Shannon Flaherty

Shannon has been sewing since childhood and delights in making clothes that fit her fat femme dandy aesthetic. As an art historian, she finds power in the materials and objects we use to express ourselves. She runs the SewQueer community, a resource for queer and trans sewists to make connections and find resources.

What influence does music have in your life as a creative?:

I don’t think of myself as a very musical person in an aural sense, so a lot of my appreciation of music and musicians relates not just to their voices but to their sartorial styles. I find myself drawn to artists with distinctive aesthetics that run a queer-inflected gamut of styles, from Janelle Monae’s distinctive suits to Florence Welch’s ethereal witch looks to Hayley Kiyoko’s edgy-but-playful sportsfemme style. A lot of my sewing is inspired by the kinds of fantastical world-building musicians and artists are able to do for performances or music videos, and I find myself drawing on a similar creative storytelling approach in my making.

Tell us about your playlist:

This playlist collects songs from artists, predominately though not exclusively women, whose aesthetic presentation appeals to me in some way. Many of them play with gender presentation, explore softness and strength, and delve into queer desire. Though not all identify as queer, many embody styles that resonate with queer aesthetics, from vintage pinup to femme witch to sharp and dapper.