how to donate old clothes

by Collin Reilly I 3 min read

  • Donating. Donating old garments to charity thrift stores near you, such as Goodwill and The Salvation Army, might be the most obvious clothes recycling option.
  • Selling. Make a quick buck (and save the planet!) by selling your gently used clothes at brick-and-mortar thrift stores or the best places to sell clothes online.
  • Textile recycling. While clothes don’t belong in recycling bins, they can be recycled in other ways. ...
  • Composting. Believe it or not, clothes and other textiles make great composting material! ...
  • Repurposing. Your no-longer-needed garb may have seen better days, but it can still have a second life in your home.

Full Answer

Where is the best place to donate clothes?

Simply load the clothing you wish to donate into a bag, box or vehicle and head to the Goodwill donation center nearest you. One of our donor greeters will …

Where to donate unwearable clothing?

How Do You Get Rid Of Old Clothes Sustainably? Establish a Clothing S Swap. A clothing swap is a great way to donate surplus clothing and receive a brand new item of clothing for free. Make sure you compost your clothes when possible. Try to sell them again. Take some time to upcycle something. Help the less fortunate by donating.

What charities pick up clothing?

Jun 04, 2021 · The first and most basic principle of donating used clothing is ensuring everything is clean, in good repair, and generally of sellable quality. If you have items that meet this description, there are plenty of local options where you can donate your good quality clothing, from community clothing banks to organizations like Goodwill.

Where to recycle old clothes?

Feb 03, 2021 · There are a number of ways to recycle textiles and old clothing, and many of them begin with donations. Textiles can be donated. If your clothing is in good condition, you can always donate it to a local church, community clothing drive, or thrift store, such as Goodwill or the Salvation Army.

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Where is the most helpful place to donate clothes?

GoodwillFor Americans, Goodwill is the go-to place to donate clothing. Goodwill is a non-profit that provides job training and generally affordable clothing....Other Places to Donate ClothesSchools. ... Soles4Souls. ... Foster care programs. ... LGBTQ+ centers. ... Refugee organizations. ... Prisons. ... Churches. ... Free clothes banks.More items...•May 23, 2021

How can I donate my old clothes in India?

Where to Donate Clothes in India: 7 Orgs That Will Ensure They Reach the NeedyClothes Box Foundation (CBF) Location: Haryana, Maharashtra, Odisha and Jharkhand. ... Share At Door Step (SADS) Location: Bengaluru. ... The Open House. Location: Chennai. ... Apang Manav Mandal (AMM) ... Mahesh Foundation. ... Prayas. ... Clothes for Help.May 14, 2019

What clothes should not be donated?

Related Items2 Worn Socks or Undergarments. Not a big surprise, but even if they're still in good condition, most donation sites cannot accept socks or undergarments that have been worn due to sanitary concerns. ... 3 Expired or Recalled Items. ... 4 Old Electronics.Jan 4, 2018

How do I donate clothes to goonj?

If you want to buy & send items to Goonj, all you have to do is visit the donation section on Amazon-app, add items to your cart and make the payment… the items will be sent to Goonj address.

1. American Red Cross

One of the oldest and most well-respected humanitarian organizations in the country, the American Red Cross provides emergency assistance, disaster relief and disaster preparedness education for millions of people around the world.

2. Dress for Success

If your closet is overflowing with professional clothing, consider donating some pieces to Dress for Success, a non-profit that empowers low-income women by providing them with work-appropriate attire as they seek and maintain employment.

3. Free the Girls

Don't throw away your old bras! By donating them to Free the Girls, you can help bring economic opportunity to survivors of sex trafficking in places like Uganda, El Salvador and Mozambique.

4. Goodwill

Goodwill is one of the most well-known places to donate used clothes (and tons of other things too!). The non-profit is funded by a massive network of retail thrift stores across the country.

