Adventures in learning how to treat our Earth more gently and our bodies well, while still enjoying a life filled with good things.
Clothes swap parties
By Coralie, on August 14th, 2009 at 09.50 AM
Category: Buying second hand clothing is a great way to help the environment. I wrote about it here, so I won’t repeat myself. Clothes swap parties are a brilliant way to get yourself some second hand clothing and be ‘green’ at the same time. When I heard that my new friend, Tash, was having a clothes swap party, I asked if she would do a guest post for me, and she kindly agreed.
Tash normally blogs over at Zombietronics. Make sure you visit her blog!
I recently hosted a clothes swap party, with a turn-out of about 15 people in total and mountains of clothes traded. In the lead-up to the party I was amazed at how many people I spoke to who told me that they were part of regular clothes swaps – I guess considering I’d only ever been to one, I thought it wasn’t a very popular thing to do.
But it seems with the recession in the back of everyone’s minds, buying second-hand, sewing your own clothes and holding clothes swap parties is the way for money-conscious fashionistas to stay trendy.
I first went to a clothes swap party hosted by my friend, Natalie, who runs the blog Axis of Fat. She was promoting the idea of holding a clothes swap as a step towards body positivity and fat acceptance - which you can read more about in the great book, Screw Inner Beauty, or on the blog of the author Kate Harding. The party was a judgement-free zone with absolutely no diet-talk, no ‘I’m too fat to fit that’ or ‘You’re so skinny!’ The idea was also to bring along and get rid of those clothes that sit in the back of your wardrobe waiting for the day when you’ll fit them again.
Why bother keeping clothes that don’t fit you now? Why keep clothes that you don’t love to pieces, that don’t fit you properly, and that you don’t wear as often as possible? Why keep clothes that don’t make you feel as though you look awesome?
I cut loose a huge pile of garments—most of which I’d never even worn—and set them free to good homes. In turning out my wardrobe, I also found some things I absolutely love but have never had the confidence to wear, or have never been bothered to wear, and I now strive to incorporate them into my every day wear. I’m finally getting value for money on the expensive pieces in my wardrobe. For example, if I buy a $50 dress and wear it ten times, I’ve effectively paid $5 to wear it each time. If I buy a $20 dress just because it was on sale and I only wear it once because it doesn’t fit properly, I’ve paid $20 to wear it once!
Another awesome perk to holding the clothes swap party was that it came about just as I have started getting into sewing. Instead of not taking clothes because they didn’t fit me, I took everything I could get my hands on, and anything that had awesome fabric. I’ve already turned a couple of the shirts into something new: something that fits nicely and is completely original. If you’re into craft or sewing, check out Crafster and browse their community for reconstructions. It’s an awesome way to still be able to wear your favourite clothes, just as something new.
Basically, there are so many benefits to holding a clothes swap. Here are a few tips for holding your own.
- Invite twice as many people as you’d like to come, because probably only half of them will show up! You want as wide a range of body sizes and ages as possible, so that there will be something for everyone.
- Make it a weekend afternoon thing. Have lots of nibblies!
- Some regular clothes swappers charge everyone a gold coin entry, to raise funds to cover the cost of food, or to donate to charity.
- Decide if you want to have rules at your party. Will people go up one-by-one and choose one item of clothing? Is there a maximum amount of garments they are allowed to bring? Are they allowed to take only as much as they donate? I had a free-for-all party, and on a small scale I really liked it, but I can see that regular clothes swaps may benefit from having rules.
- Find a charity to whom you will donate the leftover clothes afterwards, and make sure you take them there! Look around for women’s or immigrant’s shelters in your area, as they are always in need of clothing donations.
- During the month of September, you can hold an Exchange for Change clothes swap and register your party to raise funds for Oxfam. Visit Exchange for Change for details.
- Have fun!
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I was part of something similar about a year back. One chick got all her stuff together she didn’t want Bagged it, passed it to next person, who picked through, passed it on to next and so on. Take what you want as long as you put the Same amount back. I ended up with some nice tops & a new long denim skirt. Can’t wait for another one to head my way. And if it doesn’t I may consider starting one myself
[...] an excerpt, but you should head over to Earth and Body Friendly to read the full thing, as well as all of Coralie’s other excellent articles. I cut loose a huge pile of [...]
This sounds like it’d be a really cool idea for people with kids especially. I need to find some huge people to swap clothes with! =)
Have a great weekend!
@ Seth: It never seems to be a problem passing on kid’s clothing. Most parents seem to know at least a few families with kids that can use the cast-offs that your own kids grow out of far too quickly.
I am learning to look at hand-me-downs/swapped clothing in an entirely different light after seeing a variety of patterns for turning men’s button up shirts into amazing little girls’ dresses. I currently have a book from the local library called “Generation T - 108 ways to transform a T-Shirt” that uses existing t-shirts and restyles them into not only new shirts but skirts, dresses, bags and soft furnishings! If it don’t fit, change it!
@ LeaBea: What awesome ideas! Thanks for mentioning them.