Your Wardrobe
Will Tell Me Who You Are!

Clothing and personal accessories are ways of showing group identity in our society. A pearl necklace, together with a pastel coloured jumper set, is a clear signal of who you are. The same is true of the hooded jacket and oversized jeans hanging by a belt at crotch level. Fashion trends come and go. Most of us probably wear a mix of styles but still stick to the type of clothing we feel fit our identity. And of course we follow fashion trends even though we might think we couldn't care less.

Among children and youngsters wearing the "wrong" clothing could be the cause for mobbing. For teenagers clothing has even greater importance, as part of the formation of an adult identity. It is necessary to feel attractive. Clothes are also of huge importance for adults, not least on formal occasions.

Wheelchair users often find it hard to find attractive and well fitting clothes. Clothing that is tailored for a "sitting" body are practically non-existent on the common market. Trousers, sweaters, skirts and jackets often sit at an angle, the fabric stretch and creates ugly-looking creases, or simply doesn't cover what it is supposed to. Stretch materials often are the sole solution. In worst cases you have to do with leisure pants or velour jumpsuits.

Adaptive clothing is provided by a couple of companies which target the consumer group of wheelchair users. A few carry clothes that look "nice". Others focus on adaptions made for people "dressing wheelies" instead of the person "getting dressed". We have encountered some pure horrors, for example the skirt with a hole instead of fabric covering your behind. Surely the idea of clothing is not to "moon" the world.

Of course, from the perspective of wheelchair users there are also practical demands on clothing. The design should make it easy to handle visits to the washroom, to dress and undress etc. But this does not mean that you should dress for the comfort of your personal assistant at the cost of your image and personal style. It is important to avoid unnecessary hassle, at the same time remain who you are, and dress as you please.

It is important that the clothes fit well in all situations. You should be able to transfer from your wheelchair to the car seat without ending up with a "waistband" instead of a skirt or a "neck warmer" instead of a suit jacket. Adaptive design could mean that you'll be able to do more things without assistance; or that necessary but time-consuming tasks can be done with less effort. You might be able to use your energy or your assistance hours for something else.

Fashion Freaks' basic idea is that people in wheelchairs are as vain as the next guy. We are all unique individuals with our own personal taste and style. That is why part of the project has focussed on producing a number of basic patterns for a "sitting body". On the site you will find descriptions of how you can put together your own pattern. To measure, cut and sew test clothes takes a little time and patience. But it pays off in the end. When you have your own basic pattern it is simple to sew skirts, jackets or pants in different colours and materials. You can also add or change design details. Add a wrinkled or gathered piece to the bottom of the skirt and it becomes different from the others. To sew clothes is not as hard as you might think. If you are new to this just follow the sewing instructions.

However, wheelchair users are not only vain. We also have special demands. Sometime we find our own solutions, change or add features to bought clothes. We use materials that are durable and easy to wash. We have tools made by ourselves or bought that aid us. Another part of the project has gathered Tips from other wheelchair users on how they adapt, re-design or do to get hold of goodlookiong and functional clothes. The Tips are collected and presented on the site.

”Fashion Freaks” was finansed by The Swedish Inheritance Fund