Category Archives: Sustainability

2016 Student Runway Gallery Posted!

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The deadline for designer applications is just 4 weeks away! Get inspired by perusing the 2016 student runway gallery with photos by Heaven McArthur. Many of these students are first time designers, while others are seasoned veterans with multiple entrees over our Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show history.heavenmcarthur-rubbishrenewed-2016-540-webres Designs by students are often the most fresh and innovative as they see the world differently than their older counterparts. For more student inspiration, link to the blog posts and galleries below from previous years. Then, let the creativity soak in and get started designing!

Student Focused Posts from past years with links to Galleries

Inspired by Kids

Behind the Scenes Designer Series: Artist 5 Olivia Barnes

2016 Student Garment Sneak Peak: Gallery

2015 Student Runway Gallery Posted!

RR Student Designers in Action

Student Designers at the Heart of Rubbish Renewed – 2014 Student Gallery Posted!

Students and Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show

Part 1: Remember 2012

Students in Rubbish Renewed 2011

Inspired by Kids!

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Kids inspire me.  With Trash Fashion on my back burner for months, it took the beginning of the school year with a slew of excited middle school students to get my mind spinning with ideas.  For the first post of the Rubbish Renewed season, here is an encouraging account written by several of last fall’s REALMS Rubbish Renewed Elective students. Several fantastic photos, by Heaven McArthur, highlight garments made by students quoted below, and Joe Kline’s ghostly image of the community garment.

Designers: Ella Cook & Scout Gesuale; Model: Matea Gesuale
RIMROCK TIBET Designer/Model: Becky Knight Materials: Discarded “Community/Prayer” Flags School: REALMS
THE SEASONS Designer/Models: Maggie Pierce – Fall & Tatum Huegal – Winter Materials: Fall – used packing paper, discarded cloth napkins; Winter – Tin foil, discarded curtains, pipe cleaners, scrap fabric

This year the Rubbish Renewed Elective at REALMS was a hectic blur of measurements, cutting, restarting, redoing, sketching, and stitching. All of us, in the elective, had the goal of making it to the runway. Finally, after hours of work and thought poured into every garment, the deadline for submissions had arrived. That day, everyone was fussing over this or that trying to find the perfect name and description for their garment. Even now that everyone’s submissions were in, the suspense wasn’t over. We waited and waited for the results to come by email on the 12th of December. After days of anticipation the wait was over, whether your submission made it or not we still had work to do. The community garment had yet to be started. Those whose submissions had made it in continued to mess with their designs until it was just right. Others worked and worked on the community garment featuring old calculators from the 6th grade math room.  All of the students in Rubbish Renewed had a delightful experience and are planning on making more trash fashion next year. Here are some comments that our students had:

  • rubbishrenewed-10“Waiting backstage was delightfully nerve wracking,” said student model and designer Becky Knight.
  • Ella Cook realized that anything can be reused to make something new. “I learned that almost everything that someone throws away can be used for something else.”
  • This year a group of REALMS students had the idea of creating outfits with a theme of the 4 seasons. They worked together to create some fabulous outfits. Lilah Beck,student designer and model of spring said, “I am most proud of the bond that I formed with my team. We helped each other make the garments come together to be the best they can be.” Another student designer and model, Violet Loftus of summer stated, “I used to think that trash was gross and that it should be thrown right into the trash but then I went to the show!”
  • Jaide Summers noticed that “It makes you aware of what to throw away and what to repurpose.”
Look for Galleries from last year’s show coming soon!

Rubbish Renewed Live Auction – It’s a fundraiser!

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Friends, acquaintances, and at times strangers often remind me, that the Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show is their favorite event of the year. People of all ages love the energy, art, and message of the evening. However, many of those same people don’t realize that Rubbish Renewed is a fundraising event for REALMS Magnet School and supports the unique programing that makes REALMS a place where rigor, relevance, and relationships intersect.

