Discarded blankets, tablecloths were given a new life at the PiPa News fashion show in Calgary

Saturday's fashion show in Calgary helped transform Trash2Treasure in an effort to raise awareness about reducing overuse.

One dress is made of a blanket, the other is made of kitchen cloth.

The catwalk dress at the cSPACE Marda Loop show was a standout.

All the fabrics for these amazing pieces were donated to Goodwill and given a second life by creative hands.

“I think this dress is perfect to start with,” says University of Calgary student and display model Glory Okeleke. “I think it's really special to know that it used to be a quilt and see how it can be used and turned into something beautiful.”

A fashion show in Calgary on Saturday helped turn waste into wealth to raise awareness about reducing overconsumption.

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The Trash2Treasure fashion show showcased sustainable fashion, eco-friendly fashion alternatives Saturday in Calgary.

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Students from the University of Calgary and the University of Alberta held a fashion show as a way to combine fashion with environmental education, while encouraging a more conscious lifestyle.

“I think we can recycle the things we have and use them again,” said Trash2Treasure organizer Nidhi Kothikalapudi, who is also the founder of the Aquativity project. “It's good to buy new things, but always go back and ask, what do we have in our closet? Is there anything to trade with our friends?'

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“Even if we don't know how to sew, can we use what we have?” Kotikalapudi continues. “Can we pair the same item with different jeans or skirts or shorts? And if we get bored of it, can we do something else?'

Kotikalapudi said that working on the project allowed the students to overcome their feelings of eco-anxiety.

“I work with a lot of students who are very motivated and want to do something, but they wonder what I'm going to do. This is a big question for people,” he said.

“They see it as a global problem. It's too big for me. I can't solve it myself. I don't think we can solve it on our own, but I think we can do small things like this in the community and think about the clothes we buy, and the fashion show is about that, because everything is made from recycled fabrics.” – said Kotikalapudi, a fourth-year student of the Faculty of Biomedical Sciences of the University of Calgary.

The show featured nine outfits, each inspired by a different color of the Indian festival of Navaratri, with shades of gray and vibrant choices. The organizer of the project said that he started his approach to the environment from gray, and since then it has moved like cloth from waste to treasure.

“I used to be gray, but now I'm working in the middle, rather than yellow and green, because of the amount of talent and dedication each of the volunteers and everyone here has put into the show. (It's) great and it gives me great hope that there are people out there who want to make a difference,” Kotikalapudi said.

The Aquativity project was created and supported by Ocean Wise Ambassadors.

The project was created to commemorate the lives of all the victims of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, including two Ocean Bridge ambassadors, Danielle Moore and Micha Messent.

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