My personal project
I started Fabricademy with great enthusiasm, but also with a lot of fear: I felt that I wouldn't be able to deal with fashion and with designing things that I had never explored before, I was afraid of not fulfilling my personal expectations. I was constantly thinking that my engineering background in industrial design would help me a lot, but I also believed that it wasn't enough to make a great project.
As the weeks went by, I fell in love with Fabricademy 💜, I did my best to attend the course classes and also my university classes (because the hours clashed). The last weeks of the course I was very very far away from the assignments, I also felt very sad about that and for other reasons, but anyway.... all this was the reason that kept me motivated to define my final project, focusing on me, I wanted this project to make me feel confident and proud of myself.
So, this is how this adventure begins and I hope you enjoy it as much as me!
▪ Let's talk about: introverts and extroverts 🔎
What Susan Cain understands is something that psychology and our fast-moving and fast-talking society have been all too slow to realice: "Not only is there really nothing wrong with being quiet, reflective, shy and introverted, but there are distinct advantages to being this way."
I believe that even in this actual times there are things that are not talked about, and that should be talked about. Being shy, embarrassed, vulnerable and introverted is something that not everyone wants to talk about. But fortunately Brené Brown has been estuding the shame and vulnerability for years, and also Susan Caid did the same with introverted people. So, here is the thing: the only people who don't feel shame, are the ones who don't feel connection and empathy. And I also believe that design is a function of connection, there is nothing more vulnerable than creativity.
For making more sense to what I'm saying, I just realized and understood that I have an introvert personality. I took some test in many blogs that told me that. I'm not a psycologist but I also read a lot from Susan Cain and other authors that have studied introversion for years! And also a I took a famous test about personalities about 2 years ago, I remember it said that I am introverted but I didn't believe that. And now I made again that same test and here is the result
Interesting... here is the full information about these personality, and it can be interesting for you to make this test too. Well, something I rescue about there is this: Introversion meets a lack of confidence in Turbulent Defenders, and because of this, they may hold back from letting their lights shine
Are we really not shinning? and why? Or is because it is considered that only extroverted people have more chances to shine? My answer, is yes, and no, and here are the reasons ⬇️:
▪ As Susan Cain mentioned, we live in a world where extroversion is highly valued and sought after, and at work, school, university and in the world everything is designed for extroverts. And, in my particular case I've always found it difficult to thrive in an extrovert-centric world, even going so far to the point of altering my personality to fit into this challenge of being an extrovert. Rather than changing the characteristics of an introvert, it would be great to understand that my participation in society does't have to be the same as that of extroverts.
▪ According to several authors (Cain, Brown, Yufei, Carl Jung) the value of introverts is misunderstood and underestimated, in society. What most people look for is extroverted people, who express themselves well, who are very sociable and so on, because due to a historical background, all this is related to an ideal and successful personality. But we have mistakenly believed that everyone should be like that, and that only then you will be successful.
▪ There is a misconception that introverts want to hide and to be appart from other people, but we only process stimulation and information in a different way, therefore we communicate and express ourselves in a different way. Also, introverted people are always associated with clothes with neutral, boring, dull colors and nothing extravagant. And personally I think those are very similar traits in introverts but it doesn't mean that we don't like colorful things or we don't like fancy things. And for the first time I want to get out of that, I want to wear something that they would say is only for extroverts but in reality it's not, it's just not something that we wear every day or it's not something that is common to see in introverts.
I found in some lectures and blogs this guide to understanding & designing for introverts and this is exactly how people think introverts should look like just because we don't want to keep talking wih people around us.
But I can't imagine going out with that terrible outfit. This is me in different times of my life:
I've changed my hair color several times because I like a lot of colours but I've to admit that my cloth is not always as such as colourful. Anyway, with this project I want to wear fancy accesories that give an enhacement to my personality but also that looks like something "only and extroverted person would use". In fact, I really admire extroverts and the way the express theirselves, so for this time I want to express myself in a way I've never done before.
📌 Useful readings
▪ inVisible: a guide to understanding & designing for introverts
▪ Quiet: the power of introverts in a world that can't stop talking
▪ Introvert power: Why your iner life is your hidden strength
▪ Designing ultra-personalised embodied smart textile services for well-being. Advances in Smart Medical Textiles, 155–175. doi:10.1016/b978-1-78242-379-9.00007-4 )
▪ A Systematic Analysis of Mixed Perspectives in Empathic Design:Not One Perspective Encompasses All
📌 Useful Videos