Soles4Souls Shoe Charity: Barefoot Week

Please join Soles4Souls as they go barefoot for Barefoot Week, June 1-7.

During barefoot week, the Soles4Souls team will go barefoot for hours at a time to tangibly remind everyone of the importance of safe, sturdy shoes.

Will you join Soles4Souls during Barefoot Week?

Soles4Souls is collecting monetary donations and new or gently worn shoes. For every $1 you donate, Soles4Souls can provide an additional pair of shoes to someone in need. The money also helps the organization process and distribute donated shoes.
Soles4Souls would also like to collect 500,000 pairs of new or gently worn shoes in time for Barefoot Week.

Margaret's Cleaners is proud to be a drop-off location! You can drop off new or gently used shoes at any of our Margaret's stores.

Soles4Souls

To donate, bring your new or gently worn shoes and/or donations into any Margaret's
location.

Margaret’s Cleaners
5150 Convoy
San Diego, CA 92111

Margaret’s Cleaners
7511 La Jolla Blvd.
La Jolla, CA 92037

Margaret’s Cleaners
3790 Via De La Valle, Suite 213
Del Mar, CA 92014

Margaret’s Cleaners
1831 Westcliff Drive
Newport Beach, CA 92660

Soles4Soles is a Nashville-based nonprofit organization that distributes shoes to people in need around the world. Since 2005, Soles4Souls has delivered over 17 million pairs of new and gently worn shoes to people in over 127 countries, including Kenya, Nepal, Thailand, and the United States.

Soles4Souls accepts all types of shoes, including athletic, running, dress, sandals, pumps, heels, work boots, cleats, dance, flip flops, as long as they are new or gently worn. The charity also accepts half pairs. Sometimes they can find matches!

For more information, visit the the Soles4Souls FAQ page.

Testimonial and our CleanByMail service

Check out this wonderful testimonial we received from a long-time client:

"I received your letter inquiring why I had not been in to Margaret's lately.

I have relocated out of the area to Kansas City, MO. I may need to use your service remotely; I understand you can mail cleaned items to customers out-of-state?

Margaret's is, without a doubt, the best cleaner I have ever used. 99% of all my clothes are Gorigio Armari and you have kept them in great shape."

-Robert E.

CleanByMail

Our CleanByMail service is perfect for customers like Robert!  

Like in any successful long-distance relationship, Margaret’s CleanByMail service takes the time to make sure your garments, ties, and bags receive the proper TLC—even when they’re far from home. CleanByMail is a convenience-service for customers who want the best care for their garments and handbags, but aren't near a Margaret's facility.

Why CleanByMail?

CleanByMail is like having a Margaret's facility at your doorstep. The same professionals who work on local drop-offs also clean the CleanByMail items. You simply send us your items, we care for them, and then we package them according to Margaret's standards and ship them back to you. 

How do I send my item?

To get started, simply download and print the CleanByMail request form. Fill out the information, and then send it along with your item to:

CleanByMail

c/o Margaret's Cleaners

5150 Convoy Street

San Diego, CA 92111

For your convenience, you can clip and use the lower right-hand corner of the request form as a shipping label.

Can I get an estimate before I send it to you?

If you'd like a cleaning estimate before you ship your item, plug in your Web cam and make a Live Web call to Margaret's for an instant estimate. Or for a price estimate on a purse, fill out the Purse Cleaning Estimator form. 

Which items do you accept for CleanByMail?

To ensure the highest quality for your items, which will travel long distances, we accept only certain items that travel well and arrive in excellent condition. After all, you expect the best from us, and we want to deliver the best.

Items we accept:

• Purses and handbags
• St. John's knits
• Bridal gowns for preservation
• Neck ties
• and more, depending on the item

If you have an item you're unsure about, give us a call at (866) 454-2375 or send us an email.

Eco-Conscious Fashion

Green. It's a color. It's an eco-buzzword. But what does "green" mean for the fashion industry?

More than likely, you've heard a lot of different buzzwords and phrases tossed around in the last decade, such as "going green," "sustainable," and "carbon footprint."

Because of the growing concern, people are more aware of their own "carbon footprint," which is an individual's personal contribution to the greenhouse gas emissions that cause "climate change." To avoid the risk of starting a political debate, the notion of climate change varies, depending on the report and the scientist. Whether or not you believe in global warming/climate change, most people can agree that keeping the world clean and beautiful is important.

Eco-Chic

The fashion industry is following suit. Designers are listening to clients and making garments that are fashionable as well as socially and ecologically responsible. “Many fashion companies are thinking about how to protect the environment, while still producing their visions” said Susan Rockefeller, an honorary co-chair of the Green Auction.

There are also fashion shows that focus solely on eco-friendly clothing. “I think the [fashion] industry is making great progress in terms of going green, and it’s doing it in a way that shows consumers that ‘green’ doesn’t have to mean unstylish or boring,” Rockefeller said.

Margaret's is Green, too!

Did you know that Margaret's is a licensed Green Earth cleaner? We offer a ZeroCarbon/carbon offset wedding gown preservation service and use the most advanced and environmentally friendly cleaning methods available.

Additionally, we use non-toxic and perc-free wet cleaning solutions, organic cotton, perc-free hydrogen cleaning techniques, and silicone-based solvents. We also recycle and reuse garment bags and hangers.

Margaret's is also the only cleaner in Southern California that has the SystemK4. This $75,000 machine enables Margaret's to clean garments using the highest quality, eco-friendly cleaning solvent available on the market.

Eco Buzz Words

Carbon Footprint
A measured amount of greenhouse gasses (CO2) that are released into the atmosphere through daily activities.

Carbon Offsetting
Canceling out the amount of CO2 that's released into the atmosphere by investing in environmentally friendly projects.

Climate Change
Change in the earth's atmosphere over a long period of time. Linked to global warming.

Eco-Chic
The fashion trend of being environmentally conscious and purchasing only environmentally conscious products.

Energy Efficient
Products that use lower amounts of energy to operate.

Global Warming
An increase in the earth's temperature over a long period of time.

Go Green
To make a conscious effort to use eco-friendly products and reduce one's carbon footprint through lifestyle choices.
 
Sustainable
Avoiding the depletion of natural resources by conserving the ecological balance.

TELL US: How do you "go green"?

Princess Project Runway Show

Last week was the Princess Project Runway show at Fifty Seven Degrees wine bar. The event was a huge success!

Congratulations to the FIDM San Diego students who participated! The fashion design contestants included first-place winner Allan Huang, as well as Angeline Minnocci, Xylina Lim, Ryan Poole and Lena Lollis.

There was a silent auction that was filled with salon services, golf packages, boating/kayaking packages, trust and estate certificates, Tony Hawk Merchandise, wine packages, hotel certificates, and more. There was also a raffle with prize baskets that included movie passes, gift certificates, and lots of other incredible stuff.

The wine bar included a specially priced menu of drinks made exclusively for this event. Jodi Kodesh, the event emcee, did an outstanding job, and the DJ kept the party going all night!

Check out more pictures from the event here.

Don't forget about The Princess Project

The Princess Project is hosting its fourth annual Princess Project Runway show! It’s a fun fashion event that will raise money for the The Princess Project.

All photos from San Diego Magazine

The show features students from the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM). The students will demonstrate live, interactive draping and production of a prom dress. Each student chooses the fabric and creates the pattern for the dress. Attendees get to watch the dress creations from start to finish!

Our own Jan Bohn (co-owner of Margaret's and couture handling expert) will be a sitting judge in this year’s competition!

The other judges are Gordana Gehlhausen of Project Runway and owner/designer of Goga by Gordana; Elena Han, owner/designer of Va Lena Valentina Couture; and Jodi Kodesh, event emcee from NBC San Diego News.

Gordana Gehlhausen

The night will include a fabulous show and attendees will also be treated to a special menu of cocktails and delicious appetizers. There will be a silent auction with items donated from local businesses.

For pictures from last year's show, click here.

4th Annual Princess Project Runway

March 29, 2012

6 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.

Fifty Seven Degrees wine bar   

1735 Hancock Street

San Diego, CA 92101

Prepay: $20; At door: $25

Hungry for Fashion: The Hunger Games Costumes

Are you ready for The Hunger Games? This popular young-reader book-series-turned-movie makes its theatrical debut this Friday, March 23. Not since the Twilight series have we seen such excitement and anticipation for a movie opening. Theaters across the country are selling out of presale tickets. This movie is already breaking records.

For those of you into the book series and fashion, this movie just might be the perfect marriage of the two.

Costume designer Judianna Makovsky researched costume ideas by studying images of “working-class people from the turn-of-the-19th century to the 1960s in Appalachia and other places in America.”

A pair of hunting pants that Katniss wears are made from a vintage 1870s Levi Strauss pattern. 

The blue Sunday-best dress that Katniss wears at the lottery for the Hunger Games was made using rayon from the Western Costume fabric shop. The designers bleached and dyed the fabric to create the perfect blue hue, and then added smocking to the shoulders.

Effie Trinket wears gold booties from Alexander McQueen and a vintage 1930s flower hat.

Cinna bears a simple black Lurex Prada sweater.

The “girl on fire” dress seen on Katniss on the eve of the games is red silk taffeta and organza with vertical pleats. It also has flame-like crystal embroidery to give the illusion of flames, as described in the book.

For more Hunger Games fashion info from The Chicago Tribune, click here.

Talk to us! Are you excited for The Hunger Games? Did you read the books?

Sending a batch of donated shoes to Soles4Souls charity!

We are sending out our first batch of donated shoes!

Shoes!

And more...

These shoes will go directly to Soles4Souls, which will distribute them as needed around the world.

Quick facts:
Over 1.5 billion pairs of shoes lay idle in American closets, many of which can be saved from landfills by sending them to Soles4Souls.

Over 300 million children around the world are without shoes.

Soles4Souls delivered over 15 million pairs of shoes throughout its five-year history. They currently deliver a pair every seven seconds!

Soles4Soles, a Nashville-based nonprofit organization, distributes shoes to people in need around the world. Since 2005, Soles4Souls has delivered over 17 million pairs of new and gently worn shoes to people in over 127 countries, including Kenya, Nepal, Thailand, and the United States.

 To donate, bring your new or gently worn shoes into any Margaret's
location.


Margaret’s Cleaners
5150 Convoy
San Diego, CA 92111

Margaret’s Cleaners
7511 La Jolla Blvd.
La Jolla, CA 92037

Margaret’s Cleaners
3790 Via De La Valle, Suite 213
Del Mar, CA 92014

Margaret’s Cleaners
1831 Westcliff Drive
Newport Beach, CA 92660