[1] Before her sickness, Spiess was an elementary school teacher, and by 1960 she was able to successfully work from home as an elementary and secondary school level tutor for remedial reading, algebra and languages.

[5] In 1985, Spiess (now living in Stockton, California since 1966, and using a motorised wheelchair to get about[3][2]) spoke to the Lawrence Journal-World who described her as pioneering, and being "the grandmother" of disabled fashion.

[1] Spiess explained how as a disabled person, she noticed that clothing no longer fitted her properly, making it "impossible to look nice", but she was able to think about solutions and operate a sewing machine using her toes.

[6] After Spiess published her thoughts on how to dress smartly as a disabled person, others started consulting her and writing in to ask her advice.

[1] Practical issues addressed by Spiess included how to avoid skirts getting caught in wheelchair wheels, and the necessity of robust waistbands that would stay put when the wearer needed to be helped up in her chair.