"Patch or Swap: A Textile Rescue Lab" By Roxana Alger Geffen

Next date: Saturday, September 06, 2025 | 01:00 PM to 07:00 PM

We have all had clothes that we loved and lost—to coffee stains, rips or years of wear. This project is about rescuing those well-loved things and making them wearable again. Sculpture and collage artist Roxana Geffen, will show you simple ways to mend your clothes in a visible but cool way and give you some supplies to get started, either at the Arlington Art Truck or at home. If you decide that you don’t need another project, you can also swap a tired garment for something on our Swap Rack, leaving a short description and story about the piece or simply take a garment and leave us a story about a favorite outfit from your past.

SEE & DO: Be inspired by viewing gorgeously patched and embellished fabrics by artist Roxana Geffen. Trade in your loved clothes for someone else to enjoy, pick up an artist-designed instructional zine and the supplies to sew and patch with us or save for a future project.
MEET: Roxana Geffen, a sculptor and collage artist from Washington, DC and a representative from our community partner, Arlington Visual Arts Studio Tour (AVAST)
LEARN: How to patch, sew and embellish the clothes you love, giving them a second life and about AVAST.

Learn more about the artist.

The community partner for this project is the Arlington Visual Arts Studio Tour (AVAST). Every year on one weekend in September, Arlington artists open their studio doors to the public, organized by AVAST. Come visit the Arlington Art Truck and pick up a map of the open studio tour and visit the artists on the weekend of September 27 and 28, 2025. If you cannot make it, sign up to their email list to be informed of this event and others throughout the year including the open call announcement to apply to be a part of this tour.  Visit their website for more information.

Patch or Swap: A Textile Rescue Lab by Roxana Alger Geffen runs September 6-27, 2025. For the most updated information, including cancellations due to weather, follow us on Instagram @arttruckarlington.

Dates and Locations