Worth Bartering For: The Work Dress

After spending the week ogling the reviews and pictures from New York Fashion Week's events and runways, I'm left mesmerized by how many of these creations have so much value in their artistry and craftsmanship, but the possibility of me obtaining something of this caliber is unlikely in this lifetime, if for no other reason than cost. But, a more useful - and still stylish - dress is available, yet not for sale, at least in the traditional sense, from OurGoods, which is an experimental endeavor in artists' networking and bartering. The dress is the initial attempt in the OurGoods network, which describes itself as "a peer-to-peer online network that facilitates the barter of goods and services between artists. The site matches barter partners, provides accountability tools, and offers technical assistance resources to help artists complete their barters and their projects successfully."

The "Work Dress" was designed by Caroline Woolard, is sewn by "a talented male seamstress in New York," and is obtained by bartering of local goods and services. To do this, one submits three ideas for trades along with contact information, and then the artist considers and validates acceptable barters. Although a list of suggestions are provided for these exchanges ("your suffrage movement research, your glass shattering voice, liability law services, help growing hydroponic vegetables"), there is plenty of wiggle room for acceptable barters, including some that have already been made (impromptu violin concert in the designer's studio, to unlimited use of laundry facilities, and even the dress's website and business cards) and some barters-in-progress involving superhero training, a voice over, and a native plant tour. There is a last resort for those that think they cannot barter, but still want the dress, and can get one by donating $200 to the project. But with these such open ended options for bartering, who can't find something to offer?

This power of "dress" has been honed for other projects and experiments recently, such as the Uniform Project, where a woman wears a single dress everyday for a year as an experiment in sustainable fashion and to bring awareness of educational needs in India. But the strength in this particular dress stimulates the imagination in a way that perhaps the cat-walking fashion designs do not: it engages the consumer with defining the means to obtain this product, personalizing the transaction and culling from the best ideas of worth and value to make the trade happen. It seems this dress is more than just a handy article of clothing, as it combines the utilitarian aspects of an apron and tool belt, but also validates one's worth in what she can offer for it. Although the decision on what can be traded for the dress and what can't is still left up to the designer, there is definitely a stronger consumer empowerment than any retail therapy can provide on 5th Avenue.

Photo courtesy of OurGoods Flickr page