Do you have a closet full of clothes that you don’t wear anymore? Here are some signs those clothes need to be donated.
It doesn’t fit anymore
When you keep clothes for a long time, it’s likely at some point that they won’t fit anymore. Whether you gained or lost weight, gotten taller or started working out, then your clothes may no longer fit and you are not going to wear them. If you are not going to wear your clothes, it’s time to find clothing drop off locations and donate clothes.
You don’t like it anymore
Many of us have clothes in our closets that we just don’t like anymore. Maybe that shirt isn’t trendy anymore. Maybe your style has evolved, and you are ready for new clothes. Either way, if you don’t like your clothes, it’s time to get them out of your closet because it’s likely that someone in need will like them. If you don’t like what’s in your closet, clothing donations are in your future.
You don’t wear it anymore
For whatever reason, you don’t wear a lot of your clothes anymore. There is a rule of thumb to go by so you can tell when you “don’t wear” something. If you live somewhere with one to two distinct season climates, and you haven’t worn an item of clothing in six months, it’s time to let it go. If you live somewhere where there are four distinct seasons, you have a year to wear something before you need to start looking for clothing drop off locations to donate it.
You have way too many clothes
Do you look in your closet, see tons of hangers with clothes on them, and say, “I have nothing to wear?” That means you have too many clothes. At least, you have too many of the wrong clothes. One person can only wear so many outfits. So, if you find yourself barely wearing some of your wardrobe and it’s just too big, start packing it up to donate.
Every year, Americans donated about 4.7 billion pounds of clothing. If you look in your closet and see clothes that don’t fit, you don’t like, you don’t wear, or just way too much clothes, it’s time to find clothing drop off locations and clean out our closet. Not only will you declutter your home, but you will be helping those in need as well.
So, you’re ready to clean out your closet. You have a lot of clothes that you don’t wear anymore, and you’re ready to revamp your wardrobe. While you’re doing that, you’re probably wondering what you’re going to do with all the old clothes. Before you throw them in the trash, consider donating them.
It’s much better for the environment
When you donate your clothes, you are saving the environment from a lot of harm. According to the EPA, it costs $45 on average per ton to dispose of waste in a landfill. Clothing that sits in landfill releases toxic greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane into the environment when they break down. Lastly, making new clothes takes hundreds of gallons of water, and the production of new textiles accounts for 10% of all carbon emissions on the planet. All of these things can be avoided if you donate your clothes for reuse.
It helps people in need
Even though you don’t want your old clothes anymore, it’s almost guaranteed that someone else will. There are many people in need of usable clothing. There are disaster victims, underprivileged people, and children in need of clothing, and your donations can help. When you throw away your clothes, they have no chance of reaching people who need them the most.
It will give you an ego boost
When you do things for others, something good happens for you too. Doing a good deed like donating your old clothes will make you feel good because you’re doing something for a worthy cause. You’re getting rid of the clutter in your home and helping others at the same time.
Nearly 100% of the textiles in your home can be recycled and donated, regardless of the quality or condition. This means you really have no reason not to donate your old clothes! It’s better for the environment, it helps children in need of clothing, and you’ll feel great. If you’re wondering where to donate household items like clothes, check out our website for clothing drop off locations or to schedule a home pickup.
Tomorrow is Give Something Away Day. Most of us are lucky enough to have more than what we need to live. National Give Something Away Day allows us to share some of our abundance with others.
You can choose to buy someone a coffee, volunteer your time, or donate items you no longer need to charity. GreenDrop represents some of the best charities to donate to and collects clothing donations on their behalf. read more >>
As we mentioned earlier this week, we will be sponsoring this year’s 6 Dot Dash hosted by our partner, The National Federation of Blind. Now in its 5th year, the 6 Dot Dash is a competitive 6K run/walk through Inner Harbor of Baltimore.
This race is just one of the ways the National Federation the Blind shows their Baltimore community and the world that blindness doesn’t hold you back. Each year NFB supporters, staff and volunteers come together in addition to members of the local community to participate in the street race to raise money for and promote Braille literacy and opportunities for the blind people across the country.
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Earth Day is an annual event celebrated worldwide on April 22nd. Since 1970, various events have been held on this day to demonstrate support for environmental protection.
GreenDrop strives to protect the environment every day by collecting peoples’ unwanted items for charity and keeping unnecessary clothing and household goods out of landfills. Donated items are repurposed or recycled by our partner charity organizations to raise funds for their missions or programs.
Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we are able to help recycle, repurpose and reuse 100 tons of donated clothing and lightly used household goods each week! That has the same positive effect of planting 13,900 mature trees each year!
There are plenty of ways you can support the environment on Earth Day and beyond.
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