By Ashley Antonini

Bloomington – An Illinois State University organization is keeping clothes in wardrobes and out of landfills.

ISU’s Fix It Friday provides free basic sewing, mending and clothing repair services throughout the Bloomington-Normal community. This student led organization features Fashion Design and Merchandising students at ISU.

This relatively new organization has been growing since its 2017 debut. The initial crowd only drew in around ten people, but now the event hosts around 50.

Organization member Jen Langer says that students are not just gaining sewing experience but they are promoting sustainability as well.

“A lot of times when you get holes in your clothes you have a tendency to just throw them away. So we are here to promote a free service to make sure we can repair your clothing so that you don’t have to throw it away in the landfills,” Langer said.

She adds that having a sustainable mindset with clothing will likely transcend into a sustainable mindset in other areas as well.

“If you start thinking about sustainability with your clothes you start thinking about other factors as well. So we are just promoting a clean Earth,” Langer said.

Fix It Friday travels to different locations twice a month. On Friday, February 23, they will be located at the West Bloomington Revitalization Project from 1-5 p.m.

Ashley Antonini can be reached at [email protected].