Inspired by her
type 1 diagnosis,
Natalie Balmain^
created adiabetic-friendly
fashion line
Do you ever stare
at your wardrobe
wondering what you’re going
to wear today? What would be
the easiest option to ensure you
can easily access your skin for an
injection? Or what clothes have
big enough pockets to carry your
insulin pump without a bulge?
No-one knows that feeling
better than UK-based fashion
designer and creative behind
Type 1 Clothing, Natalie Balmain.
Diagnosed with type 1 diabetes
at the age of 20, Natalie – who
was then a part-time model and
stylist – found it easiest to wear
loose or stretchy clothing that
could easily be pulled down
to inject, rather than taking
advantage of her full wardrobe
and the clothes received as a
model. “Feeling restricted in
your clothing choices may seem
trivial to some, but after a while
it really has an impact on your
self-esteem and emotional
wellbeing,” she explains. “I didn’t
feel attractive in what I was
wearing, but I was too burned-woman
CLOTHES
MAKE THE
Natalie Balmainout to deal with the fuss of
wearing nice clothes and having
to traipse off to public bathrooms
every time I had to inject.”
It wasn’t until she re-noticed
a little hole in the side seam of
her trousers that she had been
meaning to fix that an idea
began to grow. “I did my injection
through the little hole and
I thought, actually this little
flaw worked!” says Natalie.
“I wondered if I could apply
this to other clothes and then
I looked to see if anything like
that – with little openings for
diabetics – had been made, and
there just wasn’t anything.”
Natalie took the excitement
and ideas influenced by her own
struggles to pen and paper, and
began designing this self-funded
project in September 2015. Lessdiabetes hero
diabetic living MARCH/APRIL 2019 19than two years later, the
first collection of Type 1
Clothing was launched.
Designing, sourcing
the fabrics and running
the business herself,
the dream of Type 1
Clothing was brought
to life with the help
of Parveen Cosr, a
technical specialist
who creates patterns
from the designs, cuts
and stitches everything in
the womenswear line, and
advises on practical issues.
“What I really hoped for when
designing this collection was
that these clothes might make
people’s lives a little easier, make
them smile and feel good about
themselves,” explains Natalie.
“And hopefully that wouldDiabetes-
friendly
designs