The vision of two occupational therapy students, Alyson Parker and Jill MacPhee, will allow disabled teenaged girls to do something that before was impossible for many of them: put on their own make-up.
Recognizing that “the ability to be independent in applying make-up holds significance and meaning” during adolescence, the pair designed a special hands-free make-up station so that teenage girls with upper body limitations could enjoy applying cosmetics by themselves.
The makeup station contains multi-functional arms that can hold cosmetic instruments such as lipsticks, eyeliners, and blush brushes. Some of the mobile arms are motion-activated. Once the mechanized arm senses physical contact from the girl’s face, the brush dips into the rouge container to collect fresh powders, and bobs back up in front of the user’s face. By moving her face along the brush in a certain patterns, the user can easily apply various kinds of make-up without any aid. Satisfying the sense of independence and individuality of disabled girls, the make-up station also has significant social implications.
“We remember many ‘make-up’ parties with friends, where you tried different styles, and basically just had fun hanging out with your friends,” said Parker.
Parker and MacPhee’s project, however, is not just a hodgepodge of mechanized gears. The Make Me Up mirror is illuminated by bright lighting and adorned with flowers. Remarking that the mirror is her favourite feature of the make-up station, Parker said, “It is a cool-looking accessory.”
Parker and MacPhee “also added some paint designs and beading that really were aimed at attracting young women. The idea was that if it looked cool it would be universally appealing. That way the teenage girl’s friends would think it was fun and cool and would want to use it too,” explained Parker.
Since the only assistive devices that are currently on the market “are mirrors which do not allow for hands-free make-up…we know the idea sells,” said Parker. The make-up station is not just for teenagers, but for all women with upper extremity limitations, “because applying make-up is a lifelong occupation for many women,” said Parker.
Although the prototype they have designed is very practical, Parker thinks that it is “bigger and heavier than it could be if produced commercially, as there are different materials that could be used to improve the design.”
The project was designed for a showcase of graduate work in paediatric occupational therapy. Other devices included the “press less” guitar, where a piece of clamp replaces the role of fingers to press and shift along the guitar strings, for those with limited arm or finger movements.
Assistive technology is constantly evolving. Multi-disciplinary approaches are often used to customize and adapt innovative devices to the special needs of people with physical or mental disabilities. “If you see a need for an assistive device and you can envision a design idea that would address that need, you could actually end up with something that really works,” said Parker.
