Emily Prince’s eyes widened as she noticed a folded tweed skirt lying on top of a pile of donated clothes.
“Shut up! That was mine,” said the programs specialist for ARTS/West. “I donated it at one of the last exchanges.”
The skirt has made a full circle, first donated by Prince, purchased at the clothing swap and now re-donated. The skirt is one of hundreds of pieces of clothing donated to the third annual Cat’s Pajamas Clothing Exchange, which kicks off tonight and continues through the weekend.
The Exchange, held at ARTS/West, 132 W. State St., raises money for the programs held at the facility. There is a $5 fee for the weekend, and patrons can take as many articles of clothing as they bring to donate. Each additional piece taken is one dollar.
“For me personally … I don’t like to spend money on clothes when clothes already exist in the world,” Prince said, folding a green and white striped baby’s bib with the words “Totally Handsome” inscribed across the middle.
The more than 75 bags of clothes donated come from community members, who tend to bring more professional or vintage pieces, and college students, who donate more brand name items, said Emily Beveridge, project director of the clothing exchange.
In 2008, Beveridge came up with the idea for the exchange in an attempt to demonstrate the power of used clothing.
“I tend to only wear used clothes at this point,” she said. “That’s as much an economic decision as it is a good-thing-to-do decision. I want people to come and realize they don’t need to buy new clothes.”
The two women sort through the clothes, including a sailor dress, a suit coat and a set of little boys’ pajamas covered in dinosaurs. At the swap, the clothes will be separated into piles placed around ARTS/West’s expansive basement, based on type and gender, Beveridge said.
The best clothing will be available to swap at tonight’s preview night, which features Avalanche Pizza and a performance by DJ Barticus, she said.
“You can come back as many times as you like,” Prince said.
The women size up each piece and discuss how they could be altered to fit almost anyone, a term called “upcycling.” Beveridge holds up a small boy’s T-shirt with a pink jellyfish slinking across the middle.
“You could totally flash dance that, and make it a girl shirt,” Prince said.
For the two women folding and sorting clothes, the swap is only the first step.
jc543108@ohiou.edu
@ThePostCulture
