lydia" is trying to do with its four-tiered agenda for women’s workwear fashion. More information on Empowering Workwear: www.empoweringworkwear.com

1. Workwear Fashion,
Human Anatomy,
Transparency & Technology
A National Security Professional's Journey to Functional Women's Workwear
Lkcyber.com
@LKCYBER
linkedin.com/in/lydiak
Dr. Lydia Kostopoulos

2. Workwear Fashion, Human Anatomy, Transparency & Technology
A National Security Professional's Journey to Functional Women's Workwear
This presentation discusses:
Part I:Dissecting Workwear Fashion:
Through the lens of Body Systems
Part II: Supply Chain Transparency:
A consumer’s right, a brand’s responsibility
Part III: Technological Advances:
An explosion of new fashion technology
Empowering Workwear by Lydia Ltd ©2019
Part IV: A New Workwear Concept:
Meet Empowering Workwear by Lydiae

3. Dr. Lydia Kostopoulos consults on the intersection of people, strategy,
technology, education, and national security. She addressed the United
Nations member states on the military effects panel at the Convention
of Certain Weapons Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) meeting on
Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS).
Formerly the Director for Strategic Engagement at the College of
Information and Cyberspace at the National Defense University, a
Principal Consultant for PA and higher education professor teaching
national security at several universities, her professional experience
spans three continents, several countries and multi-cultural
environments..
Hello, I’m Lydia @LKCYBER
She lectures at the National Defense
University, Joint Special Operations
University, is a member of the IEEE-USA
AI Policy Committee, participates in
NATO’s Science for Peace and Security
Program, and during the Obama
administration has received the U.S.
Presidential Volunteer Service Award for
her pro bono work in cybersecurity.
She started the fashion label
Empowering Workwear by Lydia.

4. Brief Anatomy of Office Workwear
Men Women
Waistline of average:
- Workwear / formal pants
- Pantyhose
Waistline of average:
- Workwear / formal pants
Quick Look
For women who use
tummy slimming shapewear in
the office
Bra line:
Elastic band pressure here
Thigh high panty-hose with
silicon elastic leg band.
(Alternative to waist panty-
hose)
Average work shoes feature:
- Toe constricting shoes (pumps, flats etc)
- Socks are a rarity
- Little support. Arch support is a rarity
Average work shoes feature:
- Comfortable rubber soles
- Room for all toes
- Socks are necessary
- Have support and not hard to find arch support

5. Part I: Dissecting Workwear Fashion:
Through the lens of Body Systems
e

6. When designing fashion for the office
it would be best to design for this: Instead of this:

7. Dissecting Workwear Fashion:
Through the lens of Body Systems – Circulatory System
Consists of the heart and a network of
vessels that carry blood. It supplies oxygen
and nutrients to the body’s cells and
removes waste products.
The job of the circulatory system is to move
blood, nutrients, oxygen, carbon dioxide, and
hormones, around the body. It consists of
the heart, blood, blood vessels, arteries and
veins.

8. Dissecting Workwear Fashion:
Through the lens of Body Systems – Circulatory & Skeletal System
Average Constricting Office Workwear:
Problem: txt

9. make body-positivity fashionable, resulting in
happy people and comfortable clothing
FYI: Global Body Shaper Market Expected to Reach US$ 3.8mil by 2027
What will you choose?
Fashion designers have the power to
to make people squeeze into more
body shapers, which alone are an
annual $2mil industry.
&

10. Dissecting Workwear Fashion:
Through the lens of Body Systems – Muscular System
Consists of layers of muscles that cover the
bones of the skeleton, extend across joints,
and can contract and relax to produce
movement.
Comprised of about 650 muscles that aid in
movement, blood flow and other bodily
functions. There are three types of muscle:
skeletal muscle which is connected to bone
and helps with voluntary movement, smooth
muscle which is found inside organs and
helps to move substances through organs,
and cardiac muscle which is found in the
heart and helps pump blood.

11. Dissecting Workwear Fashion:
Through the lens of Body Systems – Skeletal System
The skeleton is a strong yet flexible
framework of bones and connective tissue.
It provides support for the body and
protection for many of its internal parts.
Our bodies are supported by the skeletal
system, which consists of 206 bones that
are connected by tendons, ligaments and
cartilage. The skeleton not only helps us
move, but it's also involved in the production
of blood cells and the storage of calcium.

