The One-Breasted Woman Fashion Show: The Designer, Jacqueline Skaggs

You say ree-bel, I say reb-el.

No matter how you pronounce it, Rebel1in8 and the Rhea Belle line of clothing and jewelry are revolutionary.

Jacqueline Skaggs and I met through our cancer blogs and our mutual distaste for pink ribbon marketing (See Boycott October). She is a breast cancer survivor, and also an artist, and a jewelry and clothing designer.

Jacqueline's clothing and her jewelry are political. The beading on the jewelry "represents the 2004 statistic 'one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer,'" Jacqueline says. But the message is subtle. You can wear the jewelry because you want to make a political statement about the growing numbers of women diagnosed with breast cancer, or you can wear them because you like the elegant designs, or both.

Jacqueline describes her clothing as "renovated fashion designed to embrace a women's natural architecture."

She writes, "Rhea Belle is a post-mastectomy clothing concept born from a passion to create clothing for women who have had a single or bi-lateral mastectomy and are moving forward without reconstructive surgery or prostheses.

"With a utilitarian approach Rhea Belle garments are created by renovating existing garments and design elements. Rhea Belle invites women to embrace their natural architecture with comfort and peaceful resolve at every dawn."

In other words, throw away that uncomfortable, expensive prosthesis (typically, a breast prosthesis costs $200-$300) and gets some fun, funky clothes that make you feel and look good about the body you have.

Jacqueline does not discriminate: women who have not had breast cancer are welcome to buy and wear her clothes as well as those of us who are breast cancer survivors.

Jacqueline was born in Indiana, and now lives in a loft in Brooklyn, New York, with her husband John, also an artist. She is "number eight" in a family of eight children, and her identical twin sister lives in the loft next door with her husband.

"After my second breast cancer diagnosis at the age of 40, I became a committed crusader--out to rally for dignity in a post-mastectomy world of oppressive conventions that lie deep in the folds of a pink satin ribbon," she says.

Go to her blog to see what Jacqueline has done with the annoying, ubiquitous pink ribbon:

Rebel1in8

See the rest of the One-Breasted Woman Fashion Show

To order clothing, contact: Jacqueline@rebel1in8.com.

@ Jeanne Sather 2007.

Comments

[Sara]

Yay, Jacqueline! Beautiful clothes, beautiful you!

[jeanne]

Sara--I've been meaning to introduce you to Jacqueline because you are both artists, and I thought you would enjoy each other (not just for that reason, but partly so).

Here's her e-mail address:
Jacqueline@rebel1in8.com