Swap & Sewcial

Swap & Sewcial is our new event format, bringing together our love of swapping, stitching, and mending, all in one day- kindly made possible by the Norwich Freemens Charity.

Swap & Sewcial will take place every other month, on the second Saturday of the month, at Norwich Millennium Library.

Drop in at any time from 10am - 4pm and get involved with whatever is going on at the time! The format is as follows:

10am - 12pm: Mend With Friends

(and clothing drop-off for the Walk-In Wardrobe)

Our usual monthly Mend With Friends group will move from our usual spot on the ground floor of the library, and take place in the Business Library room on the second floor. Other than the change of location, MWF will work the same as usual- bring along your holey clothes, and we'll mend together! Basic mending materials and equipment will be provided, as usual.

Is there a cost?

For the next year, Mend with Friends has kindly received financial support from the Norwich Freemens Charity, so there is no charge to take part, but to help cover our running costs, Mend With Friends operates on a donate-what-you can basis.Sometimes people find it tricky to know what to give, so we offer some suggested donations depending on your level of financial privilege:£5- for waged adults£3- for low-waged adults / studentsFREE for unwaged adults, under-16s, and carers/support workers

12pm - 4pm: The Walk-In Wardrobe

A pop-up clothes swap! Bring a bag of up to 10 clean, wearable items to donate to the Walk-In Wardrobe. For each item you bring, you will receive one point, which you can swap for a different item from the wardrobe. For more detailed information about how the Walk-In Wardrobe will work, scroll down to the bottom of this section, and check out the FAQs. You can also find more details about what items we do or don't accept and why, via our website:

Pay-What-You-Can:

The Walk-In Wardrobe operates on a pay-what-you can basis.Sometimes people find it tricky to know what to give, so we offer some suggested donations depending on your level of financial privilege:£5- for waged adults£3- for low-waged adults / studentsFREE for unwaged adults, under-16s, and carers/support workers

2pm - 4pm: Hand-sewing Clothes Sewcial

Back after a brief interlude, we're super excited to announce that our hand-sewing clothes sewcial is back! This group is part of The Alternative Fashion School, and is all about celebrating the power of hand-sewing our own clothes, in community.

Our Hand-Sewing Sewcial meet-ups will alternate month-to month, so every other month we will gather as part of Swap & Sewcial, and on the alternate months, we will gather on a Wednesday evening, in a local cafe or other community venue.

As part of these sewcials, you will need to provide your own sewing pattern, fabric and threads, to make your garment(s). During the first Sewcial, we will talk about some recommended garment patterns for hand-sewing and how to access them, and offer pointers on where to get your materials and equipment. We will have a limited selection of WWTT-owned clothing patterns that you can trace off, so bring some tracing paper if you would like to do this.

If you want to continue your hand-sewing project at home, you might want to invest in your own basic sewing kit, including pins, needles, measuring tape and scissors, but we will have these items available for you to borrow during the sewcial.

If you want to ask any questions or find out more about the hand-sewing group, please send an email to kate@wastesmiths.co.uk.

Is there a cost?

Our Hand-sewing Clothes Sewcial has kindly received funding from the Norwich Freemens Charity, so there is no charge to take part, but to help cover our running costs, the sewcial operates on a donate-what-you can basis.Sometimes people find it tricky to know what to give, so we offer some suggested donations depending on your level of financial privilege:£5- for waged adults£3- for low-waged adults / studentsFREE for unwaged adults, under-16s, and carers/support workers

Where will the event take place?

We have booked a private room in the Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library, in The Forum, for the Swap & Sewcial event.

The event will take place in the Business and IP Centre (BIPC) room, on the 2nd floor of the Library. This is accessible via the library lift, or stairs.

If you haven’t been there before, the room is, conveniently, directly opposite the lift doors as they open. For those taking the stairs, the room will be clearly signposted and the wall is made of clear glass, so hopefully you will know quite quickly that you’ve reached the right place.

Getting there:

The Forum can be easily accessed on foot from nearby bus routes stopping at Castle Meadow or St Stephens Street.

For those coming by bicycle, there are bike racks outside The Forum Building.

For those coming by car, we gently encourage you to investigate possibilities for sharing your car journey with someone else. Parking information can be found here: https://theforumnorwich.co.uk/visit-us/plan-your-visit/car-park

How does the Walk-In Wardrobe Work?

We're glad you asked.

Bring up to ten items of unloved clothing or costume items and swap for new-to-you treasures. You will get one ‘point’ for every item you bring, which you can use on the day, or any future WE WEAR THE TROUSERS swap events. If you have nothing to swap, you can still choose some items to take away by 'earning' some points- find out how on the day!

Before the event:

At home, grab a bag and fill it with up to ten items to swap.

Clothes must be clean (freshly washed) and in wearable condition.

You will get one point for every item you bring, up to ten points.

If you have children under the age of 14 you can bring and swap up to 5 items of childrens clothing, per child (in addition to your own 10 items).

What happens on the day?

We wil begin accepting clothing donations from 10am on the day.

Bring your bag with up to ten items of clean, wearable clothing between 10am and 4pm, and we will count them up and give you a card with your points total written on it. Then we will show you where to take your clothes ready to be hung up.

After your clothes are hung up you will be free to hang out, chat, and take part in the Mend With Friends session that will be happening in the space.

At 12pm, we will announce that the Walk-In Wardrobe can officially open, and you can spend your points!

You are welcome to try things on before you select them, just please hang them back up if you decide to leave them behind. You will have to try on the items over your clothes, or take them to The Forum toilets, where there are mirrors.

If you don’t use all your points on the day you will be able to use them at any future We Wear The Trousers swap event.

When you have chosen the items you would like to take home with you, bring them to our exchange desk, and we will count up your items, amend the points total on your card, and you will be free to take your items away with you.

What Can I Bring to the Walk-In Wardrobe?

You can bring any item of clothing in clean, wearable condition. This is an all-age, all-gender, size-inclusive swap, and all are welcome to attend.

We can also take soft accessories such as scarves, gloves or hats, or fabric tote bags, if they are washed and in wearable condition.

Jewellery is fine to bring, apart from earrings for pierced ears (which must be brand new- see below 'what should I leave at home?').

Remember the golden rule of swapping: ‘Swap Unto Others as you would have them Swap Unto You’. So make sure the items you bring are freshly-washed, with no major stains or rips that make them unuseable.

What should I leave at home?

Please leave the following things at home, for hygiene reasons:

underwear (unless brand new with tags attached)

pyjamas (unless brand new with tags)

workout gear (unless brand new with tags)

earrings for pierced ears (unless they are brand new with tags)

shoes

Hard accessories which cannot be washed in a washing machine such as leather handbags (real or faux leather included)

Anything else?

If you bring anything on our 'leave at home' list we will simply not give you a point for that item, and we will ask you to keep hold of the item and take it home again when you leave the event.

If you’re unsure whether a particular item is swap-worthy, think about whether you would be happy to buy it if you found it in a charity shop, or if a friend gave it to you.

We will be organising future upcycling events to find new uses for clothing that is no longer wearable, so keep those worn-out, holey leggings to be used another day!

Any donated clothing left over at the end of the event will be the property of We Wear The Trousers and will be used for other events and activities that support our aims, including but not limited to supporting clothing swap events in other locations, mending or upcycling events and activities.