Me-Made Swap Shop

 

Each morning you look into your wardrobe and see the me-mades that remain in there. You spent time and poured love into creating them but there’s just something not quite right to make you pick them out. So they stay there unloved.

This was happening to me, unloved me-mades sitting in my wardrobe, each of them I intend to wear but just never get around to it. With my RTW garments I can be ruthless, just throwing any unworn clothes into the charity bags and taken down into town. However with handmade garments because they don’t have a label in, many charity shops won’t sell them on, so my once loved me-made just ends up in the scrap/recycling pile.

So with this in mind, I wasn’t being proactive in finding suitable homes for my handmade wardrobe that I no longer seem to wear and I think the ‘Me-Made Swap Shop’ will make this happen.

The idea is simple, bring your unloved handmade garments and swap them with other sewists and your me-mades live on. I hope also to raise funds for a charity very close to my heart ‘Pancreatic Cancer UK’ in memory of my Dad who passed away in 2016.

Where and when is the swap?

Saturday 2nd November 2019 10am – 3:30pm at Sew Wardrobe in Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire LE65 1AH

How will the swap work?

There will be a credit system in place so that the swap value is fair.

• Fabric (over 1m)   1
• Top                          2
• Skirt                        2
• Trousers                 2
• Dress                       3
• Jumpsuit                 3
• Outerwear              4

Swaps can be posted before the event or brought along in the morning.

Drop off points prior to the event until 19th October 2019 will also be available at:

1. Sew Wardrobe, Ashby-de-la-Zouch
2. Crafty Sew & So, Leicester

Credits will be calculated when you arrive and then can be exchanged for new garments. If you choose garments that exceed your credits, then there is a suggested charity donation.

Example: you bring along 1 dress and 1 top to the swap, this equals 5 credits. You would like to take home 2 dresses -6 credits. You can use your 5 credits and then offer a charity donation to make up the surplus. 

Any unused credits can be exchanged for a raffle ticket with a large range of prizes on offer. 1 credit = 1 raffle ticket.

Prizes currently on offer have generously been donated from:

Sew Essential

Pink Coat Club

Sewalicious

Sew Me Sunshine

Material Girl Laura

Any garments left-over at the end of the event will be posted on Instagram and open to charitable offers and all that I ask is that payment of postage is covered.

I want to be involved but I can’t attend the day?

You can contribute your fabric/garments to the swap day by posting them to me or dropping them off at the drop-off points. For the Swap there are 2 options available:

1. Using the credit system, you can exchange them directly for raffle tickets.
2. Bank your credits and use them in the Instagram online Swap Shop. Priority for swaps will be given to those with credits. As on the day, extra credits would be ask to be in the form of a charity donation.

I really hope that the credit system makes the swaps fair. If you are still confused please contact me and I can answer your questions.

Preparing for the Me-Made Swap Shop

Please bring along your garments ready ‘for swaps’. Washed and pressed (creases from packaging is absolutely fine, I’m just thinking not as a crumpled ball).

Try to make the garment as ready to wear as possible. For example, replace any missing buttons or loose hems. You are more than welcome to bring along unfinished garments, but please just indicate what will need to be done. We are all sewists of differing levels so please don’t be embarrassed by the quality of your sewing. You will be passing on your handmade garments to other sewists who will fully appreciate the time and effort it takes into creating these works of art.

I have attached a garment tag that if you get chance to print and fill in before the event that will be ever so helpful. Details needed are:

• Pattern name:
• Size:
• Alterations:
• Extra details:

There will be a changing room available so you can try on the garment before you decide on your swap.

I really hope that you would like to be involved in the ‘Me-Made Swap Shop’ and our handmade garments can live on.

Please help me to share the news about this event and use the hashtag #memadeswapshop

Link to garment tag and posting details