Designer creates hoodies for neurodivergent people

Millie Haywood designed the hoodies as a way of offering clothing better suited to neurodivergent needs

A designer has created a line of specialist hoodies for people who are neurodivergent or have mental health challenges.

Millie Haywood, 22, from Chalford, is autistic and started her own embroidery business after noticing how some clothing features, such as labels, irritated her.

She created Mentally Unstitched as a way of offering clothing better suited to her needs and others who are neurodivergent.

"[The name] came from my own experience of suffering with mental health and being misunderstood with being autistic," she said.

The hoodies, described as "anxiety-relieving, sensory-friendly", are made from the same soft material as stuffed toys, and feature large hoods so they can be worn over headphones, thumb holes on the sleeves and are heavier than other hoodies.

"It can be really itchy and feel like it's grating against my skin when I wear normal hoodies that are designed for neurotypical people," Ms Haywood said.

She said her hoodies are "a lot more comfortable, a lot more cosy and just snuggly".

"A lot of people like to wear headphones either for listening to music or blocking out noise or for sensory overload, so having a hood big enough to cover over headphones is a must," she added.

Ms Haywood makes everything at her home studio, where she has an industrial embroidery machine.

She hopes to one day create a full clothing line suited to the neurodivergent community.

"This is the first main launch, and I hope to create more adaptive clothing that's comfortable for everybody," she said.

"I've started it myself very much from a home studio, so to be able to have the opportunity to grow it into something much bigger and much quicker is obviously the main goal."