Heidi Barr is  Philadelphia based artist and costume designer.  She visited The Resource Exchange a few months back to collect materials for a project at Rowan University’s Theatre and Dance Department.  Heidi designed the costumes for their experimental production of Swan. More about Heidi’s beautiful Swan designs to come, but while she was in the store she found the perfect material to continue one of her other ongoing projects…Her Kitchen Garden Series!

Heidi uses our large white linen curtains to make napkins and tea towels for the Kitchen Garden Series, which is a line of reusable kitchen accessories made out of reclaimed materials. The goal of the line is to combine Heidi’s love of making with her desire to support community agriculture.  So she decided to donate 25% of the Kitchen Garden Series profits to  Urban Garden Funds.  From Heidi’s website:

I am pleased to introduce  the first phase of the kitchen garden series; napkins and tea towels made of re-claimed men’s shirts, sold to raise money for community based urban agriculture. Once the textiles are sold, 25% is donated to fund urban gardens. I am committed to reinvesting in the communities supported by the kitchen garden series through the 25% donations and through job creation. As the business grows, I will employ additional artisan sewers, providing a living wage and an opportunity for work that revitalizes their community.

Heidi combines the reclaimed men’s shirts from thrift stores with squares of linen cut from The resource Exchange Curtains.  She sews them together in her studio pictured below. (Heidi uses Resource Exchange homasote as a her table top and pin board in her studio too!  Can you spot it?)

When she’s done sewing the re linens and the shirt sleeves together, she dyes them in tea!

Voila!

We’re so glad to be able to provide materials to such a creative and community minded project!  Thanks, Heidi, can’t wait to see what’s next in The Kitchen Garden Series!