Clothing for the Visually Impaired

Blindness is the consideration of lacking visual knowledge because of physical and/or neurological factors. Full blindness is the absolute lack of structure and light knowledge and is clinically shown as “No lighter perception” or “NPL”). There are more than 2.2 billion outwardly debilitated individuals all over the planet and 18 million in India. Clothing is one of the fundamental needs of each human including that of the visually impaired. The research begins with understanding the needs of the visually impaired through a field survey and concludes with exploratory design concepts. The survey and case studies suggest that the functional needs of the visually impaired have been ignored globally and in India by the apparel and Fashion industry. Depriving them of the right to autonomous living and freedom of expression that fashion gives to its customers. This application-based research hence focused on creating versatile attire for visually impaired individuals. The primary focus is on using the garment’s surface to communicate with the visually impaired to fulfill their need for autonomous living and also assist them in expressing their perspectives.