Welcome all to another week of Straight Off the Rack where you can get your new additions to your Bottomless Closet wardrobe.

Gineyda Diaz — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 16:45:35 GMT

Monday started off with a bang with a group of volunteers from Deutsche Bank. The women worked on organizing the boutique for Monday’s Separates Night, when clients return to redeem the points they earn at workshops for clothing. This is a great incentive for our clients, not only can they get great information from the workshop but they can supplement their wardrobes by attending. Best of all it is all free! A separate group from Deutsche came as well Wednesday evening to help with inventory and boutique management

We are having an eventful summer at Bottomless Closet

Gineyda Diaz — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 16:13:31 GMT

Several of our friends and partners have held events to benefit Bottomless Closet that have generated much press, awareness and necessary funding. Our board member and friend Kate Post hosted a networking and awareness event with the group Women 2 Women. Several clients were outfitted for the event and received hair styling and makeup by Faith, a Women 2 Women member and stylist. The fundraiser was a hit and raised over $5,000.00 for Bottomless Closet. Thank you to Kate for all that you do and Women 2 Women for their support.

It is summer at Bottomless Closet!

Gineyda Diaz — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 22:28:36 GMT

The summer season is a time to slow down and relax, but your definition of slow might not be the same as ours. We continue to serve record numbers of clients and it seems like every day is at least one new volunteer is ready to tackle the mountain of donations that continue to arrive. You may already know that this year we have had an unprecedented increase in the number of clients we have seen and this trend shows no sign of stopping. In April we saw a record 243 clients and in May that record was broken when at the end of the month client number 278 walked through our doors. Already between June 1st and June 10th we dressed and coached 99 clients! Each client has a unique story to tell and all of us who get to hear at least one are reminded that a positive outlook is the key to a better and brighter future.

"Open the Doors" of Bottomless Coset

Gineyda Diaz — Tue, 25 May 2010 16:32:48 GMT

On Monday many of the Bottomless Closet family were asked to “open the doors” of Bottomless Closet to honor our wonderful group of volunteers and the great work that they do for our clients at our Annual Spring Luncheon. Several clients and the volunteers they work with spoke to the crowd of 500 at the Marriott Marquis. Attendees were exposed to the magic that happens behind the doors of Bottomless Closet. Yolanda, a client since 2009, spoke of her stumble into poverty and her rise to self sufficiency. But it was not until attending a workshop with Dr. Leslie Seppinni that she learned to live life excuse free. Dr. Leslie gave us a glimpse into her own personal struggles and spoke to us about living life with "The 4 C's: Curiosity, Conviction, Courage and Commitment."

Record setting week at Bottomless Closet

Gineyda Diaz — Tue, 18 May 2010 19:30:45 GMT

This week appears to be a record setting week (yet unconfirmed). Bottomless Closet and its tireless staff and teams of volunteers dressed and coached 80 women! It sure feels like a record! Several of these clients went on interviews, one of which returned after her interview to send an email thank you. Taking our suggestions to heart, she made her first thank you note a success. She is motivated to return to work and is taking all the right steps! We outfitted many of the women for Bottomless Closet's Annual Spring Luncheon taking place at the Marriott Marquis on Monday, May 17, 2010. The suits donated 2 weeks ago by our friends at Jones Apparel Group dominated the selection of wares flying off the rack for this event. Thank you to all the volunteers who help dress the many clients attending our Luncheon!

4th Annual Shoes in the City Event

Gineyda Diaz — Tue, 18 May 2010 19:24:50 GMT

Yet another wonderful week at Bottomless Closet--80 clients dressed, young professionals recruited, and large donations arrived! Amid preparations for the Annual Spring Luncheon and the scheduling of what seems to be a record number of clients, there was not one dull moment at Bottomless Closet. The week started off with an explosion – of candy – at Dylan’s Candy Bar where the Young Leadership Council of Bottomless Closet held its 4th Annual Shoes in the City event. Shoes in the City is an awareness event, silent auction, raffle, and accessories drive, geared towards young professionals. The hope is that most of the attendees will become the younger generation of Bottomless Closet volunteers.

Corporate Volunteerism

Gineyda Diaz — Tue, 11 May 2010 17:00:09 GMT

May 7, 2010

This week we would like to highlight our corporate partners and the many ways they continue to help Bottomless Closet.

The Spring Semi Annual Sale was last Saturday, May 1 and leading up to the Sale there was a virtual whirlwind of organizing and re-organizing going on at Bottomless Closet. Several corporate groups worked together with the mass of daytime volunteers to get the excess inventory sorted, sized, hung and displayed for the Sale. Volunteers from Estee Lauder came in each day to help out. Staff members from Societe Generale joined in the fun to get the boutique and inventory space set up for the sale, and on Friday a group from Viacom spent the day prepping our boutique in celebration of their Viacommunity Day. Thank you to all! We are thrilled to have you all as part of OUR community!

Everything went – shoes, jewelry, handbags!! Winter Calvin Klein suits, Armani Jackets, Donna Karan sweaters sold for less than $5.00! Thank you to the volunteers who helped the 120 shoppers! Our clients used the points they earned by attending workshops to build their professional wardrobes, and over 150 points were used. We raised over $2,300! The funds raised will support the programming at Bottomless Closet.

Second Annual Bottomless Closet awareness and networking event

Gineyda Diaz — Tue, 11 May 2010 16:58:54 GMT

May 3, 2010

It seems that every week something exciting is happening at Bottomless Closet! The ladies of The Transition Network held their Second Annual Bottomless Closet awareness and networking event. The office was filled nearly to capacity and the voices of the Flaming Amys resonated throughout — and that was only Monday!!!

But before we go into the amazing week we have had, we would like to take a moment to say welcome to the newest member of the future generation of bottomless Closet volunteers! Our dear friend, volunteer and Board member, Sara, could not receive a better early mother’s day present than our youngest Bottomless Closet volunteer!

We would also like to say get well — and come back soon, to those friends and volunteers who have not been in due to illness (or broken bones). We appreciate you and can’t wait to have you back.

Volunteer Appreciation Week

Gineyda Diaz — Tue, 11 May 2010 16:55:49 GMT

April 26, 2010

What a wonderful week we had at Bottomless Closet celebrating Volunteer Appreciation Week! Our daytime volunteers came in extra early for a small lunch in gratitude of the great work they do. Kendall Farrell, Executive Director, Jessica Land, Volunteer Coordinator, and Patrycja Warda, Program Director, spoke of the changes that have come to Bottomless Closet in the past year. Our client numbers increased by 50% in 2009 and 50% again since the beginning of this year, noted Kendall.

It is amazing to think that this year we will dress over 2,000 women! 52 clients came to Bottomless Closet last week for appointments, 64 the week before and 50 the week before that! We are able to accommodate so many women due to the amazing dedication of our volunteers!

Kendall pointed out that last year volunteers provided over 10,000 hours of their time. This number, Jessica noted, is even larger as many out-of-office hours are unreported. This includes the time volunteers spend picking up donations from their friends as well as soliciting new clothing from retailers and manufacturers. The wonderful group of women on the board of directors alone could easily double this number with all their extensive help.

There are many ways that volunteers help at Bottomless Closet. Below are some examples of how our volunteers help to further our cause.

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