What we wear can directly communicate to people around us. ›Don’t worry I’m clean‹ is an attempt to approach the uncomfortable but very real issue of STIs (sexually transmitted diseases). With this project we want to facilitate a well needed dialogue among friends, partners or even strangers. Derived from microscopic images from infectology books, we created patterns, as rare as they are visually intriguing, that act as a soft opener to a conversation we should not avoid and a gentle reminder to keep safe.
"In 2022, the number of reported cases [in the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA)] saw a significant increase compared to the previous year, with gonorrhoea cases rising by 48%, syphilis cases by 34%, and chlamydia cases by 16%." (Source:
ECDC) We discussed carefully how we wanted to approach the matter and agreed on a medium that felt exactly the opposite: warm, sensitive and protective. Something that’s tangible and interesting to explore, that tells a story through a soft and comforting material – wool.