Reimagined, Yang says, focuses on “inclusivity” and “collaboration,” two things the fashion industry needs. The club encompasses many aspects, from fashion to art to social justice, making the club an accessible environment for any student who is interested. “Just seeing it grow from myself to what it is now, to a group of friends, to then a group of club members, to now a whole organization and a movement, it feels like I’m sharing a piece of my heart with everybody,” Yang tells Teen Vogue.
When Mei Mahon started getting more involved with the creative aspects of reimagined, she realized what a “labor of love” the project is. She recalled one night, late in the evening, Yang drove to her house and dropped off a pile of clothes from the thrift store. Seeing how much other members cared about their mission, Mahon says she realized the project extends “past fashion” and is about a passion for the environment and helping other people and their community. “There was something so electrifying about 300 people all under one roof sharing the same purpose and believing the same advocacy,” Mahon tells Teen Vogue of the show.
Maggie Zhang
Maggie Zhang
This year’s show, “Threads of Love,” captures fashion inspired by major fashion capitals: New York, Paris, London, Tokyo and Los Angeles. “Our initial idea was to talk about culture and to highlight culture that seems increasingly forgotten or washed out within the industry,” Yang tells Teen Vogue. Fast fashion has contributed to a “loss of identity” and “loss of culture” in fashion that Yang wanted to revisit in the show. “I feel like people are forgetting about the artistry that’s behind this industry,” she says.
To create the pieces featured in the show, students involved with Reimagined host a clothing donation drive at the beginning of the school year, where community members can drop off clothes that otherwise may have ended in the trash. Students put in countless hours at Reimagined workshops, learning from one another and using all sorts of materials and skills to transform the pieces. After showcasing the upcycled clothes during the annual fashion show, they bring them to trading posts to share with the broader Los Angeles community. All the profits made go directly to Remake World, a nonprofit working to address fashion’s impact on climate and social justice issues. The Reimagined team hopes their contributions to Remake World, and other anti-fast-fashion organizations, will help better the lives of those exploited by the fashion industry.
This year’s show comes as Los Angeles residents cope with the devastating impacts of California wildfires. The fires have left many without homes throughout the area. Reimagined sought ways they could support their community while staying true to their mission of sustainability. The students were originally going to host a clothing drive, but after talking to those impacted, they decided to use the show as an opportunity to ask for monetary donations and share information about the impact of the fires.
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