Norma Chan
Zephyr Flora
Wedding hairpiece jewelry designed by You.
David R. Carroll
Sven Travis
Writing and ResearchAndrew Zornoza
Loretta Joelle Wolozin
Zephyr Flora is a website dedicated to wedding accessories that engages its participants in a personal, customized craft-making experience. The existing wedding industry has countless off-the-shelf accessories, and personalization services that range from monograms and photographs. However, I argue the existing services lack uniqueness. Zephyr Flora reappropriates the wedding personalization trend onto the next level by engaging its participants by giving them more control over the design process of their own wedding accessory. This is enabled with hand-selected harvested flowers and materials, crafted into accessory design choices, and delivered by web modules and configurations to make production on a one-to-one scale possible. Zephyr Flora ultimately achieves authenticity and originality that best represents the significance of the wedding day itself.
My thesis is based on my brand Zephyr Flora. It is a website dedicated to wedding accessories that engages its participants in customized craft-making experiences. This is enabled with hand-selected harvested flowers and materials, crafted into accessory design choices, and delivered by web modules and configurations to make production on a one-to-one scale possible. Craft-making experiences are celebrated and refined through culture with long history of traditions. The handicraft nature of making instantly adds value base on the quality of making.
The existing wedding industry has countless off-the-shelf accessories and personalized services that range from monograms to photographs. However, the existing services lack uniqueness. On the other hand, Zephyr Flora re-appropriates the wedding personalization trend onto the next level by engaging its participants, giving them more control over the design process of their own wedding accessory through a web applet that gives them a hands on approach; connecting the buyer to an object of sentiment for their special day. This approach allows participants to be more engaged with their customized headpiece from start by finish. From fabric selection, flower shape, embellishment, and headpiece attachment, the goal is to allow the user be more engaged with the headpiece they will wear on their wedding day or special occasion.
Zephyr Flora practices in a modern studio production model to make market-to-one possible; bridging together technological craft such as 3D scanning, modeling, printing with traditional craft like beading, sewing and wiring. The result is a true original experience and product that creates new medium and forms of art jewelry. By designing and inventing my own production method and ingredients in my studio, I am able to achieve authenticity and originality. Zephyr Flora introduces an innovative way for participants to design their own wedding accessories that are unique to them which would best represent the significance of their wedding day.
Norma Chan
Norma Chan is an artist, designer, maker, creative technologist, and a mother in NYC. Raised in Hong Kong and Toronto, she earned a BFA from University of Toronto jointly with Sheridan College. She is a LEF (Luxury Education Foundation) Alumna, selected for two master classes to act as a creative consultant and jewelry designer for luxury brands: Graff Diamonds and Van Cleef & Arpels. Her life long work revolves around crafts and notions in small shop at the heart of Toronto. Norma’s work includes digital art, web UI/UX and design strategy that emphasize elements of traditional and technological craft.