Postponed: Runway Effekts &Upcycling – Workshop for transmaskuline joung folks, fokus on BIPoC

Get ready for an amazing start to the year with our first workshop in Berlin! Join us for an exciting session on Runway Effects and the art of upcycling to elevate your style. Within the project “Fast Fashion – and how to do it better” of KOSTÜMKOLLEKTIV, we’ll have a fantastic space where creativity knows no bounds. Don’t forget to bring along a clothing item you’d like to personalize; we’ll also provide some pieces for you to work with and make it FAB! 
Allow us to introduce our incredible facilitator: Charm Grace Louboutin is a Berlin based artist and designer focused on upcycling and experimental garment transformation. Their work centers fashion as a playful, expressive process, turning existing materials into bold, performative pieces with character and story.
This is a workshop for BIPoC transmasculine folks (including transmasc, GNC, binary & non-binary transmen). We especially invite young people aged up to 27 years old. It will be held in english mainly.
The Workshop is hosted by Calvin @cal.crm and Kostümkollektiv and funded as part of the environmental education fund by the Bezirksamt Mitte Berlin.
Language: English
When: Saturday, March 14, 2026 | 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. (probably longer)
Where: Exact location will be provided upon successful registration

With Agnes Waedt, seamstress and master of home economics
Temperature, humidity, and the right techniques – it’s not rocket science! Clothes often only reveal their character after ironing, and this is the only way to get them into shape. Master of home economics Agnes Waedt shows what is important and teaches the basics and the most important tricks. She will answer individual questions; please bring an example garment with you to receive specific advice. The workshop will be held in German.
When: Thursday, Januar 23, 2025 | 3:30–6 p.m.
Where: Headquarters and Stock of Costumes at Kunstquartier Bethanien
Solidarity-based cost sharing according to self-assessment per person:  €20 / €30
Registration by January 24 by email and advance payment: fetzenundflicken@kostuemkollektiv.de

Free workshops for young people aged 10 to 27:

Do you have favorite clothes that are worn out, or clothes that you can’t bring yourself to throw away even though you no longer wear them? Would you like to learn more about how fashion is produced and sold worldwide? And what exactly is fast fashion?
In our new workshop series, textile professionals and activists will show you what can be made from found or “old” clothing and how you can repair clothing and thus protect the environment. You will also learn more about alternative ways to be fashion-conscious and sustainable.
Would you like to book a workshop with us for your group or class? Feel free to contact us with a rough idea and suggested dates at: projekte@kostuemkollektiv.de.
The workshops take place at Weinmeisterhaus – Youth Culture Center Berlin-Mitte, Weinmeisterstr. 15, 10178 Berlin (see map).
The project is a collaboration between Kostümkollektiv e.V. and WeTeK Berlin gGmbH and is funded by the Bezirksamt Mitte von Berlin, Umweltamt, Bereich Umweltbildung.

We will publish the current offers here on an ongoing basis. The workshops will be held in German.

Actual workshops in November for young people aged 15 to 27:

November 22: Upcycling “from bag to bag” – give your old bag a new lease of life
With Cynthia Bohner-Vloet, fashion designer and green fashion specialist
Recycle, don’t throw away! We’ll use the material from your old bag to make a glasses case. We’ll take a look at your bag: What material is it made of, where was it manufactured, what kind of fasteners does it have? What can we use for our new glasses case? Which materials and elements can’t we use now, but are worth keeping for another project?
Bring your discarded bag and your sunglasses with you, because they’ll be in the spotlight. If you don’t have a discarded bag, don’t worry: some will be available.
When: Saturday, November 22, 2025 | 11 a.m.–4 p.m.
Register with the subject line “von Tasche zu Tasche” by November 18 at: weinmeisterhaus@wetek.de

November 23: Understanding, reflecting on, and transforming fast fashion
With Elena Sofia Stranges, textile designer, art therapist, and activist for sustainable textile use
In this interactive workshop, we explore the structures and effects of the fast fashion industry and combine critical thinking with practical experience. Together, we reflect on our own consumption habits and emotional attachment to clothing, learn about materials, production conditions, and global contexts. We playfully examine fashion brands for sustainability and evaluate them critically. We will discover sustainable alternatives and collect ideas for creative upcycling and repair techniques.
When: Sunday, November 23, 2025 | 11 a.m.–4 p.m.
Register with the subject line “Understanding Fast Fashion” by November 18 at: weinmeisterhaus@wetek.de

Textile Mobile against Black Friday in Neukölln
After stopping at Alexanderplatz, our Textile Mobile with its upcycling workshop is traveling to Neukölln, to the neighborhood center at Körnerpark. November 28 is Black Friday—a day that encourages overconsumption and the resulting exploitation and littering of our world. As part of FashionRevolution‘s Black Friday event, you can learn about the background and facts of the fashion industry and the impact of production and waste on people and the environment. Our sample wardrobe uses beautiful examples to show how to shop more consciously and presents various ideas for extending the usability of clothing. In short upcycling workshops, T-shirts can be transformed into pot holders, and a highlight of the afternoon is Fashion Care Bingo. In this game, care symbols, textile knowledge, and strategies for sustainable care are deciphered… and there are small prizes to be won! This opens up a different perspective on the clothes you may have just bought at the swap, the resources used to make them, and our global responsibility.

When: Saturday, November 29, 2025 | 3–6 p.m.
Where: Nachbarschaftshaus am Körnerpark, Schierker Str. 53, 12051 Berlin

The “Textile Mobile” is on the road as part of the “Mobile Makerspace Modules for Experiencing Circularity in Everyday Life” project by Haus der Materialisierung.
More about the project: This summer, Haus der Materialisierung initiatives are on the road in the city with mobile workshop modules for textiles, bicycle mobility and electrics, food and mushroom mycelium, used materials and woodworking to talk to you about strategies, teach everyday practices for circular action, and shed light on the background. Here in the HdM program calendar, we regularly publish the dates of all participating partners.
The project “HdM Mobil – Mobile Makerspace Modules for Experiencing Circularity in Everyday Life” is a cooperation project between Haus der Materialisierung e. V. and the Department of Circular Economy and Recycling Technology at TUB, funded by the VW Foundation.

Kostümkollektiv e.V.’s Textile Workshop is already up and running – now we want to develop it further and tailor it to the needs of the scene. To do this, we need your opinion!
In an online survey, we would like to record the needs and wishes of professionals, students and trainees in the fields of costume, costume design and textile design. The aim is to equip and organise the workshop in future so that it can be used even more specifically for temporary projects and commissions – in a practical, effective and collaborative way.
What is in demand?
Which machines and tools would be important for your work? What materials, textiles or services would you like? Which training programmes would be of interest to you?
Your feedback will help us to further develop the workshop in line with your needs.
The survey will run until June 18, is anonymous and will take about 10 minutes. Your details will of course be treated confidentially – no data will be passed on to third parties. The evaluation will be used exclusively for the conceptual development of our Textile Workshop.
Click here for the survey: https://forms.gle/tCitXKJMdJj1DhEm9
Thank you very much for your participation! Please also forward the survey to colleagues and contacts in the fields of costume design, independent scene and performing arts – the more feedback we receive, the more accurately we can capture your actual needs!