I create accessible and sustainable garments. My work is inspired by a young girl named Nora who was born prematurely and experience complications during brain surgery. After Nora was born her mom, Lauren, knew that she was going to grow up being seen as different, and worried about how others would treat Nora. Lauren and her cousin now run The Nora Project, a weekly program where students with and without disabilities can learn about empathy and work towards removing the barriers. Whether we think it’s a conscious decision or not we choose the clothes we put on our body everyday. We dress ourselves and our kids in a certain way. The most common reason is to feel good. I realized that there is a severe lack of accessible clothing out there to accomplish that. No one should have to compromise their comfort and joy because they don’t fit society’s “norm”. Through my work I am trying to help lessen the stigma surrounding disability and help educate others. Also within my work 95% of the materials are sustainable, recycled, or reused.
Look one, 2021, pink, orange, photoshoot New Orleans, model Kami Thompson, Look one
2021, pink, orange, photoshoot New Orleans, model Kami Thompson
This collection is what I hope will be available to Nora 10 years from now. Clothing that is accessible whether you have a disability or not. Each look illustrates a different accessibility issue from having access to pockets while sitting to having an opening near your abdomen. By creating clothing that is accessible to people with and without disabilities I am hoping to make a small impact on removing the stigma between each community and illustrating that it is possible to create such clothing.
Another thing that I incorporated in this collection is sustainability. I want to create this for Nora 10 years from now but in order for that to happen we have to have a stable earth. Fashion is the second leading harmful industry to our earth after oil. With every new garment we buy or throw out we are hurting out environment. Sustainable brands exist but when not make an accessible and sustainable brand that is for everyone? I think in order for fashion to transform into a better future we need to listen to people. That may sound a bit redundant but if we really listen to the people that fashion affects on a level deeper than superficial we will be able to impact so many peoples lives.