12. Dissecting Workwear Fashion:
Through the lens of Body Systems – Circulatory & Skeletal System
Average Office Shoes:
Problem:
Pumps Loafers Ballerinas Winter
The shape of the average women’s office shoe, weather rounded
or pointy tends to not leave enough room for the pinky toe which
can cause numbing of the toes, particularly with higher healed
shoes.

13. Female office
workers on
average work
9-5 like this:
It would be more
comfortable like
this:

14. Dissecting Workwear Fashion:
Through the lens of Body Systems – Digestive System
The digestive system takes in the food the
body needs to fuel its activities. It breaks
the food down into units called nutrients
and absorbs the nutrients into the blood.
It consists of a series of connected organs
that together, allow the body to break down
and absorb food, and remove waste. It
includes the mouth, esophagus, stomach,
small intestine, large intestine, rectum, and
anus. The liver and pancreas also play a role
in the digestive system because they
produce digestive juices.

15. Dissecting Workwear Fashion:
Through the lens of Body Systems – Digestive System
The digestive system takes in the food the
body needs to fuel its activities. It breaks
the food down into units called nutrients
and absorbs the nutrients into the blood.
It consists of a series of connected organs
that together, allow the body to break down
and absorb food, and remove waste. It
includes the mouth, esophagus, stomach,
small intestine, large intestine, rectum, and
anus. The liver and pancreas also play a role
in the digestive system because they
produce digestive juices.

16. Dissecting Workwear Fashion:
Through the lens of Body Systems – Circulatory & Skeletal System
Average Workwear Waistlines:
Problem: When seated (office desk, meeting room, lunch) the waistline at
the natural waist (around the belly button) presses in and
constricts the intestinal area. It is uncomfortable sit for
prolonged hours and to eat.

17. Why must we have
such different
waistlines?

18. Dissecting Workwear Fashion:
Through the lens of Body Systems – Respiratory System
The respiratory system is centered on the
lungs, which work to get life-giving oxygen
into the blood. They also rid the body of
carbon dioxide, a waste product.
It allows us to take in vital oxygen and expel
carbon dioxide in a process we call
breathing. It consists mainly of the trachea,
the diaphragm and the lungs.

19. The Lining Differential:
Problem: Constricted Breathing
Ex: lining of dresses
Dissecting Workwear Fashion:
Through the lens of Body Systems – Respiratory System

20. Dissecting Workwear Fashion:
Through the lens of Body Systems – Reproductive System
The reproductive system allows humans to
reproduce. The female reproductive system
consists of the vagina, the uterus and the
ovaries, which produce eggs. During
conception, a sperm cell fuses with an egg
cell, which creates a fertilized egg that
implants and grows in the uterus.

21. The Female
Reproductive System
Women bring their
reproductive system with
them to work everyday, so it
is important to consider it
when designing clothes.

22. Bloating is a common
pre-menstrual symptom which
means the lower abdominal
area expands in size and
tends to be more sensitive.
The Female Reproductive System
Women’s workwear (dresses, skirts, pants) should consider
monthly changes to the female body.

23. The Mature Female Reproductive System
Women in this age group still work in office environments
and need clothes that consider their physiological changes.
Common Symptom: Hot Flashes
Fashion designers should think about the hot
flashes that women experience at work and
design fabric that eases the discomfort.
Ex: Avoid wool, silk, and most synthetic fabrics as these materials trap
heat and can increase the body temperature.
Clothes made of cotton, linen, or rayon “breathe” better, release heat,
and help keep you cooler.
Designing a layered office appropriate look helps women take off
layers when they have hot flashes.
Common Symptom: Arthritis
Arthritis is a common among men and women
above 65. Designers can design closures such as
buttons and clasps in an arthritis friendly way.

24. When designing fashion for the office
it would be best to design for this: Instead of this:

25. Why is this
mannequin a problem
for all sizes?
(including even sizes and the
odd sizes that don’t exist)
Because it doesn’t
account for
EVOLUTIONARY
BIOLOGY

26. This represents one body type in different sizes.

27. Evolutionary Biology:
Why it matters when designing comfortable work clothes
Evolutionary biology is the subfield of biology
that studies the evolutionary processes that
produced the diversity of life on Earth, starting
from a single common ancestor. These
processes include natural selection, common
descent, and speciation.
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