We carefully select 6-8 auction items from adult designers who want to donate to the goal. Check out these pieces, from generous designers, and come ready to bid!  Click on the image to learn more about the item and designer.

Put the Needle on the Record Designer: Mayra Stearns Materials: records, doilies, linens and sheet music

Put the Needle on the Record
Designer: Mayra Stearns

Corporate Meeting on the Rocks Designer: Karen Holm Model: Leah Williamson Materials: Climbing Webbing scrap ends

Corporate Meeting on the Rocks
Designer: Karen Holm

Natural Edge Furniture Designer: Kassy Windus Model: Hannah Tarrant Materials: Spent sandpaper

Natural Edge Furniture
Designer: Kassy Windus

 

 

Mt. Bachelor Designers: Andria Zippler, Denise Ellington, Sam Whitman, Stephanie Kirpach, Martha Jeffers Materials: old Mt.Bachelor trail map (wings), old banner that says, "snow", etc

Mt. Bachelor
Snowstorm Diva

The Ventilator Designer: MAURICE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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ReStore Sublimity

Playing it Safe Designer: Kelly Powell Model: Courtney Finstad Materials: plastic safeway bags & fabric remnants

Playing it Safe
Designer: Kelly Powell

PHOTO SHOOT: looking ahead to the runway

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4 weeks before garments need to be runway ready, on December 17th, a small group of designers, models and Rubbish Renewed volunteers gathered at Tambi Lane Photography for our pre-show photo shoot. Photographs are focused on Business Challenge participants, garments being donated to our live fundraising auction, and student garments (completed garments enter a lottery for the final few spaces).  The end result is to present you with a sneak peak of the richness to come. We couldn’t create this professional shoot without the wonderfully talented Bishops Barbershop’s masterful hair, and Mayra Stearn & Arenal Hruby makeup magic! Tambi Lane Photography not only contributes the sweet space, but once again, Tambi made the garments come alive in a fun and supportive atmosphere.

STUDENT GARMENTS – Click on the photo to link to the student garments
Fruity Tutui Designer/Model: Fiona Wright Material: fruit bags and netting, potato sacks, newspaper bags, flour sacks

Fruity Tutui
Designer/Model: Fiona Wright
Material: fruit bags and netting, potato sacks, newspaper bags, flour sacks

BUSINESS CHALLENGE – Click on the photo to link to the Business Challenge
Mt. Bachelor Designers: Andria Zippler, Denise Ellington, Sam Whitman, Stephanie Kirpach, Martha Jeffers Materials: old Mt.Bachelor trail map (wings), old banner that says, "snow", etc

Mt. Bachelor
Designers: Andria Zippler, Denise Ellington, Sam Whitman, Stephanie Kirpach, Martha Jeffers
Materials: old Mt.Bachelor trail map (wings), old banner that says, “snow”, etc

AUCTION GARMENTS –  Click on the photo to link to the auction garments
Put the Needle on the Record Designer: Mayra Stearns Materials: records, doilies, linens and sheet music

Put the Needle on the Record
Designer: Mayra Stearns
Materials: records, doilies, linens and sheet music

 

 

Get your tickets today at rubbishrenewed.com for one or both of our shows on January 14th at the Midtown Music Hall.

First show showcases Student Garments, Business Challenge, and our Live Auction Items.  Second show is 21 and over and highlights Adult Garments, Business Challenge, and our Live Auction Items.

 

Reignite Your Sustainable Passion – Community Garment Creation

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“What one action can I take to lower my impact on the planet?”
  • We generate 21.5 million tons of food waste each year. If we composted that food, it would reduce the same amount of greenhouse gas as taking 2 million cars off the road.
  • Every year, each American throws out about 1,200 pounds of organic garbage that can be composted.

    RubbishRenewed_Runway_2015-6588 copy

    Designer: Bend Community     Materials: tin can lids, 1950’s stained curtains

Looking at trash facts is mind-boggling. Each year at this time I peruse the internet for waste data to share with the Bend community. The goal is to reignite sustainable practices in ALL of us. For me, complacency sets in as the year rolls on. When I reconsider a pledge each year I’m empowered to act, focusing my sustainability efforts.

