In college, I saw a man walking with crutches, missing the lower half of one leg. His pants were merely safety pinned up, at which point I thought, "there's got to be a better way."

Several years later, I had the chance to make that vision a reality. I ran Woman of the Cloth and later Accessible Threads to  provide apparel to promote independence and style for people with bodies that didn't always conform to mainstream fashion.  

With custom alterations and eventually unique designs manufactured for people with special needs, the company helped enable many individuals with both form and function. 

On this page, you'll see a few of the many designs and alterations that helped people with different abilities feel independent, empowered and fashionable.

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Oops Shirt

When eating, sometimes it helps to have an extra layer between you and your food. For adults, a "bib" can feel demeaning and infantilizing, but the "Oops Shirt" designed with pearls or an applique for women or a bow-tie for men, allowed adults dignity and cleanliness if they had motor skill issues. 

Accessible Cape

After many, many custom requests for outerwear to keep a person in a wheelchair warm and dry, these capes were designed to meet the various needs of wheelchair users and were manufactured in the US. An optional fleece liner could be added for cold Chicago winters.

Thumbless Mittens

In addition to keeping the body warm, extremities get cold and hands or finger that are in spasm or locked in a particular position benefit greatly from these thumbless mittens. These hand sized pockets close with Velcro around the wrist and are lined with flannel.