Mom and daughter raincoat turned into joyful mom and daughter keepsakes.
When Jocelyn first contacted me, she was unsure whether I can work with a raincoat material. She asked me anyway and sent me some photos, and a snippet of her story: “The raincoat is special to both my mother and me. My mother wore it in her 20s before handing it down to me and I wore it in my 20s. It can't be worn anymore, but I hung on to it due to the memories.”
This was music to my ears as it is exactly why I do what I do. To keep those memories artistically, without having clothes stored for no reason.
Jocelyn shared something else that made me feel even more honored to be creating these keepsakes for her and her mom: they were planning on traveling last summer to celebrate personal wins and events in their life, but when they ended up not being able to travel, they decided to celebrate by having these keepsakes made! This filled my heart so much! 💕
When I confirmed that I can work with raincoat material, Jocelyn gave me more details of her vision: “We are thinking 2 custom fashion keepsakes with custom illustrations. We are hoping to have each one featuring a woman wearing a raincoat and boots. […] We are hoping that the woman in my Mom's can be drawn to look like her when she was in her 20's and that mine will look like me in my 20's. I attached some more pictures to show you what we looked like. […] Part of the reason we want our likenesses in the raincoat is because we have no great pictures of us in it.”
The photos she sent along of herself and her mom were so beautiful! And the raincoat is a joyful, bright green color with a cute whale pattern inside the navy lining. My creative pathways were sparkling! I suggested to have the figures lightly dancing, and to add some subtle rain, and sent Jocelyn a quick draft so she sees what I mean.
My suggestions hit the spot! “We love the idea of a "dancing step" and some rain! We both love dancing (I took tap for 10 years, so it reminds me of Singing in the Rain with Gene Kelly).”
I started working right away!
I love communicating with my clients because I can feel their vibe and infuse it in my work.
Jocelyn and Antonia also wished to somehow show the lining of the raincoat, which was navy and had a delightful little whales pattern on it, and I found this way of bringing some whales out of hiding and onto the coat. I replicated the collar, pockets, and silver snaps, and I love how it all turned out! The keepsakes can be displayed separately and they also look fantastic together, dancing to the same music.
Here’s some more photos of each keepsake, and some close-ups with the women’s photos that were sent to me.
Here’s what Jocelyn had to say about her keepsakes:
“My Mom and I got together today to open our keepsakes. We LOVE them!! The little surprise with the whales on the jacket was perfect :) […]”
She also shared a precious photo of herself and her mom with their keepsakes and I was in tears. What a nice bonding present between mama and daughter, don’t you think?
Jocelyn, thank you for trusting me with this special coat of yours and your mom’s and for letting me help you celebrate. I so love the meaning in my work.
