High fashion was recently down in the dumps as the Town of North Hempstead held their third annual “Trashion Show” on Jan. 15, an event that gives aspiring fashionistas the chance to strut their stuff like a real-life, high-end model…if real-life models pulled their attire out of a garbage can, that is.
Held in the gymnasium of the “Yes We Can” Community Center in Westbury, the Trashion Show features kids from elementary to high school age showing off hand-made fashions made out of reclaimed waste and doing so with all the bells, whistles, and trimmings one would find at a legit Paris runway show, including expansive lighting rigs, a DJ, and, most importantly, an audience of adoring fans in the form of patents and friends.
Erin Reilley, Chief Sustainability Officer of the Town of North Hempstead, said that the event has been a successful way to get kids to express themselves while learning something about the fragile nature of the environment.
“The show is a great opportunity for kids to learn responsible use of our resources by reclaiming things that are only thought of as waste and repurposing them in an artful way,” she said. “The town has an award-winning recycling partnership program, and nine of the Town’s 11 school districts are members. We send word out about the Trashion Show through the teachers, and they get the word out to the kids and their parents and get them involved. It’s great.”
April Brown Lake, Director of the “Yes We Can” Community Center, said that she was honored to be able to host this cutting-edge yet trashy event in the venue that has essentially become the very hub of the Westbury community.
“We have a lot of talented young people throughout all of North Hempstead’s school districts,” she said “It’s wonderful to have such special event for them to express that creativity and get involved with the town’s sustainability efforts at the same time.”
The only rules governing the creation of the outfits —other that nothing inappropriate or sharp is used—is that they must be made of items that were either on their way to be recycled or to a landfill. Some outfits are designed and tailored by teams of students, whereas others are solely individual efforts. No matter how it’s put together, it all has to be garbage; literally, that is, not aesthetically, said Reilley.
“They love it, and grows every year. Next year it’s going to be way bigger than this,” she said. “It’s a great opportunity for kids to learn and be creative.”
Alex Horowitz, a seventh-grader from East Williston, was the first to hit the runway that evening, sporting a fantastic dress that she dubbed—quite appropriately—the “Game Changer.”
“I used playing cards for the entire bottom part of the dress, the back of the cards for the belt with a Joker buckle, and a trash bag for the top,” she said. “It was pretty tedious stapling all the cards together, but it was worth it…this is my second year participating in the Trashion show, and I really enjoy it.”
Getho Brebette, a senior at Westbury High School, admits to being a huge proponent of the fashion industry, and given the fact that the outfit he created was adorned in bottle caps, it only made sense that he capped off the Trashion Show by being the final model to strut for the crowd.
“I have a lot of friends in school who keep telling me I should be a model, so I decided this was a great way to test that out. I even made my outfit all by myself,” he said. “First I got an old suit that I had in my closet, and I went to different stores and collected bottlecaps, which I glued onto the jacket. I just finished things off with other odds and ends that I found. People thought I was crazy when I was collecting all those bottlecaps.”
Andrew Almonacy, an elementary school student from Westbury, sported one of the flashier outfits of the evening.
“I made my jacket all out of bubble wrap, the whole thing,” he said. “My pants are a trash bag, my hat and shoes are made out of tire, and I have a bottle cap belt. I came up with the idea so we wouldn’t pollute rivers and lands and hurt animals and people.”
Leah Taylor, an eighth grader from Port Washington, was another model whose duds could certainly not be overlooked. Her mirrored dress and matching mask were clearly the stand-outs of the show, both in terms of wow factor and environmental impact.
“My dress and mask is made up of tin foil, CDs, and newspaper,” she said. “My art class got involved with the Trashion Show for one of our projects…we had a team, and we all worked on this dress together. It’s really exciting to be here and it’s a great experience.”
Hallie Liman, a junior from Great Neck South High School focused on accessories.
“I made a purse out of a coffee bean can, and then I wrapped it in old felt and safety pins and used an old red ribbon as the strap,” she said. “This is my second year in the Trashion Show, and the prospect of walking down that runway again is a little nerve-wracking, but it’s exciting and fun at the same time, and it’s for a good cause.”
Eighth grader Jenna Luka of New Hyde Park had a fun yet elegant dress; one that promised that, no matter where she went, a bathroom would always be by her side…and on top of her head.
“This is made out of an old shower curtain, and I also made a hairpiece out of a toilet paper roll,” she said. “I really feel honored to be walk out in front of everyone with my outfit. It’s really scary, but the rehearsal helped to calm my nerves, and I can’t wait to get out there.”
