For my week 2 progress report I would like to announce that I have found a shelter to donate up-cycled clothes to. I will be giving the clothes I design to a women's shelter called Elizabeth House. This is a non-profit organization for pregnant women who have no place to live and care for themselves while carrying their baby. I have talked to the director of this shelter, Debbie Unruh, and she will be allowing me to not only donate clothes to the shelter, but also teach the women how to up-cycle and the efficiency of it. What I have learned about my topic is that I will need advice and tips from people who know how to sew and transform clothing before I attempt to alter clothes myself. I have also learned that because the women in this shelter are pregnant, designing clothes for them that are custom to their body will be difficult since their body will change once they give birth. So, I will be focusing on designing clothing that can fit a variety of people (such as lose shirts, long dresses, etc). What I have learned about myself so far is that I will need to be more vocal and proactive in order to get people to donate clothes. A set back I have had so far is getting people to donate clothes, however if I constantly remind people to donate and leave a basket for people to put clothes into, I will be able to broaden my outreach to all classes and hopefully get a lot of donations. The next steps in my process will be to learn sewing skills from people who know how to sew. Then I will be actually designing clothes myself. I can apply being proactive to myself, school and community by showing the passion that I have for this and sharing the knowledge I learn to help make my community better.
Reminder: PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE! Donate any clothing you no longer want or need. The clothes you donate will be the primary source of clothing for my project. In other words, you will be a big contributor to my project if you donate. This is optional, but if you write your name on the bag of clothes you are donating, I will include your name in my project for some of my before and after pictures in my final presentation. I think this will be a good incentive for those who donate because you will see how your old t-shirt is new and updated. I have placed a basket by the door in Mr. Man's classroom for anyone to put clothing in. (Exceptions: Will not take any socks or undergarments).
Here is an outside view of Elizabeth House.
Here is a before and after picture example of something that was up-cycled.
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Marisa-- http://marmags20time.blogspot.com
Brett-- http://bretts20time.blogspot.com
This is so good! I love your creativity and style. I wish I had the talent to do at least half of what you do. I will definitely try to get some clothes and donate. This is a really good cause, but how much time goes into making one complete piece of clothing? -Emily Herrera
ReplyDeleteThis is such a creative and practical idea! I know that sewing clean stitches can be difficult, so I'd definitely recommend using a sewing machine if you have access to one, if you weren't planning on doing so already. I'm sure your project will turn out great, since you seem to be really artistically inclined and so invested in donating to a good cause! Maybe putting up a few flyers around school will help with your clothing drive. Have you considered placing bins in other classrooms as well? Best of luck with your up cycling :)
ReplyDeleteCeline K.