ReDress: Prom Reimagined Workshop
Guided by designer + sustainability innovator Karen Stewart Brown
Saturday, October 10
1pm - 4pm
Registration + supplies fee: Member $160 / Non-Member $180
Ages 16+ (partcipants under 16 are welcome when accompanied by an adult)
Each year, thousands of beautiful prom dresses are worn once, tucked away, and rarely seen again. In this hands-on creative workshop, we'll give formalwear a second chance through thoughtful redesign, visible mending, creative alteration, and artistic embellishment.
Bring a prom dress, bridesmaid dress, formal gown, or other special-occasion garment from your own closet—or browse a curated selection from the ReDress collection—and learn how to transform it into something you'll be excited to wear again.
Guided by designer and sustainability innovator Karen Stewart Brown, participants will explore techniques used by fashion designers and makers to reconstruct, tailor, embellish, patch, shorten, layer, and personalize garments while embracing the principles of circular design. Whether your goal is an everyday piece, a statement garment, or simply learning new creative skills, you'll leave inspired by the possibilities hidden within clothing we already own.
No prior sewing experience is necessary. Beginners and experienced makers are equally welcome.
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Workshop Agenda
Welcome & Inspiration
• The story behind circular fashion and creative reuse
• Before-and-after examples and design inspiration
Design Your Transformation
• Learn how to evaluate a garment for redesign
• Explore ideas for altering silhouettes, fit, and function
• Sketch and plan your project
Hands-On Making
• Basic sewing and construction techniques
• Visible mending and decorative stitching
• Creative patching and embellishment
• Trims, appliqué, fabric additions, and finishing details
• Individual coaching and design support throughout
Share & Celebrate
• Informal show-and-tell
• Tips for continuing your project at home
• Resources for future mending and upcycling
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What to Bring
Please bring one clean garment you would like to transform, such as:
• Prom dress
• Bridesmaid dress
• Formal gown
• Cocktail dress
• Suit jacket
• Special-occasion clothing
Don't have one? You're welcome to choose from a curated selection of rescued garments from the ReDress collection.
Optional inspiration materials you can bring:
• Lace
• Buttons
• Ribbon
• Fabric scraps
• Vintage trims
• Meaningful textiles you'd like to incorporate
All sewing tools, shared equipment, thread, reclaimed fabrics, trims, notions, and embellishment materials will be provided.
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What You'll Take Away
Participants will leave with:
• A one-of-a-kind redesigned garment in progress or completed
• Practical sewing, mending, and garment transformation skills
• New ways of seeing the creative potential in existing clothing
• Greater confidence using fashion as a form of self-expression
• Inspiration to extend the life of clothing through creativity rather than replacement
Most importantly, you'll discover that every garment has another story waiting to be told.
About the Artist
Karen Stewart Brown is an award-winning designer, sustainability innovator, educator, and co-founder of Stewart+Brown, one of the pioneering sustainable fashion brands in the United States. She has led design and innovation for Patagonia, Garnet Hill, and Futureadi, helping global brands rethink materials, manufacturing, and circular design.
Through Assembly of Good, Karen creates hands-on experiences that bring people together through creativity, repair, making, and community while inspiring a more thoughtgul relationship with the things we own.
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About ReDress
ReDress is a creative community project by Assembly of Good where clothing becomes a canvas for self-expression. Born from the spirit of ReProm Pop-Up Exeter, ReDress invites people to transform, mend, dye, paint, print, and reimagine garments into one-of-a-kind works of wearable art. Through creativity, craftsmanship, and connection, we celebrate the beauty of making while giving textiles a meaningful second life.
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3S Artspace is funded in part by a grant from the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation.
Thank you to our lead sponsors: AC Hotel Portsmouth, The Brook, The Fabulous Find, The Kane Company/Tidemark, Katzman Contemporary Projects, Raka, Sheraton Portsmouth Harborside Hotel and Stirling Brandworks.