Love Your Clothes Set ‘one tonne’ Clothing Challenge for People of Bangor

Love Your Clothes and Bangor University’s Sustainability Lab and Students’ Union are challenging university students, staff and Bangor’s wider community to donate one tonne of unwanted clothes for local charities as part of ‘Love Your Clothes Bangor’ – a series of events running from 11 - 16 March in the Deiniol Shopping Centre that aim to highlight the environmental impacts of clothing.

Every year in the UK 350,000 tonnes of clothing goes to landfill. ‘Love Your Clothes Bangor’ encourages the community  to share the love for clothing by rummaging through their wardrobes, digging out unwanted garments and dropping them off at the Love Your Clothes pop-up shop located in the shopping centre. 

The pop-up shop will be a buzzing hub of free sewing and upcycling workshops, care and repair demonstrations and masterclasses, clothes swapping and family events – all aimed at helping people recognise the true value of their clothing and get the most out of them. Clothing donated to the pop-up shop will be given to Age Cymru, British Heart Foundation (BHF) Cymru and Antur Waunfawr who are supporters of the ‘Love Your Clothes Bangor’ event.

• Clothing collections at Love Your Clothes pop-up shopWhatever the size, shape or colour all clothing in good condition is welcomed to the shop – clothing can be dropped off 7-10 March 12pm-2pm and 11-12 March 10am – 4pm. Check up on the growing mountain of clothes collected each day reflecting the sheer scale of clothing potentially going to waste.  If an item is destined to live life in the back of the wardrobe, drop it off at the pop-up shop and pick up tokens to shop for pre-loved items at a free Clothes Swap and Swishing event on Tuesday 15 March.

• Prolong the life of clothing – learn new skillsGrab advice on creating a capsule wardrobe, making your clothes last longer and how to get pesky stains out of your favourite items of clothes from expert demonstrations and master classes on Friday 11 March. Swing by the Repair Cafe on the same day if you have a garment in need of a small repair and a professional fixer will bring it back to life. Book a session on revamping and upcycling your wardrobe or learn the secrets to sewing in workshops running 14-16 March.

• Family Fun just in time for Easter
Keep the whole family occupied and entertained with a jam-packed day full of activities on Saturday 12 March, such as making tie-dye upcycled t-shirts, sock puppets and Easter bunnies all from recycled clothes. Join the Easter treasure trail to learn how your clothing donations benefit local charities.

Catrin Palfrey from Love Your Clothes, said: “Four out of every five adults have not worn some of their clothes in the last 12 months. We want to work with the people of Bangor to reduce the impact of clothing on the environment in a fun and engaging way by encouraging people to donate clothing, to buy second hand, to care for their clothes more effectively and to learn the basic, often forgotten, skills of fixing.

 
“We urge the local people of Bangor to get involved in donating clothes to charity by bringing down a bag to the pop-up shop in Bangor from March 7th onwards.”
Dr Einir Young, Director of The Sustainability Lab, Bangor University, explains the importance of this event: “Bangor University has long held an aspiration to become ‘the sustainable university’, but we are aware this is not a journey we take alone. These events are a fantastic example of what can be achieved when staff, students and the wider community come together with a common goal.”

‘Love Your Clothes Bangor’ is the first Love Your Clothes event in Wales. The collaboration stems from Love Your Clothes’ commitment to encouraging people to think about the way they buy, use and dispose of clothes; and Bangor University’s strong desire to Bring Sustainability to Life through teaching and public engagement. 

For detailed information on clothing collections, activities and events or to reserve a place at one of the free workshops, visit www.loveyourclothes.org.uk/bangor and follow us on twitter @loveyourclothes #LoveYourClothesBangor for regular updates.

Publication date: 3 March 2016