Project Runway has come to Hinesville! It’s true, but don’t expect to see Heidi Klum or Tim Gunn walking down Main Street. Recently, one of First Presbyterian Christian Academy’s summer workshops featured fashion design with a twist. All of the young designers who participated used repurposed items and everyday materials to create recycled fashions.
Keep Liberty Beautiful Chairman Willie Cato, board member Pam Henderson and I spent a very entertaining day at the July 29 runway event. The three of us, along with Aliyah Dastour, served as contest judges.
FPCA technology specialist Maria Reed served as the fashion camp’s workshop leader. She put in four days with the seven young ladies who participated in the class, teaching them basic sewing concepts and repurposing clothing and other items to form new creations. The class took field trips to local consignment shops and Goodwill to find clothing and other items — such as old jewelry and accent pieces — to form their creative fashions.
On Friday, July 29, the young ladies sported their newly designed outfits and put on a fashion show for family members and several area residents, who were impressed with the girls’ ingenuity and resourcefulness. The clothes and models were adorable, and they obviously had also learned a lot about recycling, which made them even more adorable to me!
I certainly am no fashion reporter, but let me give you a recap of the creative fashions that graced the red-carpeted runway:
• Parker Reed, 7, started off the fashion show in a funky little black garbage-bag tutu over black leggings with a repurposed blue velvet waist-length jacket — a perfect party outfit for a cool young lady like Parker!
• Alli Hester, 8, took the runway next, wearing an A-line “bag” skirt with three-dimensional plastic bag appliqués. She also wore repurposed rhinestone shoes.
•Anna Hester, 11, fashioned an adorable party dress out of folded newspaper and phonebook pages, accented with CDs.
• Ariana Burden-Force, 12, created a floor-length white “bag” dress with highlights that included puffy rosettes made from white shopping bags.
• Emily Jones, 12, showcased her fashion-design and recycling skills with a detailed, floor-length maxi dress of pleated newspaper accented with a decoupage newspaper clutch.
• Abagail Jones, 14, wore an 1800s-inspired dress that included a black, floor-length garbage-bag skirt with an eye-catching bustle of white shopping bags. A brown paper-bag bodice covered with fabric from a repurposed T-shirt perfected Abagail’s look. Several of the models also wore repurposed jewelry or jewelry crafted of recycled items. Abigail’s earrings were made from soda-can rings.
• Alexis Wilson, 13, ended the show on a high note with a black shopping-bag “bubble” skirt with a repurposed T-shirt bodice.
All of the designer/models were winners, but Abagail Jones took home the grand prize — a large gift basket filled with sewing novelties. The audience members were winners, too, because these recycled runway fashions were delightful.

Upcoming KLB activities:
• iWin: FPCA students will collect CDs/DVDs all year to trade in for new electronics, such as iPads and Kindles, for their classrooms. Call FPCA technology specialist Maria Reed at 876-0441 or email mreed@fpcahinesville.com to help with this beneficial project.
• Aug. 18, noon: Progress Through People Luncheon at First Baptist Church in Hinesville. Keep Liberty Beautiful is hosting the August luncheon, which is sponsored by the Liberty County Chamber of Commerce. Anyone interested in learning about L.E.E.D. construction and certification should call Keep Liberty Beautiful at 880-4888, the chamber at 368-4445 or email klcb@coastalnow.net to make a reservation.
• Aug. 27, 9 a.m.-1 p.m.: Recycle It! Fair at the Liberty County Health Department parking lot. This is a quarterly collection of electronics and other household items for recycling. For more information, email klcb@coastalnow.net or call
880-4888.