The Chicken Alley Art and Collectable Sale is this Sunday, August 17, from 1 to 5 p.m. The sale benefits Martha’s Vineyard Community Services, which provides essential services for Islanders year-round.

All year long the staff at the thrift shop keep an eye out for special treasures, putting them aside for the sale. The event is the brainchild of Olga Hirshhorn, who came up with the idea more than a decade ago. It has since been expanded to include a fashion show on the Friday before the Sunday sale. Some say the show is “the most exciting and unique art show of the summer season.”

Friday’s fashion show features local designers charged with the challenge of creating garments using recycled fabrics and finds. Tickets for the show, held August 15 from 5 to 8 p.m., are $10.