My January post, “Purging Black from an “Overfed” Closet” sparked some engaging conversations with women who desire a closet filled with outfits that support the creative, clear, cohesive style they’ve always wanted. And while my stance on purging black has not changed, my desire to help you pare down in a way that feels good is at an all time high!
It can be difficult (for a variety of reasons) to let clothing items go.
I tell my private clients that streamlining is absolutely worth the time and effort because purging items that no longer work increases their ability and capacity to choose only pieces and make only outfits they love and want to wear.
Similar to working out, once you exercise the “muscle” of choosing and discarding, it becomes easier to pare down. I hereby give you “permission” to be free of clothes and accessories that no longer bring you joy or make your wardrobe work well!
Selling or donating your items does not have to be difficult
My clients feel great when they realize there are a plethora of places to sell or donate items. Someone else can always use what you have (assuming it’s still in good condition) and that person could be a mere store visit or click away from finding something that sparks joy!
Where to sell
Selling your clothing takes more time than donating, but is worth it if you are willing to find just the right spot. Fortunately, there are many stores and websites that will take your items and give you money in return. Here are some of my favorite places to sell clothing:
Your local consignment store.
In Reno we have
Labels, which takes high end clothing on consignment, and
Clothes Mentor and Plato’s Closet (chains that can be found in many cities) that take just about everything else and give you money right then. We also have a boutique used clothing store called
Veritas.
I like to encourage locals to not just sell their clothing to support local business, but also to buy from the woman-owned businesses in town. Google “consignment clothing store” in your city to find your local amazing boutiques you can sell to and buy from.
Online stores.
You can make a premium amount selling online if your clothes are gently worn and in great shape. There are more than a dozen online stores, but here are 3 of my favorites:
a. Ebay.com Your item on here will have a lot of competition, but it is a great place to find out what to charge for each piece.
b. ThredUp I like this site because if they cannot sell your clothing for you, they donate it to charity. The good thing about ThredUp is that they will mail you a Clean Out bag, and you simply fill it up and send it back.
c. Poshmark If you love Instagram, you will love Poshmark. They have high-end brands as well as lesser brands available for sale or the opportunity for you to sell your clothing. It’s an easy site to manage, and I sell clothes there easily.
I also love a new company called Shyp. They will arrive at your door and ship anything anywhere. They do all the heavy lifting. And you never leave your computer.
Where to donate
To find a charity and discern if it’s secure and reputable, I like to ask myself the questions listed here.
Deciding to donate and/or give your items away can be both fulfilling and easy. Google “(clothing/household, etc.)donation locations” in your city to find charities with locations near you. To check the background of any specific charity, you can go
here. This organization does a deep dive into every charity that has it’s statistics public.
My favorite charities include:
Online I prefer:
- Soles4souls.org – not for profit global social enterprise committed to fighting poverty through the collection and distribution of shoes and clothing.
- Vietnam Veterans of America
- FreeCycle.Org It’s a grassroots and entirely nonprofit movement of people who are giving (and getting) stuff for free in their own towns. It’s all about reuse and keeping good stuff out of landfills
- Fitness4Charity.org To promote the physical and emotional well being of economically disadvantaged persons within the United States and abroad through the collection, donation and distribution of quality health and exercise equipment.
Great wardrobes happen by design, and paring down is one of the first and most crucial steps. Getting through it opens up possibilities you may not yet know exist! I’d love to hear your perspective.
Have you worked with a charity or online or local store that you love? Share it with me!
