Lopez Island’s creative “Trashionistas” will once again “flaunt their flair” during Solid Waste Alternatives Program’s fourth annual Trashion-Fashion Show on Sunday, Aug. 9, at Lopez Center for Community and the Arts. The popular event, which raises funds to support the Lopez Dump and recycling operation, will take on a new look this year with riser seating in a theatre-in-the-round setup. The new configuration will provide more seating space with good views for all. Tickets will be priced at $20 and will be limited to available seating. Liz Scranton and Bill Johnson will emcee.

Trashion-Fashion promotes the concepts of reuse and recycling in a way that entertains as well as inspires. To be eligible for one of the show’s famously up-cycled trophies, participants must create their ensembles from discards or recycled materials and model them on the runway at the show.

Entrants typically wow the audience with their over-the-top ingenuity and craftsmanship. Last year’s first place winner in the individual category, Mary Grace Lartz, took home a trophy for her shimmering green ball-gown fashioned from LaCroix sparkling water cans and plastic grocery bags, with matching handbag and shoes, while a team trophy went to a band of Warrior Princesses armored in outfits made from recycled bicycle tire tubes and tin can lids. For sheer dedication, however, no one could top Candy Midkiff’s sweet ensemble crafted from the wrappers of Chocolove bars representing eight months of indulgence. (She ate them all herself!)

If this sounds like fun but you don’t know where to begin, help is at hand! Nikyta Palmisani (Outreach and Education Coordinator for the Lopez Solid Waste Disposal District) and Britney Westervelt (Fresh Perspectives Wardrobe Consulting) will conduct Trashion workshops from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Take-It-Or-Leave-It on three consecutive Thursdays starting July 16. The sessions will be free, open to any age (parental supervision required for children under 12) and geared to “help you find your way ‘in’ to a costume design, and then bring your vision to life,” according to Palmisani. “There will be a sewing machine and a serger available, and all the material anyone could wish for!”

Trashion-Fashion Entry forms can be picked up from Paper Scissors, Isabel’s, Déjà Vu, the Southend Store, and the TIOLI, or downloaded from www.lopezsolidwaste.org/SWAP. Forms must be submitted by July 27.

Tickets to the performance will go on sale July 15 at Paper Scissors and the SWAP booth at the Saturday market, with any remaining tickets sold at the door prior to the 5:30 performance. “We’re very excited to be presenting Trashion in an all-new format,” says Barbara Mino, SWAP board member and chair of this year’s event. “The new set-up will provide seats and good viewing for everyone, and we will set aside some seats for those with special accessibility needs. But you need to get your tickets early!”