Sweet Notions: Rethink • Restore • Reclaim

The Art of Repurposing - Together

Today we are excited to introduce a new branch of Sweet Notions, Sweet Notions Portland, and their guest blogger Melissa Reeser.  Melissa is a poet and writer living in the Pacific Northwest. She works part-time at Saint David of Wales Episcopal Church, and is managing director of Boneshaker: A Bicycling Almanac.....

Here in Portland, people with a passion for fashion and social justice are coming together to build the first U.S. franchise of Sweet Notions—and finding there’s strength (and beauty) in numbers. Opportunities for collaboration, mutual inspiration, and collective empowerment abound here in Portland’s growing community of artisans and DIY entrepreneurs. 

In a city where the number of non-profits per capita is higher than anywhere else in the country, the art of repurposing takes on several layers of meaning. What is our purpose, what’s our role in the global movement for social and environmental change? How can we work together to create a broader, more functional and sustainable definition of fashion?

By way of introduction, here are some of the ways Portlanders are responding to the call for action.

Junk to Funk just celebrated its fifth anniversary: five years of addressing “America’s manic purchasing habits and throw-it-away mentality, in a fun, positive, and educational manner.” The Portland-based non-profit has done a phenomenal job of it, with school youth programs and summer camps, gallery installations, and community art events. But they don’t stop there. Bringing their bold style into the business and entertainment realms, they use art and creativity to put the question to mainstream culture: “What if the ultimate measure of coolness was how little you bought and how much you creatively reused?” A Junk to Funk creation was featured during the recent Miss America pageant, when Miss Oregon wore a 1950s-style bathing suit fashioned from used bicycle tires. (See profile in The Oregonian.)

Trillium Artisans seeks to actively empower artists working with recycled materials, using John McKnight’s principles of asset-based community development. Their Green Crafts project offers small business counseling, peer networking and technical assistance and training to low-income craftspeople. With a retail space featuring high quality, hand-crafted work made from a variety of repurposed and recycled materials, it’s truly a community treasure.

Just over the hill in Beaverton, Shoe Revolt is doing amazing things to bring life essentials to sex-trafficking survivors. How? With that most essential wardrobe piece—the shoe. Like Sweet Notions, Shoe Revolt is a for-profit social enterprise seeking to empower women marginalized by the sex industry. Visit their online store to shop an impressive collection of donated shoes, and find out how to get involved. Survivor-designed shoes coming this spring. All proceeds benefit local and national shelters, survivor educational scholarships, and public advocacy.

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