Story - DEAFMETAL® USA

Bring Hearing to Light with The Hope Collection

DEAFMETAL® is an award winning new jewelry innovation designed for hearing aid users. DEAFMETAL® transforms hearing aids into personalized, unique, and stylish jewelry that can be worn for all occasions. We designed The Hope Collection exclusively for this site with the hope that it empowers those with hearing loss. Our goal is to allow those with hearing loss to embrace their hearing loss. We want those who wear hearing aids and cochlear implants to individualize and express themselves through the individual DEAFMETAL® pieces they choose to wear. We chose trends that fit all different styles and personalities. Through The Hope Collection, there is a DEAFMETAL® for you to feel unique and empowered and beautiful. Hearing should be celebrated! We enable those with hearing loss to express their individuality through these very unique DEAFMETAL® pieces, and more specifically, through The Hope Collection.

Jenni Ahtiainen

My name is Jenni Ahtiainen and I am the creator of DEAFMETAL®. DEAFMETAL® is an accessory brand for hearing aids. I have been working as a fashion designer for 15 years. I’ve sold my designs for consumers in Japan, Europe, and in the US. I have also designed stage costumes to bands and musicians like Marilyn Manson, Snoop Dogg, and Bono. These opportunities have been incredible for a Finnish fashion designer who loves to listen to music. But then I lost my hearing and I was shocked. And got hearing aids.

It made me wonder…why is it that if you have bad eyesight, you get to choose whatever kind of eyeglasses that suit your style? You have something regardless of if you are a woman, man, child, rocker, hipster, or even goth. However, if you have bad hearing, you don’t have that choice. You can’t even see one single beautiful picture of a hard of hearing people in lifestyle, fashion, or beauty magazines. Well, not until now…we started to take beauty shots and fine art pictures of hard of hearing people to make hearing problems more common and visual.

When I received my hearing aids, I put the aids behind my ears and started to think. I innovated a small holster around the hearing aids and then I hung some leather strips into the holster. Suddenly, the hearing aids felt more like me. They looked like me and I looked like me. This is how DEAFMETAL® was born—very naturally and organically by the hands of a hard of hearing fashion designer.

I’m Jen Aslin! I am an audiologist and Jenni’s DEAFMETAL® partner for the USA. I first saw DEAFMETAL® in Summer 2020 while visiting an audiology website. Her story inspired me. Through several calls and much collaboration, I knew promoting the DEAFMETAL® brand in the USA was right. I’ve never seen anything like it and loved the idea of “embracing and empowering” those with hearing loss with a product that promotes a necessity of life for so many people.

As an audiologist in 4 different states, I have seen patients ranging from newborn to seniors. DEAFMETAL® jewelry and cochlear implant coil hats are worn by people of all ages. At first, you might think only younger generations wear this jewelry…but this is not true! Once someone puts on the DEAFMETAL® jewelry, it creates a level of confidence and fun. I saw it during photoshoots of my models with hearing loss. My favorite story from Jenni is of a Finnish woman in her 80’s who purchased a pink owl DEAFMETAL® jewelry to hang from her holster. When asked why she wanted the owl, she stated she hoped that by wearing it, her granddaughter would want to sit on her lap more often. I now have a purple owl on my desk that reminds me of that sweet story. This story was one of many reasons we entitled this The Hope Collection.

If this jewelry brings joy to just one person here in the US (or anywhere worldwide), then it has been worth starting this collaboration. In talking to individuals with hearing loss, they wonder why they didn’t have these designs years ago. Jenni and I hope you love your DEAFMETAL® jewelry and would love if you share stories and send pictures wearing them!