A very close encounter with disability got Canadian top designer Izzy Camilleri into creating fashion for disabled men and women.

By Mette Nielsen

Toronto based designer Izzy Camilleri has dressed stars like Meryl Streep, Angelina Jolie, Daniel Radcliffe and David Bowie for the past 30 years. But in the last four years she has primarily focused on designing affordable fashion for disabled people.

Why this change, you might ask?

Four years ago Izzy Camilleri met a woman in a wheelchair, who made a massive impact on her.

A meaningless act

Barbara Turnbull was 18 years old, when she was shot in the neck during a robbery in the local convenience store in suburban Toronto, where she worked. She was instantly paralysed from the neck down.  

For 30 years she has been relying on a wheelchair and a lot of help. But she hasn’t let it stop her from making it big: She has taken a university degree and become a journalist at the Toronto Star newspaper.

And that is where Izzy Camilleri comes back in the picture.

A special meeting

In 2009 Izzy Camilleri got a phone call from the then fashion editor at the Toronto Star. She had a colleague, who was a wheelchair user, and they had been discussing fashion for disabled people. The conclusion was that there was none. 

Izzy Camilleri agreed to meet Barbara Turnbull.

“I had never before met anyone with a disability before. I had no ideas what struggles existed when it comes to clothing. And I was instantly inspired by Barbara,” says Izzy Camilleri to bespoken.

She began to design pieces for her soon to be very close friend, starting with a special leather jacket in two pieces, designed to be classic chic, easy to get on and off, and not be bulky in the back.

From idea to reality

Camilleri instantly began puzzling with the idea of starting a clothing line for disabled people, but found that it wasn’t as straight forward as she had hoped:

“I got very disoriented. My head was just spinning: Everyone had such specific needs that I walked away thinking I couldn’t do this. I couldn’t generalise and come up with something that would be appropriate for the needs of a majority that are seated,” tells the designer.

She nearly gave up on the idea, but suddenly realised that people – not even people in wheelchairs - were all that different. She just had to design for a different frame.

The seated frame

IZ Adapted Clothing started to take shape.

“In the very beginning I thought it was possible to just adjust standard clothes. I remember trying to make an adapted coat just by cutting out a u-shaped area you would be sitting on it. It was a mess. It looked terrible. That’s when I found out just how different the seated frame is to the standing,” says Izzy Camilleri.

She started cutting new patterns. She made sure that her clothes looked their best seated. That they were easy to put on. And that no huge amounts of fabric would crumple up on the back and the seat. Therefore many of her products are in two pieces or backless.

Then she added fashion to the equation.

This have so far lead to designing everything from classic day wear, seated wedding dresses and evening wear, to sleeve guards for self wheeling in wet weather.

A humbling experience

The next steps for Izzy Camilleri is to design shoes that stay on, are comfortable and look great, and bras that are nice looking, easy to put on, and where hooks are not a problem.

And as for the long term plan for the business, Izzy Camilleri dreams of getting convenience stores to sell her line all over the world, so people can try on before they buy. 

“This has been the most humbling experience. I am most grateful that I have been given an opportunity to express my talents while doing really important work,” she says.

As for Barbara Turnbull she is still playing a big part in Izzy Camilleri’s designs and life. She is even coming into the flagship IZ Adaptive store in Toronto on the day bespoken talked to the Canadian designer.

Want to know more?

Izzy Camilleri‘s adapted designs are available online and the online shop delivers globally.