I enjoy sewing, and my daughter has picked up a bit of an interest in it, too

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She’s taken a few classes she enjoyed with Fashion First Workshops, made some scrunchies and masks, and has made Barbie clothes from socks (which was more like strategic cutting than sewing, but still fun!). She’s also joined in with me to watch my favorite show, Project Runway, which brings designers together and presents them with challenges, with, of course, an insane time limit. We always marvel at how someone can design and sew an entire stunning ballgown in less than 24 hours.

So, this past summer, when she was trying to find a creative outdoor, distanced, Covid-safe idea for her 12th birthday party, we came up with a fun idea based on one of our favorite challenges on the show—the Unconventional Materials Challenge! Each season, for one episode, contestants are brought to a location—fire house, campsite, card store, pool party, etc. Then they are presented with the challenge, which usually goes something like this: “You have 3 minutes to gather as many materials as you can, then one day to turn it into something fabulous!” The show then follows all the designers as they turn envelopes, inflatable pool floats, fire hoses, etc. into unbelievable gowns that could be worn at any red carpet event. (Well, most of the time. There are definitely some that still look like inflatable pool floats as they walk down the runway!)

Now that we had our theme, we had to make it work! Becca created an invitation for her three friends:

I then gathered the supplies and created a bag with the exact same supplies for each girl. (Becca would have helped, but I wanted the exact supplies to be a secret until the party.)

3 black trash bags

3 white trash bags

a roll of duct tape

a role of clear tape

a box of tinfoil

I also made a table of random supplies they could pick from to personalize their garments, which included:

paper towel tubes

newspaper

ribbon

cardboard boxes

construction paper

egg cartons

Becca also created her own “Project Runway” banner, which she hung from our soccer goal on the party day. We placed a blanket for each girl on the yard, with the bag of supplies, and they each brought their own scissors and stapler.

When the girls arrived, we explained the rules:

You will have 30 minutes to create a fashion-forward piece that you will wear. You may use any material you are given, plus you may visit the extra supply table three times. You are encouraged to help each other with ideas. At the end of the time limit, you will wear your garment on the “catwalk” (lawn) so we can all admire it.

The girls had a blast! I loved watching them work with the duct tape, cut up the bags, and try on the pieces as they went! One girl gathered all the cereal boxed from the extra supply table, cut them out, and stuck the logos to her skirt as designs. Another not only used her given plastic bags, but she also incorporated her brown paper supply bag into her design. One girl made a poof skirt by taping the bottom together in a bubble shape. And Becca made an additional headband from the kitchen garbage bag tie.

As they walked the catwalk, I narrated about the details of their designs as they danced their way across the lawn, usually in a full fit of giggles!

Our Project Runway Unconventional Materials Challenge might not have ended with a million-dollar designing deal, but it was filled with a lot of laughter, which was something we all needed during the pandemic summer of 2020.
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