Adaptive Dressing Techniques for the Visually Impaired:

Last Updated June 23rd, 2026. Included in this website page are the following sections. Adaptive Dressing Techniques. Devices and Apps for Identifying Colors. Techniques for Buttoning Buttons. Techniques for Shoe Management. Tying Shoelaces in 13 Steps. Putting on a Belt in 11 Steps. Online Resources About Adaptive Dressing Techniques. End of list.

Adaptive Dressing Techniques for the Visually Impaired:

  • Identify clothing by feel. Feel for the seams, pocket(s), buttons, or a zipper to check that it isn’t inside out and which side is the front. For t-shirts, feel for the side of the collar that is higher than the other.

  • Use adaptive products and apps to identify the colors of clothing, describe other visuals, and read printed text.

  • Use adaptive clothing management products for the visually impaired.

  • Prepare outfits ahead of time.

  • Keep clothing organized.

Devices and Apps for Identifying Colors:

  • Use a Colorino color identifier device.

  • Use talking camera apps that describe the color of something. Use apps such as the Oorion app, the HelpUSee app, the PiccyBot app, the Speakaboo app, the SeeingAI app describe feature, or the Envision AI app describe scene feature.

  • Ask smart glasses to describe the color of something.

Techniques for Buttoning Buttons:

  • When putting on a button up shirt, start at the bottom of the shirt.

  • Next feel for the bottom button. Then button the buttons from bottom to top to reduce the risk of your buttons being misaligned.

Techniques for Shoe Management:

  • Identify shoes as left or right by the curve of each shoe.

  • Keep shoes together in the same spot after each time you wear them.

  • Add a label such as a sticker or clear tape on the inside of one of the tongues of the shoes to tell the difference between the shoes and as a labeling method to tell the difference between pairs of shoes.

Tying Shoelaces in 13 Steps:

  1. Grab the left shoelace at the tip with the left hand.

  2. Grab the right shoelace at the tip with the right hand.

  3. Pull shoelaces up, tightly towards the chest.

  4. Hold the right shoelace at the tip with the right hand and cross over the shoe to the left.

  5. Hold the left shoelace at the tip with the left hand and put the shoelace on top of the right shoelace.

  6. Move the right shoelace over the left shoelace towards the chest.

  7. Move the right shoelace under the left shoelace away from the chest.

  8. Grab the left shoelace with your left hand and grab the right shoelace with your right hand tightly.

  9. Pull shoelaces away from the chest to tighten shoelaces against the top of the shoe.

  10. Wrap left shoelace around a finger on the left hand and wrap right shoelace around a finger on the right hand.

  11. Move the right shoelace under the left shoelace, removing fingers from shoelace loops.

  12. Move the right shoelace over towards the chest then under away from the chest left shoelace.

  13. Pull both shoelaces tightly to finish.

Putting on a Belt in 11 Steps:

  1. Hold the belt with the loops on the outside.

  2. Line up the pointed tip end with the button of your pants.

  3. Drag the pointed tip end along your pants until it goes under the first loop. 

  4. While holding on to the pointed tip end of the belt, use one fingertip to drag along your pants to guide the belt through the rest of the loops. 

  5. You can move a finger up to the end of your pants to make sure that you are still moving along the right area. 

  6. When you feel the button, move the pointed tip end of the belt through the belt buckle. 

  7. Then push the belt buckle down towards yourself. 

  8. Pull on the pointed tip of the buckle and feel with your opposite hand to find the belt hole that you want.

  9. Then line up the buckle arm with that hole and push it through. 

  10. Next move the pointed tip end through the belt loops and through one or more of your pant loops. 

  11. Lastly, check that the buckle is lined up with the button of your pants and that the belt is through all the loops you want it to be. 

Online Resources About Adaptive Dressing Techniques for the Visually Impaired: