[Arizona-students] Fw: Not blind to fashion

[Joe Orozco]

From: Arika McCoy
Subject: Not blind to fashion


> ROME (Reuters Life!) - Two American students are launching a new talking 
> Web
> site that helps blind people pick and buy trendy clothing that is fitted
> with braille tags and then sent to their doorstep.
>
> The sound-activated www.whitecanelabel.com Web site, due to go online in 
> the
> fall, will ask users what their fashion likes and dislikes are and 
> recommend
> clothes ranging from casual to evening wear based on those preferences.
>
> A braille tag that includes the designer's name, type of clothing such as 
> a
> "blouse" or a "t-shirt", size, color and symbols to help in piecing 
> together
> certain look like "business casual" is attached to the clothes ordered and
> then mailed out.
>
> "The central point is to give blind and visually impaired people more
> independence in choosing their clothing," co-founder Asmah Abushagur said
> during Rome's summer fashion week where the initiative was launched.
>
> "If someone wants say, a black business suit, then we can help them put 
> that
> together."
>
> The Rochester Institute of Technology students say they stumbled on the 
> idea
> after discovering the difficulties blind people have in picking an outfit 
> to
> wear and having to rely on family and friends for it.
>
> So far, the main methods used are metal tags or attaching different 
> numbers
> of clothes pins or slits to outfits to indicate various colors.
>
> "It started off as a school project, you know, how can I get an 'A'?" said
> co-founder Jaimen Brill. "But then we saw the options blind people have."
>
> Though the venture is a non-profit effort and is asking designers to 
> donate
> clothes, the outfits will be sold at retail prices to prevent shoppers who
> are not blind from using the Web site to take advantage of a good bargain.
>