LIVE in style while saving the planet!

A local sustainable fashion hub will be holding its second in-person clothing swap on Sunday. 

Basically Borrowed’s Summer Clothing Swap will take place at The Astbury in Poblacion, Makati on April 30, from 1 to 6 p.m.

“[W]e are bringing back the IRL clothing swap! All genders, sizes, and ages are welcome,” the fashion hub wrote in an Instagram post.

In this swap party, thrifting enthusiasts will get the chance to acquire other people’s wardrobe items in exchange for their own fashion pieces without additional charges.

For an entrance fee of P500 (for those who will bring their own items) or P800 (for those who will not), attendees will have access to a pool of pre-loved clothes brought by other participants. They can also get up to five clothing pieces to take home without buying anything new.

What’s more, they can also get fun styling tips from fellow fashion enthusiasts during the event.

To register, participants may visit the hub’s Instagram page or fill out the registration form to enter the event.

Basically Borrowed’s first face-to-face clothing swap happened on December 10, 2022. 

Aside from this, it has also organized 10 swap parties and helped at least 473 clothing pieces find new homes last year.

This swap party is arranged to promote sustainable fashion and to introduce participants to local brands around the metro.

How it works

Participants will be given the choice to bring a minimum of three and a maximum of 10 clothing items during the event. They may also participate in the swap party without bringing anything but they will have to pay for an entry pass with a higher rate.

Basically Borrowed will pick up the items for swap prior to the event. But participants may also bring their own stuff to the swap party.

While participants will be paying to enter the event, they are allowed to take home any of the clothing pieces during the swap party without extra charges.

“All items are free to the attendees of the event. Each attendee may take home a maximum of 5 items,” said Basically Borrowed.

What is a clothing swap?

Gone were the days when people would get side eyes and snide remarks for wearing pre-loved clothes, as thrifting had been pretty normalized among the newer generations.

READ: Why the normalization of thrifting is so important

Thrift shopping enthusiasts would now huddle in different ukay-ukay stores around the metro to find preppy and quirky clothing pieces they can play and style with.

There are also several benefits thrifting clothes and shoes provide the environment. Aside from consuming less resources in generating new clothes, fewer pieces are thrown away as old and pre-loved clothes are being rehomed, reused, repurposed, and upcycled.

Apart from visiting thrift stores, there are also those who are trying this new thrifting technique called clothing swap, where people can trade and barter their clothes with other pre-loved garments.

According to 25-year-old BPO agent Leslie Santillan, who has been thrifting and upcycling her clothes since her early college days, this clothing swap party is an opportunity for the public to appreciate the beauty and benefits of thrifting.

“Actually, sa ibang bansa ko lang naririnig ‘tong clothing swap kaya nakakatuwa na mayro’n ding nag-oorganize nang ganitong thrifting activity sa Pilipinas,” Santillan told republicasia.

“This would be a great opportunity to showcase kung gaano ka-fun yung thrifting at ‘di lang s’ya basta-basta ukay-ukay kasi nakakatulong ka pa sa environment to decrease the harmful effects of fast fashion,” she added.

She also said it is exciting and challenging to style someone else’s clothes according to your own aesthetic.

“Ako kasi goth ‘yung aesthetic ko, so ang exciting and challenging magstyle ng thrifted clothes according sa aesthetic mo, na paano mo palalabasing gothic ‘yung mga cute and pa-sweet girl items na makikita mo sa mga thrift shops,” she said.