I am one of a quartet of sisters, whose circumferences and shoe sizes are within rounding errors of each other. All the Winters’ sisters closets are nestled against the Rocky mountains within a block of each other, all of them except myself, sister three, whose dressing chamber lies dozens of zip codes away. While my closet used to extend yards and yards of interchangeable cloth, it now spans only finite inches. But my stingy wallet and hungry appetite for novelty will not be stopped, and I have adopted local sisters with which to swap clothing. You too can enjoy clothing swaps, following is a scheme for your fashion soiree.
one. invite
Scout out those which which you share a common style penchant and send a gracious invite in their direction, at least two weeks in advance. You could invite guests with a common proclivity for vintage, a passion for accessories, or those who have children in the age vicinity of your own. Allow your guests to suggest additional attendees who corroborate with the evening’s theme: for more ladies means more selection. Set a minimum number of garments as a cover charge to the event, but allow guests to bring as many additional items as they prefer.
two. inventory
You and your guests should then cleanse your closets, accumulating clothes which no longer flatter the owner’s body, lifestyle, or personality. Items suffering from stains, tears, or extreme wear should be sent in a separate direction, even if it was ridiculously cute at some point in its shelf life.
three. launder
Each attendee should carefully wash, press and hang their inventory, items should be showcased for a premiere.
four. ambianceIn preparation for your event, prepare your party’s ambiance. Please as many of your attendee’s senses as possible, music for their delicate ears, pleasant scents for their pretty noses, treaties for their palettes. Also ensure you have adequate seating, tables, garment racks, a designated changing area, and dress forms for display. You may want to include a few full length mirrors in the common area.
five. retail
When your friends arrive, give each guest an equivalent number of blank stickers, which they will initial, in exchange for each item they bring. Then merchandise the items as prettily as you can in your own home store. Grouping items together by color will make for a lovelier display, but grouping them by sizes may be more useful to your guests.
six. auction
Allow the guests to mingle and take note of available pretties, individuals can indicate interest in an item by placing an initialed sticker upon it. Following the open floor period, items with only one sticker can be automatically claimed. But items with multiple stickers will be tried on by each sticker owner, allowing your collaborative audience to vote on a winner. Following the auction, guests can mingle through the remainder of the inventory. Donate any unwanted items to charity or thrift shops.
New ensembles without a dime parted. Enjoy and tell me about your own party results.