The first year of Rubbish Renewed I pledged to recycle the toilet paper tube. And since then, I have diligently complied.   The next year, I upped my composting efforts through making a pledge. To this day, I still meet this goal.

There is something about the act of making a pledge and watching it publicly displayed walking down the runway that motivates; it helps hold me accountable. This year I’m using a thermos to capture the extra water I heat for tea. Now, in winter, as the day wears on, I rejuvenate my hot beverage with captured energy. I’ll make a pledge today at Rescue Collective (our hosts for the Rubbish Renewed Community Garment creation) to change a habit and lower my impact on the planet!

Designer: The Bend Community Materials: Bicycle Tubes,

Designer: The Bend Community
Materials: Bicycle Tubes, scrap plether

  • If all our newspaper was recycled, we could save about 250,000,000 trees each year
  • Each ton (2000 pounds) of recycled paper can save 17 trees, 380 gallons of oil, three cubic yards of landfill space, 4000 kilowatts of energy, and 7000 gallons of water. This represents a 64% energy savings, a 58% water savings, and 60 pounds less of air pollution!
  • In the United Kingdom, 65 percent of tea drinkers overfill their kettles and boil more water than is needed for a cup of tea. Turns out, that extra energy—the energy used to heat thrown out or leftover water each day—is enough to light all the streetlights in London for a night.

The Rubbish Renewed Community Garment offers a place to take a personal step towards walking more lightly on the planet. What will you do to generate less waste? Consume less? Ask yourself, “What one action can I take to lower my impact on the planet?”  Make a pledge. Start today.

You can help create the 2015/16 Community Garment at the Rubbish Renewed table at December’s First Friday (December 4th) at Rescue Collective, (910 NW Harriman St Suite 150).

Behind the Scene Designer Series: Artist 5 Olivia Barnes

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Today we bring back our Behind the Scene Designer Series we started last season, and this time it’s a talented 12 year old! I first met Olivia at the December photo shoot before our 2014 Show. Then a focused 5th grader she came to us dialed as a designer and poised to show her talent on the runway. Last year I lamented that Olivia didn’t submit, until I found out she was already working on her piece for the following year! Talk about a role model for planning ahead!

The Behind the Scene Designer Series celebrates the trash fashion that IS the Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show. Without it, there would be no event. Each designer brings his or her unique passion, inspiration, and creativity, but no matter their differences, a common bond lingers: transforming trash, inspiring community for a sustainable earth.

Artist 5 – Olivia Barnes

Designer & Model: Olivia Barnes Photo: Tambi Lane Photography

Designer & Model: Olivia Barnes
Materials: Bicycle refuse
Photo: Tambi Lane Photography

RR: What do you do in real life when you’re not designing and creating trash fashion?

OB: Fencing, school (7th grader), and cupcake baking

RR: How did you get started as a trash fashion designer?

OB: I studied all of the water around the world in elementary school and I got inspired to do something about it.

RR: What inspires your creations?

OB: I was inspired by my dads biking and I realized that there was a lot of things that were wasted. There were broken parts that just got thrown away. I decided to make something amazing out of that.

RR: What is your current goal as a Trash Fashion Designer?

OB: My next step is to enter the fashion show this year, and end goal is to inspire, and make known the problems about trash.

RR: What is else should we know about you?

OB: I love to design, model and help the environment. I love the feeling of showing people what I have made that I spent time on, and it definitely pays off. I also love to get creative with trash and help put better use to the garbage around the world!

The submission deadline for garments is just over 2 weeks away on December 4th.  Go to the link to remind yourself the criteria for submission information and fill out the online runway submission form.

