The combination of metal and yarn is not only something I find visually appealing but also combines the worlds of clothing and jewellery. The question that was raised when looking at these materials themselves in relation to the body was: why do things which are often physically uncomfortable often give us a sense of psychological comfort and satisfaction?

The imprints left behind on the skin by the seams of jeans, the edges of a ring, the cuff of a sock are all beautifully delicate; a ghost of something physical and a mark left behind to remind the wearer of the significance they attach to the artefact. 

finalllly just let myself have a think about what i actually want to do today instead of worrying too much about making a statement and something conceptual that no-one has ever done before i want to make something PRETTY but with a reason as well.

so to begin with I was thinking about combining jewellery with clothing, using metal, knit, chains etc to make one complete decorative garment rather than dividing jewellery and clothing as two seprate entities. So I thought about what they both symbolize individually, which led me on to consider jewellery as the “wrapping of an idea which leaves it’s imprint on the wearer” - the idea that the value of jewellery resides not in it’s physical form, but in the emotional significance it has for the wearer. This has been shown by Gijs Bakker in his ‘Shadow Jewellery’ Series which simply depicts the imprint left behind on the skin by a wire band wrapped tightly around the body and then removed.

This visual representation of the impact left on it’s wearer by a piece of jewellery led me to think about how things we wear often have not only a mental but also a physical effect on us. We wear things that are clearly uncomfortable enough to leave marks on our skin yet they provide us with a kind of psychological comfort so we wear them habitually. Most people said they felt bare or naked without a certain item of jewellery or an accesory they wear every day and this shows a kind of dependence.

So I began to experiment with wire knit and exaggerated the effects of the material on the body by wrapping it tightly around my skin and photographing the way the skin bulges through the holes in the knit, and the imprint that is left behind on the skin once it is removed.

Thinking about a final piece, what i’m visualizing at the moment is a garment or series of garments which look beautiful and inviting to the wearer, but when they are worn cause discomfort and create marks on the skin if worn for long enough. Also i’m thinking about switching between wire knit and yarns to highlight and emphasize the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ parts of the body that women usually focus on and that are often scrutinized, eg. the stomach, breasts and thighs might be held in and restricted by a wire ‘cage’ of knit whilst other parts are covered in denser softer knitted yarns. Alternatively, the more sexualized parts of the female form could be covered in a thick blanket exploring themes of female sexual oppression.  However I don’t want to fall in to the trap of my work being interpreted as ’society says women should be thin to be pretty’ becuase thats not what im interested in.