Chores ᐧ 06 Roots

$580.00

I carry in my pocket a secret that only I know. It comes with me everywhere I go, keeping me company, leaving its invisible trace on the world just as I do - a record that will never be known nor ever have to be. I wander through the world with it, and wonder about the strangers I meet. What wondrous secrets do they carry in their pockets? What lines in the sand do their worlds leave trace of?

Words by Shaina Yang


Chores is a collection of eighteen hand-embroidered vintage chore coats, celebrating the beauty of earnest labor. Because each piece is a vintage garment transformed through hand-embroidery, each piece is unique. 

Roots grounds its embroidery in the lower half of the coat, featuring a largely vertical language of stitching to evoke the secret downward motion of the hidden growth below supporting whatever visible growth above that we may see. With bright whites, pale blues, and scatters of small stitches across the below-waist patches of embroidery, Roots’ most unique feature is known only to the wearer: a baroque pearl sewn into one of the pockets.

06 Roots measures:

Cross Chest 25.5" (51" Bust)
Body Length 27.5"
Sleeve Length 25"

The fabric is a mid-weight cotton twill with black stitching, stable and hard-wearing. It is in good condition; there are a few small snags, as well as a 1” tear along the top edge of the right hip pocket, which remains as-is because of how beautiful it is. There is a secret in one of the pockets.

Please hand wash cold with mild detergent, and line dry. Warm iron on reverse with a little steam.

Joy's brother Justin (in photos/video) is 5'5" tall and measures:

Cross Chest 17" (34" Bust)
Body Length 25.5"
Sleeve Length 22" 

*Choose what you pay:

$380 - Covers materials and labor for creating this piece

$480 - Helps sustain my practice by paying for work that happens beyond garment construction alone

$580 - Contributes to the growth of my practice, allowing me to invest in tools, people, and future projects + comes with a surprise bonus item

Please note: If any one pricing tier is marked as "sold out," the item is no longer available. This is due to a quirk in the website's inventory management system that Joy has yet to find a good solution for. Thank you for understanding!

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