 

2015 Student Runway Gallery Posted

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T-Time Designer & Model: Lily McNabb Materials: Tea bag wrappers

T-Time
Designer & Model: Lily McNabb
Materials: Tea bag wrappers

Inspiring students rewards all of us. As a teacher, seeing students create a goal, persevere through challenges and meet that goal, is the best. And when that goal includes taking care of the planet, it’s even better. I’ve had a chance to teach, mentor, assist, problem solve, and push students each year to enter in the Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show. Many life skills come out of this experience and the 2015 Gallery shares the fruits of this labor. Thanks for all the determination, resilience, and follow-through shown by these student designers. We can’t wait to see what they bring this year.

Only 3 1/2 weeks to the submission deadline!

Check out the new 2015 Student Runway gallery posted today! Photos by Tambi Lane Photography.

 

2015 Business Challenge Runway Gallery Posted!

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RubbishRenewed_Runway_2015-7086 web

RESTORE Business Challenge

What an amazing Business Challenge it was!  Just over 9 months ago, on January 15th the Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show highlighted 10 sustainably minded businesses.  Talented designers creatively crafted couture from the businesses own refuse.  Check out the newly posted 2015 Business Challenge Runway gallery with photos by Tambi Lane Photography.
Our Business Challenge closes when we reach 10 completed applications.  Learn more about supporting Rubbish Renewed as a Business Challenge participant here.  Submit your Business Challenge online application today to compete for the Coveted Trash Trophy!

Transforming trash and inspiring community for a more sustainable earth

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More than 6 years ago, when we first envisioned the Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show, we hoped to create a fun, fashionable event that inspired our Bend community to raise the bar in environmental responsibility. Our mission declares we are rooted in a love of fashion, an appreciation of art and a passion for the planet. Trash fashion created the visible inspiration; it just wasn’t enough. We wanted people to not only believe that being sustainable was a good idea, but in-fact act. It meant we, as an event, needed to walk our talk. We had to hold the bar high for ourselves, designers, sponsoring businesses, food carts and audience members to keep sustainability at the forefront for the event.Screen Shot 2015-09-05 at 9.01.41 PM

In 2015 we saw just under 1000 people in our 2 January 15th shows. This photo celebrates ALL the trash from the night! Everything else was reused, recycled, or composted.

Thank you Bend for rising to the challenge, keeping a passion for the planet front and center!

Rubbish Renewed is a community event. It is powerful for students, embraced by the community, and is rooted in a belief that each person can make a difference in our environment by just making one small shift at a time.

A PASSION FOR OUR PLANET: THE HEART OF RUBBISH RENEWED

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Rubbish Renewed 2012 Cascades A&E Photos by Tambi Lane Photography

Rubbish Renewed 2012
Cascades A&E
Photos by Tambi Lane Photography

Tomorrow night is the Rubbish Renewed Eco Fashion Show, and it’s crunch time. Luckily this spectacular show and fundraising event is organized and supported by creative, passionate, artistic, and environmentally conscious people!  LOTS OF PEOPLE. Remarkably, during the 11th hour scramble, a passion for the planet remains at the heart of everything we do. Volunteers, designers, models, marketplace vendors, food carts and sponsors carry our mission, Transforming Trash and inspiring community for a more sustainable earth, skillfully.

All of our sponsors speak to this mission, with some of them, having it at the forefront of their work.

ReThink Waste Station

ReThink Waste Station

ReThink Waste//Environmental Center, tomorrow night, will help us make sure we minimize our impact with the Zero Waste Station. Our goal is to keep working toward being the most sustainable event in town!

Bend Electric Bikes is inspiring more people to commute without a car. The electric assist, makes the daily trek, from dropping kids at school, commuting to work, to shopping, accessible to everyone.

Camp Nor’wester has, for 80 years, inspired young people to live in connection with their natural environment and the people around them and put these skills into practice for sustainable living throughout their life.

Join other socially conscious businesses and individuals for an evening of sustainable fashion, showcasing styles that the future demands.  We invite you to reconsider the value of trash and celebrate the creative, sustainable spirit of Bend.