Ia’s Threads takes Hope Chest’s dresses to the runway

The Warwick Hope Chest Thrift Boutique in Pine Island has partnered with Ia’s Threads, a local fashion designer of luxury handbags and zero-waste fashion dresses, to provide planet friendly fashions to the community.
Models showcasing founder Ia Faraoni’s handbags wore re-purposed dresses from the Warwick Hope Chest in the Paris Fashion Show in Paris last fall where she won an award for “Eventful Line Fall 2018.”
More recently, Faraoni bought dresses from the Warwick Hope Chest and other local businesses, Random Acts of Consignment as well as using upcycled wedding dress materials from the Philippines, to recreate entirely new designs to be worn by her models during Fashion Week in New York.
'Upcycled fabrics'
“By partnering with The Warwick Hope Chest, I was able to purchase dresses at minimal prices and redesign them by using the upcycled fabrics," Faraoni said in the press release detailing the events. "After showing the redesigned dresses, we were able to re-donate them after the show was over."
Faraoni also donated three of the dresses and matching handbags to the Prom Exchange for girls from Middletown High School and neighboring areas for their prom.
“The company was launched in 2017 with a mission to highlight environmental awareness, sustainability and ethical fashion,” Faraoni said.
Her handbags are made from plant fibers and handwoven by artisans in the Philippines.
The company’s Zero-Waste fashion dresses now shown on the runway with Faraoni’s bags are constructed from waste trimmings, waste fabrics, and unwanted hats and textiles from local businesses.
“We thought long and hard about how the dress collection will align with our brand’s mission to lead a revolutionary change for people and the planet through ethical and sustainable fashion," the designer said. "We decided to join the #ZeroWasteFashion Movement designing and producing dresses from post-consumer textiles,."
A commitment to re-use
Sharon Linnea is a Director of The Hope Chest Thrift Boutique.
“We are excited about our partnership with Ia’s Threads. It is a natural fit with their mission of zero-waste and sustainability," Linnea said. "We provide gently used, repurposed clothing for the entire family including formalwear, prom dresses, shoes, and wedding attire. So much of our merchandise has only been worn a few times and to see it go on and be re-used is so satisfying.”
Ia’s Threads, local businesses dedicated to sustainability along with non-profits such as The Hope Chest Thrift Boutique and others are all part of Warwick’s commitment to reuse, recycle, and repurpose things instead of discarding them.
Essentials
The Warwick Hope Chest, located at 20 Schoolhouse Road in Pine Island, is open Tuesdays from 4 to 7 p.m., Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. , and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The Warwick Hope Chest proceeds go to support their free clothing bank, which has distributed more than $300,000 worth of free clothing to local families in need.
For more information visit www.WarwickHopeChest.org and on Facebook.
Ia’s Threads is located at 25 Distillery Road, Warwick. For more information visit Ia’s Threads on Facebook or www.iasthreads .com or call 631488-7878.