Young Designer Had Her Dreams Derailed by a Surprise Diagnosis. Then, She Set Out to Change the Fashion Industry Angela Andaloro is a Society & Culture Staff Writer at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE since 2022. Her work has previously appeared on BuzzFeed, Entertainment Weekly, and LittleThings.
"It affected my entire body. It affected my hands and the way I was traditionally working with art because I would do digital drawings," she tells PEOPLE. "I decided to start a project in which I take the garments that I wear like compression wear — I wear a lot of compression gloves, ankle compression, things like that — and I reimagined it. I redesigned it for the fashion that I would wear."
"We would start by taking Instagram photos and sharing online, but it wasn't reaching a lot of people," she says of her early outreach days. "The people I did reach were people with specific health conditions or who have interest in assistive design. I kept at it and have let that initial sense of purpose drive."
"Because I taught myself virtual fashion, I was able to design things such as prosthetic legs, which I wouldn't easily be able to get a hold of," she says. "I'm having as much fun as possible playing around and exploring. I try not to get stressed out or overwhelmed. I have really exciting projects coming up and I can't wait to engage with my audience and learn more about what they want me to create. I love having those conversations with them and getting that input," she says. "The community has been incredibly positive. I'm so happy and so blessed that it's been received so well.