The New Couture

Adaptive Fashion is the New Couture

By Keisha Greaves, Girls Chronically Rock

Alexa, Siri, voice-activated apps, phones and even TVs have been a great convenience throughout my journey with a chronic illness. Having the ability to turn off the light without risking a fall or calling for help when no one is around has tremendously changed the level of independence I am able to enjoy.

However, one of my areas of passion, fashion, has always been a challenging space to navigate living with Limb-Girdle Muscular Dystrophy (LGMD). Having the energy to open and close a series of buttons, secure long zippers or even keep my arms raised over my head can present challenges for getting dressed without the assistance of personal aid.

Adaptive Clothing: Everybody’s Doing It, Finally!

Thankfully, that's all changing as adaptive fashion is carving out a greater niche in the fashion world, creating a new subcategory of fashion made with the limitations of the customer in mind. Adaptive clothing is defined as clothing designed with those with disabilities, the elderly and anyone who struggles with clothing themselves in mind.

Mindy Scheier, the founder of Runway of Dreams, works with big brands in the fashion industry to come up with modifications to create adaptive clothing that mirrors mainstream fashion trends and meets the needs of the 1 billion people living with a disability. Big names like Tommy Hilfiger, Zappos, Target and more are getting in on the action and adjusting both their vision and products to include the disability community.

After watching Mindy talked about her son's personal battle with LGMD, I was inspired to dream up a few adaptive fashion options for my Girls Chronically Rock brand, so get connected and stay tuned for updates on the collection reveal!

Take a few minutes and watch the TED talk Mindy gives below to learn why adaptive fashion is such an important topic in the fashion industry and in the lives of those of us who live with a disability or chronic illness.

About the Author:

Keisha Greaves is the owner of Girls Chronically Rock, LLC and you can check out her t-shirt line at www.girlschronicallyrock.com. You can also follow her on Facebook @GirlsChronicallyRock and Instagram @girlschronically_rock.