Undesirables

The under layer of this dress that the petals are affixed to is made from the materials I've had lying around that I haven't wanted to use, or felt uninspired to make something of. They represent a silent support that isn't seen but is present. The undesirables.

Often, conservative politicians, religious leaders and people trying to vilify queer people, often call us "undesirables" as well. I think it's powerful to reclaim language, so I have named this dress for it, and have made it as a love letter to all of the beautiful, unique, special, kind, creative people I have met and will come to meet in our global 2SLGBTQ+ Community. Each Petal is unique, in shape, the way it sits, the fabric combination for the lining and shell, and each piece was hand placed onto the dress base, and stitched on. I found the petals moved around a fair bit after adding them so I went around and did hand stitching on every Petal to hold it down to the ones around it. To me this was symbolic of our bonds and connections with others in our community, and how our beauty and strength come from how closely we integrate with each other and support our queer brethren.  This piece is the most sewing intensive piece I have ever made, it took forever to put together and sew (each Petal is fully lined) and it weighs a lot because of how much fabric it is made from.