5. One Warm Coat

Want to share the warmth during the cold winter months? Donate your spare jackets to One Warm Coat, a non-profit that provides free coats to people in need.

6. Planet Aid

Many charities only accept clothing that's in good and wearable condition — but Planet Aid is different. The organization makes it easy to donate and recycle all of your unwanted clothes, with the mission of saving all textiles from the landfill to help protect the environment.

7. The Salvation Army

The Salvation Army is an international charity organization that provides assistance to nearly 23 million Americans each year, with services that include everything from operating homeless shelters and conducting disaster relief to providing support for veterans, the elderly and the LGBTQ+ community.

Where to Donate Clothes Nationally

Many charitable organizations collect old clothing items. These national organizations have drop-off sites all over the country, so it’s easy to find a location near you. Some of them can even pick up unwanted clothing from your home.

Where to Donate Clothes Locally

Along with these national organizations, there are probably a few charities in your local area that can accept clothing donations. However, since each one is different, you have to research to find them and learn about what they accept.

Final Word

Donating your used clothing allows you to support charities when you can’t donate cash. No matter which charity you choose, your unused clothes will do more good in a donation bin than sitting in your closet. Try to schedule a clear-out once per year for everyone in your household.

Donate Clothing to Crisis Centers and Homeless Shelters

There are also likely many other crisis shelters in your area that serve individuals who are homeless, pregnant teens, new moms, victims of domestic violence, or disabled.

Give Away Clothes to Disaster Relief Organizations

During times of crisis and natural disasters, the American Red Cross (and other local and national organizations) is often in need of clothing for those who were hit by the crisis.

Give Old Clothes to Local Churches

Some churches work hand in hand with different group of people who need some hand-me-downs and hand-outs.

Donate Clothes to Coat Drives

Every year Burlington Stores run a Warm Coats, Warm Hearts Coat Drive. Their current one runs until January 21, 2019.

Donate Clothes via Freecycle

If you’d like to donate clothing to individuals, you can also list free clothing items on a website called Freecyle.org, or list your clothing items in the free section on Craigslist or on the Facebook Marketplace.

When Donating Clothes, Give Worthy Clothes

People who are disadvantaged, poor, or homeless are in need often of clothing, but I ask that before you donate clothes, you read this article from We are THAT Family called “ Dear World: Let’s Stop Giving Our Crap to the Poor. ”

Where to find textile recycling near you

There are a number of ways to recycle textiles and old clothing, and many of them begin with donations.

Textiles can be donated

If your clothing is in good condition, you can always donate it to a local church, community clothing drive, or thrift store, such as Goodwill or the Salvation Army.

Clothing can be recycled

Clothing can be donated, sure, but what about tatty clothes, rags, and other textiles? Rather than force a charitable organization to sift through all the poor-condition clothing, try looking for specific textile recycling locations in your area. A good place to start is your municipality or state recycling programs.

Many organizations actively seek out textile donations

Wearable Collections is a textile recycling organization based out of New York City. Dedicated to minimizing textile waste across the country, Wearable Connections has been working with businesses and municipal organizations and salvaging discarded clothing for over two decades.

Some clothing and textiles can be returned to the manufacturer

According to Fast Company, some companies, Patagonia, for instance, will actually buy or accept donations of its clothing from customers in order to recycle it. Other companies like H&M and American Eagle Outfitters offer in-store clothing recycling bins to collect textiles or accessories of any brand.

Why should I recycle textiles?

According to the EPA, around 17 million tons of textile municipal solid waste was generated in 2018. And if you think that number is huge, try this one on for size — McKinsey & Company reports that 100 billion garments are produced on Earth every year. That is, pardon my language, a lot of damn clothes that use a lot of water and resources to make.

How are recycled textiles reused?

Some donated textiles are recycled into new clothing and then resold. Others are sent off to undeveloped nations to help those in need, and the remainder is turned into things like industrial rags, insulation, loudspeaker cones, furniture padding, and even new clothing.

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