Fashion on a roll: The label 'giving wheelchair users their personality back' with elegant, easy-to-wear designs especially for the seated form

IZ Adaptive, based in Toronto, creates clothing intended for the seated form

It uses magnetic snaps and lightweight, stretch fabrics so that wheelchair users can have an easier time with getting clothing on and off



A well-regarded Canadian fashion designer has created a line of clothing specifically for individuals who use a wheelchair.

Izzy Camilleri’s IZ Adaptive offers clothes for both disabled men and women whose fashion needs are dictated by their constantly seated form.

Because of this, conventional clothes often pose the problem of bulky fabrics, awkwardly-placed zippers, and odd draping. IZ Adaptive seeks to eliminate these issues through specially-engineered designs.

Catering to seated forms: IZ Adaptive is a Canadian label designed for wheelchair users

Both genders: The label designs men's and womenswear with wheelchair users' special fashion needs in mind

Ms Camilleri created the line after Canadian journalist Barbara Turnbull, who was paralyzed after being shot, asked her to make a custom shearling cape in 2004 – having found it immensely difficult to find a proper winter coat, as the garment’s fabric tends to pool in awkward places on a wheelchair.

The two embarked on multiple years’ worth of collaboration before Ms Camilleri decided to take the concept to the next level and create a line. Hence, IZ Adaptive was born.

Prior, Ms Camilleri had operated a more conventional fashion line in Toronto, later becoming a TV and film costumer. She even created a few of the furs worn by Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada.

Tailor-made: Designer Izzy Camilleri has installed the clothes with magnetic buttons and well-placed zippers so that wearers have an easy time using the garments

Concious approach: Ms Camilleri chose the fabric for her designs based on what would be most comfortable for consumers, as well as what would drape best when placed on a seated form

But now she is designing motorcycle jackets, shirtdresses, denim skirts, and even bathrobes for women who use a wheelchair. Designs range from $29 for a T-shirt to $299 for a biker jacket.

Menswear offerings include button-down shirts, sweaters, chinos, and even blazers that range from $39 to $199.

Of creating IZ Adaptive, Ms Camilleri says on her site: ‘I was just at a point in my life where it all made sense that I could make clothes where it was making a difference in people’s lives with work that had never been attempted before.’

Cool prints: Ms Camilleri has included many contemporary prints in her designs to help consumers express their personas

Professional appearance: Many of IZ Adaptive's menswear designs are perfectly suited to the office

In engineering the designs, Ms Camilleri said that she had to revisit how clothes are even constructed. Because many wheelchair users find it difficult to get clothes on and off she has largely used magnetic buttons, rather than conventional ones.

Similarly she has placed zippers in strategic places, like the front of a garment instead of the back or side. She has also chosen lightweight stretch fabrics that don’t add bulk, as well as clothing silhouettes that will not awkwardly pool or drape when placed on a seated form.

More than fashion: Ms Camilleri says her work goes beyond clothes, and is about giving people their personality back

But according to Ms Camilleri, IZ Adaptive’s concept is about much more than just fashion.