A People Party Productions and several local businesses will be working together this weekend to put on a cloth swap.
The event will begin at 2 p.m. Saturday and will be at the downtown coffee shop, Monks, for local residents who pay a $10 fee at the door.
The cloth swap will have a check-in time between 2-3 p.m, but the event will run until 6 p.m. Every person is allotted 20 items they may bring, clean and ready to hang, and they will then be able to pick out as many items from the clothes racks as they brought in.
Jen Harmel, the owner and curator of A People Party Productions, said all seasons and sizes of men’s and women’s clothing and accessories would be accepted, but children’s clothes will not.
“The cloth swap is all about catering to the creativity of the Abilene community,” Harmel said. “But of course any age should attend because the event is truly all about community.”
Those who attend the cloth swap will receive a goodie bag which will contain coupons to be used at other downtown shops. They will also receive a 10 percent coupon off their Monks drink the day of the event.
Abilene is still fairly new to cloth swaps, but businesses like Betty and June, a local boutique, and My Sister’s House, a local consignment shop, have embraced the new event. Betty and June will have special shopping available to those who attend the event, and My Sister’s House lent clothing racks to the swap.
“As young business women in the Abilene community, and as ACU graduates, it makes sense that we would collaborate,” said Summer Walters, co-owner of My Sister’s House. “They are doing great work promoting downtown, and we are glad to be apart of A People Party Productions’ growth as a company.”
With so much local support, A People Party Productions said they hope the cloth swap will be successful. Harmel said she hopes to expand the event and host it downtown annually.
“Our purpose with the cloth swap is multifaceted because these events are fun, they’re things we did in college that we don’t necessarily get to do now as young professionals,” Harmel said. “But we also want to encourage people to experience downtown Abilene, and that is a big reason why we are hosting this event.”
Monks will still be open to regular paying customers. Harmel said any resident or student should consider attending if just to drink coffee and to learn more about what downtown can offer.
“It’s a fun experience that allows Abilene to see the full potential of its local experience,” said Harmel.
