Stoma jewellery using crochet silver wire

Why jewellery should be comfortable?

I made this necklace using crochet skill. This method of making jewellery can meet stoma jewellery’s several needs. The first aim is to hide the stoma. When people go out, a jewellery should protect the stoma and it also should be beautiful. Even though this jewellery is very convenience and beautiful, If it is uncomfortable, then people can’t wear the jewellery even for an hour. In the case of stoma jewellery that has special purpose, I thought the comfort is also very important. A jewellery is an option to decorate body. So if people feel uncomfortable so they are burdened from jewellery, they can find some alternatives that they would feel beautiful one even comfortable. However people who has stoma has narrow choice because of small markets of stoma jewellery. So stoma jewellery should make people feel free to wear it in routine.

Weight

I tried to think the advantages of crochet jewellery in weight. The stoma jewellery tends to be big in size because it needs to cover the stome. So they are easy to become heavy. Also, it is inclinable to be heavy in weight because it needs to be sturdy to protect the stoma.

However crochet necklace can solve the weight’s problem and it enables stoma jewellery to be light in any size.

Ventilation and absorption

The people who have laryngeal stoma breathe through the stoma. I will make necklace using silver wire crochet but I will also use thread that can be a part of covering stoma. Silver wire and thread both have advantage to be ventilated well. There would not be any problem to breathe through them. The thread can also absorb mucus that is from stoma and it can be changed whenever people want.

Consideration of stoma jewellery

Patients want to hide their stoma. Basic function of stoma jewellery is to hide the stoma. I tried to make jewellery to be located in the middle of neck where stoma would be. So this stoma jewellery has short length.

Larynx is removed by laryngeal cancer surgery. Patients can’t make voice using voce box. Some people use medical device to make voice. H.M.E (Heat and Moisture Exchanger) includes a device that is called valve. But they should press the stoma with finger when they speak. So necklace could be soft not too hard like solid silver. That’s why I chose to knit thin silver wire to make jewellery.

Their stoma is exposed on the skin. That should be protected with soft material. After surgery, they can’t use the nose to breathe anymore, they have to breathe with their stoma. So the material could be well ventilated like cotton and thread. Many patients wear scarf when they go out and wear sticker and bibs in house. There is another reason to use textile material. Sometimes mucus comes from their stoma. So material that covers stoma has to be able to absorb the mucus. Thread also keeps moister. According to my research, H.M.E includes cotton inside to keep moisture.

In summary..

Breathe – Patients breathe through the stoma on their neck. So the jewellery needs to keep the stoma safe and clean. Silver has anti-bacterial function. And Silver wire is soft but little bit hard. So they can take a role of shield. The jewellery shouldn’t block the stoma from the air, and knitting method makes many holes in the jewellery so that patients can breathe through it. Silver is also easy to clean.

And when patients breathe, something on the neck like fabric, sticker goes up and down because of the air. It draws people’s attention on their neck not on their eyes. This jewellery can hide that.

Speak – Many patients use Tracheo oesophageal puncture – TEP method to speak. When they speak, they have to press their stoma with finger to block the air from lungs for generating the voice. So, jewellery has to be able to be pushed. It the jewellery is hard, it’s difficult to be pushed. And they can make scar on the skin. This knitting jewellery can be pushed when they speak.

Mucus – Sometimes, mucus comes from inside. So, Jewellery has to be easy to clean or exchangeable. This jewellery has cotton or wool made cover in it, and it is changeable.

Combine with other device – it can be easily combined with other devices like HME, sticker, tube, pedi-tie etc.

Beauty – They want to hide stoma. This looks like normal jewellery, not stoma jewellery. But it hides stoma and decorates their neck while protecting it.

Research material – Felted balls

I went to Hobby Craft located in Kingsway to research and get material for jewellery. I stumble on felted balls. When I looked at that ball at first time, I thought that using the felted balls could be a good way to make stoma jewellery. Felted balls are very light, soft and colourful. But I know that felted balls are already using in various kinds of jewellery. In my case, that is not for just using different new material to jewellery but aim at helpful material to make stoma jewellery I thought. I want to combine with new material rather than only using silver. And I also wanted to try various attempts in design. Most of females who have a stoma are in her 50s. Given the preference for 50s, I think colourful jewellery is better than just modern style. It is soft, so it can absorb the shock and it is cheap and easy so that people can make and change design whenever if they want.

It is easy to make felted ball.

You need to prepare small wad of wool, hot water, and keep and then gently roll it from hand to hand without squeezing. Keep doing this for about ten minutes, dipping it in the hot water as it cools.