Those Clothes: Try Reverse-Shopping!

[babylonsister]

http://seminal.firedoglake.com/diary/16475

Those Clothes: Try Reverse-Shopping!
By: Teddy Partridge Friday November 27, 2009 11:25 am


I am so tired of seeing a pair of pants, or a sweater or sweatshirt, or even a passably wearable belt in my closet — only to try to put it on and realize there’s a reason I haven’t worn it in years. I’ve got lots of clothes for a smaller me. Today, they go.

Community Thrift, here I come! Get ready for a ZIPtruck with a bed packed to the gills with perfectly servicable, unstained clothes that just discourage me every time I try them on again. How many times do I have to chant to myself, lamenting those clothes I’ll likely never fit into, "But I quit smoking three years ago and haven’t had a puff since! And that counts for something, right?"

T-shirts, 501 Levi’s, sweatshirts, nice cotton or wool sweaters: was I ever really this thin? A 32-inch waist? I don’t think so, fellah. Perhaps these seersucker slacks were simply a great deal a couple of years ago. I don’t recall ever trying them on! Did I ever actually wear them to the autumn garden party I unspooled in my head when I saw them on the rack? Well, they certainly don’t fit anymore, even if they ever did.

I’m sure they are too lightweight for anyone to wear, even in SF this time of year, but maybe an enterprising costume designer is hunting the thrift store for Guys ‘n’ Dolls outfits. I can hope they find a good use for these. The most fun at Community Thrift? Deciding what wonderful agencies will benefit from the sale of my bags and bags of stuff — this store lets you designate the beneficiary at drop-off!

And what about those seven leather coats in my other closet? Surely half — or more! — of those were for a substantially thinner leather daddy than I am now. Off to consignment they go, with fundage earmarked for the local food bank. They are all handsome, a couple actually custom-made, but I can’t imagine wearing them, or being the guy who wore them again. Another life, another wearer for all of these.

Join me, won’t you? Lookup your local thrift store, pack up a couple of shopping bags so you don’t feel lonely on Black Friday, and cart them across town where they’ll do more good than sitting in your bureau. I’m loving the newly discovered size of my tiny-bedroom-turned-walkin-closet. Who knew there was all this space in here? And seeing my wearable but too-small clothes gain a second life with those smart shoppers who "thrift" makes me feel like I’ve done something more constructive for our warming & trashed planet.

Enjoy reverse-shopping!

[WeDidIt]

1. It's the time of year when my wife and I empty closets and clean up the basement

We donate to Goodwill.

Anything decent, we write off. About half of what we donate we don't even bother accounting for in taxes, though. It's not worth the effort for the small write-off it would produce.

We also donate dinnerware, silverware, and other items in order to clear out space.

[rosesaylavee]

6. The Goodwill in our area is fantastic and makes it so easy...

there's a DRIVE-UP DROP OFF for crying out loud. You don't even have to leave your car as one of their volunteers will pull the stuff out of the car for you.

[Demit]

9. Just out of curiosity, where is all the stuff coming from that you get rid of every year?

[jwirr]

2. We rummage sale all summer long and often have a sale of our own

each year. Gets rid of the clutter you bought all year at the other sales. LOL

[LakeSamish706]

3. It's a great idea... and we actually do this every couple of months...

Go through stuff, if we haven't missed it, it's gone... It also prevents becoming a pack rat as well as doing good for the community.

[varelse]

4. I like this idea

although in our household, I don't see "reverse shopping" ever replacing the "tradition" of hiding at home and snacking on Thanksgiving leftovers all day. :P

[EFerrari]

5. There's a great thrift store here put together by a group who funds a

kids science institute in the community. A great place to give or to shop if you need nice things for work and can't or won't buy new. :hi:

[pitohui]

7. seven leather coats!!!! where is he donating this stuff?

i've been the same size all my life so i don't reverse shop, in fact, the other day a kid asked me where my cool jeans came from and i blurted out, the seventies!!!

[Demit]

8. This guy should've thought about the trashed planet 5 or 6 leather coats ago.

[jmm]

10. My brother use to live next door to a place that accepted clothing donations.

I would sit in his apt some nights and we would watch people throw their kids in the clothing bins so they could toss out bags of stuff people left past the clearly posted drop off hours. I've heard people try to justify donating items with defects like broken zippers but then those they're trying to help lose money. It's great when people are thoughtful and try to help others but more people should be mindful of the simply requests these places make.

[babylonsister]

12. I helped sort clothes in a local church after Katrina. People donated

some really bad, stained, worn stuff. I never understood why they didn't just throw it out, just as I can't understand someone donating clothes they'd never want to wear. Different strokes...
I'm sure it's a daily challenge for Goodwill, Salvation Army, etc.

[buzzycrumbhunger]

11. That's always been something we've done

It's so easy to accumulate clutter and especially in a small house, it just gets too overwhelming sometimes. That's when I go on a cleaning binge, and anything I haven't looked at, thought about, or used in the last couple years gets packed up and goes. Not all at once, just a closet or cupboard at a time, so it doesn't seem like such a chore. What's in good shape goes to Goodwill, what wouldn't sell at a yard sale goes to the trash. Besides freeing yourself of the guilt over something you promised would fit "some day," the decluttering goes a long way to overall mental health, too. I will never reach Zen, but small steps help.

