On Sunday, CO-OPhx held the Spring Swap PHX, a community based clothing swap and drive at the vintage stores on 6th Street in downtown Phoenix.
Brand X made special volunteer t-shirts for swap day. Photo by Alexandria ConradThe stores hosting the swap were GROWop, Cellardoor Vintage and Annie Boomer’s Vintage, all of which have wonderful apparel on sale year-round.
Spring Swap PHX was set up so adorably. In the front yard of Cellardoor and Annie Boomer’s the clothes and accessories were displayed on tables and set up on racks. Mirrors were set up around the yard, and on the porch was a hair-styling station where Diana Martinez was applying temporary hair chalk to willing participants.
Diana works in public relations for CO-OPhx and came out to the event to help out where she was needed. Tickets for the swap were $10 online and $15 at the door, and included not only the swapping, but food and drink as well as style and hair tutorials and live music.
The hair station had a variety of chalk colors. Photo by Alexandria ConradDiana told me that she reached out to bloggers before the event and offered a deal. If the bloggers wrote about the swap, they got discounted tickets. I WISH I HAD KNOWN! The event was so cool! And I would have loved to partake. I’ll definitely be taking her up on that offer for the next swap they will hold in the fall.
I also had a chance to talk with one of the cofounders of CO-OPhx, Karla Rasmusson. Karla told me that Swap PHX has been running for about a year and that it is one of the most popular events hosted by CO-OPhx, all of which have a community feel to them.
“It was originally supposed to be just a friend thing,” Rasmusson said about the swap when it first started, but it became so popular that she kept the event going.
The cute little wishing well where swappers and volunteers shared their thoughts. Photo by Alexandria ConradRasmusson said the event is about sustainable fashion. That’s why swappers are told to bring up to 10 items for swapping, and unlimited items (of any condition) for donation to ClothingCycle and Collegetown ASU where all items are recycled or reused.
One of the things I loved most about the swap was that swappers were encouraged to fill out “memory tags” for some of their clothing items, according to Karla. These tags let others know how the owner came into the item, or any special memories the owner has of the item. I think the memory tags make the clothing swap extra special.
Another way CO-OPhx made the event unique was by giving swappers and volunteers cards on which they wrote wishes to hang on the wishing well in the lawn of GROWop.
CO-OPhx’s Swap PHX is a completely volunteer-run event, Karla said. She said they want to help anyone with their food, fashion, or art related goals.
If you’re interested in volunteering with CO-OPhx, you can email them at thecoophx@gmail.com.
If you’d like to reach me with comments, concerns or suggestions you can email me at anconrad13@gmail.com or tweet me @alliectersely
