Sometimes inspiration hits quickly and it comes with a fully formed idea. Biohazard was like that.
Someone in a bead group I belong asked if anyone knew of a pattern for a biohazard symbol for a keyring. The next morning, I woke up with a fully formed idea in my head.
With a scientific background, I am used to these symbols, mostly. There are a lot of them! The craze for zombies means that any sci fi fantasy fan is probably familiar with the biohazard symbol. This year too, has been all about biohazards as Covid has had an impact on everyone's lives. One way or another, biohazards are a real halloween horror this year....
A biohazard is a substance that is hazardous to human health that is biological in origin, so it includes viruses. The symbol is used as a warning marker and this includes human waste, used needles, toxins and microorganisms. It was developed by Charles Baldwin and the Dow Chemical Company. They wanted to make an entirely new symbol that was different to anything else so that they could then educate people as to it's meaning and it would not be confused with anything else. Before this symbol, there was no standard and the symbols used by many organisations were not distinctive.
Charles Baldwin however did not approve of it being used for other purposes. At a seminar on biohazards, participants were given a tie with little biohazard symbols all over it. In his own words, he sent the organiser a nasty letter. He certainly would not approve of it's connection to zombies and common use in such horror films and images. He would not like this bracelet either....
The background of the bracelet is lime green with various neon greens to represent biological matter, plants particularly... but it's not supposed to be entirely pretty, it's lurid... but contained in a black frame. Blood also features round the symbol itself. This is not a new idea to me as many people have modified the symbol in this way. It's striking and in my view, really suitable for Halloween this year.
Want to look at the images which inspired me on pinterest?
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