[imdjh]

13. What do you do with a 14 year old who thinks everything has sentimental value?

Who doesn't want to get rid of anything, and really doesn't care if it all piles up?

I'm not talking about an emotional attachment to the one legged Barbie Auntie Flo gave her for her fifth birthday, I'm talking about almost anything. Mardi Gras beads by the bucket, t-shirts from first grade sea camp and art festivals. Stuff she can't wear, some of which she never wore. And the worst part is that if you manage to free a surface, it will be piled up again almost immediately. It's like there is a resistance to order.

[babylonsister]

15. Yank on her altruism. Find some young girl who is much worse off

than she is and would benefit from stuff she takes for granted, or find a story about a young girl or boy who has demonstrated their altruism. They're both out there.

[dixiegrrrrl]

16. What do you do with a 14 year old ?

Ignore till she moves out.
But insist everything goes with her.
There is NO way you will win against that stage of teen-dom.
Trust me...I had 2 boys and 2 girls living with me and going thru that stage.
Anything you want that they resist just feeds the angst stage.
I learned to just close the door.
The good news is that somewhere around 15-16, a girl teen goes into a neat stage and suddenly bags of trash appear. I learned to let them put the bags out for the trash, then I sorted thru it when they were out of the house, rescuing brand new sleeping bags, unworn clothing, etc. That all went to Goodwill on the quiet.

One of the boys refused to move anything after it had hit a surface.
He changed during a " I have no clean clothes and have to be at school in 10 minutes" attack.

Your nerves will be grateful for a closed door.

[CrispyQ]

21. Watch a few episodes of "Hoarders" with her.

Nip this behavior in the bud - it will only get worse.

http://www.aetv.com/hoarders/

[tosh]

24. True!

It will only get worse. Best deal with it now.

[Lars39]

22. Have her take pictures of some of it.

Sometimes it's enough to just be able to see an item occasionally.

[K8-EEE]

14. I understand a lot of people that have such a hard time letting go of stuff.

It's just a huge psychological thing to say "I'm too old/fat/whatever for what used to be my favorite thing." It's a hurdle I faced after my last baby - the first one, I fit into my old clothes immediately, the second one, well, I've been 1 to 2 sizes bigger ever since. But it was lovely finally getting rid of all those size 8 clothes that mocked me every time I turned on the closet light. It's much nicer to have clothes that fit you now not to mention a lot of ROOM and SPACE!

I recommend packing the stuff up and putting it in a spare closet or attic or something for a few weeks....once you see how nice it is without the history & clutter you'll be happy to take the stuff to a thrift store & glad that some thrift-shopping size 8 gal will actually be able to use it!

De-cluttering your life really does de-clutter your psyche! Keep what you use and use what you keep.

[Liberal_in_LA]

19. Women's styles change so fast, When you get back to your prior size, the styles will be

slightly different. So get rid of the clothes.

[CrispyQ]

23. "De-cluttering your life really does de-clutter your psyche!"

This is so true! Several years ago I de-cluttered my entire house over a summer. I started with one bathroom closet shelf & it felt so good that I finished the entire closet. It just took off from there. The two thrift shops that I donated my stuff to, came to know me well & were always thrilled to see me pull up in my little truck with the back full of boxes. I had some good stuff, too! Lots of it brand new & all of it in great condition. The feeling I had when I walked through my house & it was neat & not cluttered was so much better than anything I got from having boxes of stuff that I never used sitting in the basement!

A few years ago my mother died & I ended up with more stuff. I simply couldn't get rid of it right after she died. This summer, two years later, except for some sentimental & family items, it's all gone.

It's very liberating to get rid of stuff you never use. And if it's stuff in good condition, it feels good to donate it to an organization that can make some money on it & provide a good bargain to others, as well.

[imdjh]

25. When my town has free junk hauling day, I can almost feel the whole town get lighter.

I know that sounds crazy, but it's true. I love seeing all the junk out by the curb ready to be hauled away, and knowing that those people aren't working around all this useless crap.

[Sarah Ibarruri]

17. What a great idea! I need to dump lots of stuff I don't wear. It's clogging up my closet. nt

[patrice]

18. I often think there is a whole small business in consulting with & assisting people in doing this.

[csziggy]

20. I gave up all the nicer clothes that no longer fit me years ago

A friend had a house fire and lost everything. She needed work clothes and I had a number of nice suits and dress blouses that had hardly been worn and were her size. That gave her several outfits to wear until she could deal with shopping and got her first insurance check.

It is a good feeling to get rid of things that you can no longer use and others can!

[Mari333]

26. I agree, knr. get rid of the crap

but than again, I buy my clothes from thrift stores also, because they are wonderfully cheap. so throw that stuff in the bins, people, so I can recycle it by wearing it!