Been to any swishing parties lately?  Nope, they’re not the kind where you leave your keys in a basket at the door (ahem) – this is an exchange of your loved-but-no-longer-wanted clothing for new and exciting items to pep up your wardrobe.

So why ‘Swish’?  Turns out there’s global movement dedicated to the Art of Swishing, and here’s how they came up with the name:

Dictionary definition: To rustle, as silk
Our definition: To rustle clothes from friends

We all love fabulous new clothes but not the unfortunate side effects. Our bank managers don’t understand the importance of shiny new shoes, and buying heaps of new stuff is pretty terrible for the planet. What’s a girl to do?

Swishing is shopping without these hangovers. We all bring nice, clean, presentable clothes that are lurking unloved in our wardrobe, and other girls fall in love with them and give them a good home. You might bring one sweater and take two pairs of shoes, or hang a party frock on the ‘Swishing Rail’ and take a pair of skinny jeans and feather boa.

www.swishing.org

Not only is swishing a very economical way to gain new wardrobe items – it’s also eco-friendly, since you’re not putting as much strain on our planet’s resources (new stuff requires new materials, shipping, packaging and so on).

Cape Town has seen a few versions of this before, with Fashion Exchange, Rewardrobe and Bouchic (although the latter fell through at the very last minute, and doesn’t seem to be going anymore).

And I’m really pleased to see that there’s a new event coming up this weekend – the Swop don’t Shop Swishing Party (Saturday 15 May 2010).

As with previous similar events, the general idea is that you bring several items of clothing that you no longer want (but that are still in tiptop condition), and have a chance to swop them for something ‘new’.

Whatever isn’t claimed by the end of the evening will be donated to Nazareth House’s Charity Shop where they will be sold to raise funds for their community projects.

EVENT DETAILS:
Date: Saturday 15 May 2010.
Time: 5.30pm-7.30pm
Location: Unit 2 Warrenby Court, 44a Warren Street, Tamboerskloof
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=113523008686602

For more info, contact Simone Borcherding:
c. +27 (0)73 496 7811
e. simone.bor@gmail.com