Pictures From the EWC’s Third Style Swap!

You know what I love about clothing swaps? The opportunity to see something that isn’t quite right for you gathered into the arms of someone else who will treasure it. That happened several times at the Ethical Writers Coalition‘s third clothing swap this past Saturday, like when a friend of a friend told me my Icelandic sheep’s wool sweater was just the thing she had been looking for since last winter, or when a lovely lady tried on my old snow boots and said, “I have ones in black, but I’ve been looking for brown!”

(If you missed this swap and want to know about the next one, sign up for the EWC’s newsletter!)

We were so pleased that our friends at the ethical fashion retailer Zady sponsored our swap and allowed us to hold it in the beautiful and large Glass House gallery in Williamsburg. First, attendees dropped off their clothing with EWC members at the front door, who hung them carefully up on the racks by size. While that was happening, our guests headed downstairs to mingle and sip organic sparkling wine cocktails made with Owl’s Brew mixers from Susty Party sustainable cups and straws. At the appointed time, we let the more than 40 attendees upstairs and they started searching for some pre-loved fashion. Everyone was quite serious about it at first, though always kind to each other! Attendees went downstairs, arms draped with fashion, to try everything on in the dressing room.

After 45 minutes of a self-imposed ban from the racks, I dove in to see if there were any good finds left, and picked up a pair of black skinny petite jeans in my size, a pair of patterned skinny pants, and some buttery soft black booties. By this time, attendees were relaxing again and chatting, their reusable totes from the online non-toxic skincare boutique Ayla stuffed with their finds and coupon cards from some of our favorite retailers. I personally checked with every attendee I saw leaving, and every one of them was excited about what they had found. And don’t worry, we bagged up the remaining pieces of fashion for donation.

But the fun isn’t over yet! We’re inviting attendees to post a picture of an outfit incorporating something they found at the swap to Instagram and hashtag it with #ethicalwritersco. We’ll choose our favorite three on Sunday and send them a (sustainable and ethical, of course) prize!