A basement closet in Snohomish is helping people dress for life’s biggest moments — for free

Published 1:30 am Saturday, December 27, 2025

SNOHOMISH — Down a winding, wooded driveway, in a Snohomish house tucked beneath the trees, lives a woman with a basement bursting with gowns, tuxedos and glittery heels.

This is The Freespirited Closet — a one-woman operation run out of Jana Clark’s home, offering formal wear to anyone who needs it.

The price? Free.

“I’m kind of a free spirit, and everything is free,” Clark said, on the meaning behind the name.

Clark calls herself the “keeper of the closet,” though “fairy godmother” might be more accurate.

What began as a few donated prom dresses has grown into a full-fledged community closet. Today, her basement is lined with racks of wedding gowns, sparkly pumps, vintage suits and about 75 tuxedos from the Seattle Men’s Chorus. There’s a private changing room, and only one rule when you visit: wear a mask.

She estimates about 30 people come through each month, especially during prom and wedding season.

“I love helping people find things for their special days,” Clark said. “It’s really satisfying — especially now, people don’t have a ton of extra, disposable money. People are so grateful.”

Clark never thought of charging for the clothes. Instead, she sees the closet as a social experiment — and a way to show what’s possible through generosity.

The project grew out of a local Buy Nothing group, where Clark first began collecting formal wear. She had been watching her daughter and her friends plan for prom and realized not all of them could afford the dresses they wanted. Soon, word spread.

Now, Clark accepts donations from all over: dry cleaners that closed, wedding shops with overstock, neighbors cleaning out closets. At one point, she received 60 pairs of the same Michael Kors shoes.

Everything in the closet has been donated, including the racks and hangers. Clark asks only that people donate items in good condition, and mostly in the realm of business casual to very formal.

She has a simple rule: if you won’t wear it more than once, bring it back — but if you love it, you can keep it. Selling the items, though, is off-limits.

The experience is just as important as the clothing. Visitors book one-on-one appointments, and Clark often hears how much the private, calm environment means to people who are neurodivergent or anxious in busy stores.

She hears all kinds of stories — about dances, trips, weddings and job interviews. Just recently, she said, a trans bride found a dress she was excited to wear.

Since starting the closet in 2018, Clark has watched some girls who once borrowed prom dresses come back years later looking for wedding gowns.

Jenny Zimmerman and her daughters have visited the closet many times for various events. Zimmerman met Clark through a Buy Nothing group. She’s borrowed a dozen dresses over the years and donated her own wedding gown. The closet, she said, has given her daughters a way to show off their unique style.

“Sometimes when you go to a place that has prom dresses, they’re kind of all similar,” Zimmerman said. “This really gives you the opportunity to see a lot of different styles.”

Clark’s passion goes beyond prom. She sees the closet as a way to keep clothing out of landfills, to reuse what’s already made and to give people a way to express themselves through style without spending money.

“I love fashion, but I’m not fashionable,” Clark said with a laugh.

Still, she lights up when talking about beaded gowns and 1920s silhouettes. “There’s so many great stories that keep me going,” she said.

Clark has a small group of volunteers — or “elves,” as she calls them — who help keep up with the steady flow of donations. She welcomes teens who need volunteer hours and appreciates any extra hands.

For some families, the closet has made a major financial difference.

Tammy Lombardi visited the closet when her daughter had a homecoming, quinceañera and wedding to attend — all in one month. “I saw what she was doing and was blown away,” Lombardi said. She later became a drop-off location and occasionally helps organize the racks.

And when June Dilley needed gowns for a Mother’s Day event honoring her 88-year-old mom and friends, she turned to the closet.

She needed dresses, white gloves, crowns, tiaras and capes — “queenly things,” she said. She was told to go to the Free Spirited Closet.

“She enables women to look and feel beautiful without breaking the bank,” Dilley said. “It was crazy to think that you could walk away and have that money in your pocket for all those other bills. I was just blown away and so grateful to have found that.”

She found at least 15 dresses and returned them all after the event.

“She is just a wonderful woman,” Dilley added.

Clark says her mission is simple: make people feel good, without asking them to pay for it.

“I think a lot of people are looking for more authenticity in their life,” she said. “And this is a more authentic experience than you’d get ordering from Poshmark or going to Macy’s.”

For Clark, who once dreamed of being a fashion designer, the closet is both a passion project and a public service — driven not by profit, but by community.

“It’s run on kindness,” she said. “One stranger helping another.”

To visit the Freespirited Closet, first join the Facebook group at facebook.com/share/g/1BoHHXcXBX/ and send a private message to Jana Clark.

Contact writer Aspen Anderson at aspenanderson@icloud.com or X: @aspenwanderson.

This story originally appeared in Sound & Summit magazine, The Daily Herald’s quarterly publication. Explore Snohomish and Island counties with each issue. Subscribe and receive four issues for $18. Call 425-339-3200 or go to soundsummitmagazine.com