COTTAGE GROVE – Grovers get ready, the 17th annual Trashion Show at Opal Center is right around the corner. Local artists will turn trash into fashion and model their work at 513 E. Main Street.
This year’s theme is “Trashformation,” enhancing the idea of transforming garbage or otherwise wasted materials into something wearable.
“It is like, one of the coolest things Cottage Grove has come up with,” said Maya Burton, executive director at Opal. This is Burton’s first year as a producer for the show, working alongside Terrisa West, a longtime vet.
“She’s done this since the beginning, so I’m kind of just following her lead and making sure that she has everything that she needs to make this show a success,” Burton said about West.
The fashion show premiere is Thursday, April 17, with shows continuing the 18-19 and the following week, April 24-26.
“What it ends up being is a night of the most intense community support and art and fun. I just am amazed at how creative these people can be with garbage,” said Burton.
This year, 11 designers are participating in creating apparel out of discarded materials. All the designers are female, and since Trashion is an all-ages event, the creators range from elementary school-aged to happily retired.
Some of the art to expect to be displayed on people’s bodies include old CDs and cellophane, bicycle tubing, cardboard, old damaged canvases, scrap fabric, and pool noodles.
Designers must create outfits using at least 75% recyclable or reused materials. Some other options might include steel/tin, aluminum, plastics, paper cartons, magazines and catalogs, and paper bags. The outfits they create have to be durable enough to last both weekends of the event.
Since its launch, Trashion at Opal has hosted more than 40 designers and well over 100 models. “It feels like a party. And what they’re wearing is fully art,” Burton said.
This reporting is supported by the Catalyst Journalism Project at the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication.