The Workspace held an event Jan. 17-18 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and 1-4 p.m. Jan. 19 called Little Dresses for Africa.

Little Dresses for Africa is an organization that takes pillowcases and makes them into dresses for children in Africa.

Caroline Freese, senior in integrated studio arts and supervisor of Workspace events, attended the event.

“This event is recycling and reusing materials to make them wearable,” Freese said.

An outside organization sends in an instruction sheet for the Workspace volunteers to follow and the Workspace sends back the finished products to the organization once the event is completed. Roughly 33 volunteers were present over the three-day span to help and assist in any way they could. Freese said this was a really good number for a volunteer-based event of this nature.

Wicitra Mahotama, senior in environmental science, was one of the volunteers Monday. This was the first time Mahotama’s had been to the Workspace and said he picked this one because he wanted to learn how to sew.

“I don’t know how to do much,” Mahotama said. “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”

This event catered to people of all skill levels because it required simple sewing and many students who could not sew could learn, or help in other ways like ironing out the pillowcases.

The Workspace supplies all the materials for the event. Most of the fabrics were donated and the Workspace has acquired a lot of equipment like sewing machines over the years that the event has been hosted.

The Workspace hosts this particular event once a semester and in the summer.