Trigeminal Neuralgia is a disease that affects the trigeminal nerve in the face and causes pain in the face. The pain is not always constant, it can be triggered by cold air, warm air, chewing, brushing teeth and many other things. Some treat their Trigeminal Neuralgia with a medication but many wear masks to block wind and keep their face warm. The problem with these masks is that they are often ugly and make it harder for the person to be comfortable in public and social situations. Our goal for this studio was to create a mask that helped show expression and was visually appealing and functional to keep the person’s face warm and blocked from the wind.

Our mask it made of an under functioning layer and three different designed layers on top. The lower layer has a soft fabric for comfort that is against the face, Wires attached to a low voltage battery for heat and a layer of fabric on top of that to protect the plastic designed layers. The three designs are all unique and fashion forward in their own way. The first design was inspired by petals and by building on. It is made of rectangles straight and in line at the bottom and getting more wild as they go up in a flare on the side of the mask. The second design was inspired by nervous system jewelry. It is made of intricately cut shapes in an interesting design. The third design was inspired by feathers. the feathers are used in a flare at the top and an interesting middle piece. The special part of this mask is how it shows expression. Each design is in three pieces and will attach to the bottom layer with nodes and clips. The pieces were chosen based on what part of the face shows the most expression. There is one on the forehead and nose, the cheek and the chin. When you speak and move your face, the mask will move with it to help show your expression.

This mask is important because it has the potential to help people living with trigeminal Neuralgia to feel more physically and mentally comfortable with this mask and feel less restricted about expressing who they are.