Old Clothes

Take them to a woman's shelter. They always need clothes to help the women get back on their feet, no matter what style.

Guess what - 80s fashions are coming back in! (I just saw the skinny jeans and converse look at the University last week!)
Take them to a consignment shop. People who are looking for vintage clothing often will look there (some cater to vintage). They will sell them for you (they keep a cut of the sale, but you get some of the money anyway)

I always take things to Goodwill just because I know lots of kids go there not only for normal clothes shopping, but also for costumes for dress up days at school and parties and programs. It is a great and cheap way for them to be able to participate without too much money.

goodwill may throw them out but if you give it to deseret industries, they will bale them and send them to some of the poorest countries in the world who have nothing

I didn't see anyone mention either the "Free" section on Craigslist or freecycle.org which is a yahoo group. Don't ever underestimate the power of a "free" sign and a rack of clothes in a yard either. When we left AK I had a rotating table of free stuff in my yard and you wouldn't believe the amount of stuff that was picked up!!!

Hi M.-in addition to good will, you can call the Lupus Foundation: http://www.lupuscolorado.org/contribution.htm or Disabled American Vets and they will send a van by your house to pick up items (makes it really easy). If you have business clothes--suits and such, please look at Dress for Success: http://www.dressforsuccess.org, which provides professional apparel to people looking for jobs. It's a great organization that helps people become self sufficient. Good question!

Give them to Goodwill. Many of their donated clothes end up in places like Africa. (Unless you're an incredible seamstress and actually have time to remake them into children's clothes or something else.)

Check around your area for vintage or second-hand shops. I hit a few of those when I needed some 80's clothes for a theme party & they all had quite a selection. I know they take clothes that are in good condition. They will probably even pay you for them or put them on consignment for you.

Hi M.,

First of all, can you perhaps ''update'' the blazers? Remove the shoulder pads, replace the buttons, add some trim, that sort of thing? Kinda of recycle it yourself? (Pants as well.) If not, I would absolutely donate them to Goodwill, be sure to pick up one of their tax donation papers as any donation is deductible! I make at least one trip a month to Goodwill, more so lately as I'm getting ready to move! Remember one persons 'trash' is anothers 'treasure'!!

Consider re-making them into children's clothing or clothing for yourself. There are also collectors who are always on the lookout. Listing them on ebay may make you a little extra cash.

I giggled when I read this, because lately I've been seeing lots of 80's style clothes around town, especially on campus - big shirts, shoulder pads, leggings, skinny belts, giant hoop earrings... If you live near a college, donating the clothes to goodwill would not be a waste.

Also, do you have any friends who quilt? If the fabric is still good even though the style is not, a quilter would probably welcome them.

Take them to a consignment shop that deals in vintage clothing (if there is one in your town). We have several and they are great places to go for Halloween costumes or parties requiring you to dress in a certain period. Plus, you'll get a little cash for them, too.

goodwill. use the receipt for tax deductions.

You can always donate them to schools for their drama club. I know when I was in high school, we were always scraping to find clothes that fit the era. I guarantee they would get good use! Good luck!

I would try and donate them to Capitol Theater of Salt Lake Acting co ect...
or schools that do plays ect..
Good luck but I would not throw them away.
T.

goodwill or u can take them to a consinement store (not sure that how u spell it) so that u can make a little $ good luck

I don't know if you know anyone who sews, but I enjoy quilting, especially those patchwork quilts with a bunch of random scrapes of cloth. If you know someone who sews they may be interested in using the clothes to make quilts out of. Goodwill is a good option too. Sounds like some good costume party attire!!! Good luck, hope you find something good to do with them!

Have an 80's party! We had one with our neighborhood and it was a blast! Or to go along with that, take a picture of all the clothes and start a blog or post it on Craigs list. You'd be surprised by who is interested in that stuff, you can put it in the free section or charge a buck for each piece.
I would take some but mailing it to Utah would be too much of a hassle, so good luck!

Danger Will Robinson.... The 80's are coming back with a vengeance. Wait a year and they'll be the height of fashion.

I would suggest taking them to D.I. or some type of goodwill organization. I can't tell you how many 80's theme dances that I've had to try finding clothes for that would look good, without having a huge price attached. I'm sure they'd love to have them, and would definitely find some use for them, no matter how old-especially when they're in good condition! :D

Always donate when you can- you'd be surprised what people can use and even like. If nothing else, most people I know check goodwill when trying to put together costumes. You could also donate them to local theatre groups. But it is such a shame to throw out perfectly good things, when there are people who need things. I buy work jeans for my husband at goodwill, even with stains and rips- he gets really really grubby and I would never buy him new jeans just to have them stained and torn within days. I don't know what I would do if I had to buy him new jeans as frequently as he needs work clothes. So even if you think it is unwearable, it might be great for someone else.

Dear M.,
Look to see if you have any "vintage" consignment shops in your area. You might be surprised to find how many people might be interested in them for event parties, etc. Everything comes back in fashion to an extent and I've noticed many designers doing the shoulder pad thing again. Some of these can be revised or embellished for Halloween, etc. If they do go to Goodwill, there may be someone who likes them and just takes out the shoulder pads. My kids had some of the best costumes ever that came from Goodwill that were modified to fit. You might also look for local churches who have "church closets" that give the clothes for free to women who are poor and need things to wear to work just to get back on their feet. You can often get a receipt placing a monetary value on your donation for tax purposes. A lot of struggling women could use a suit in perfect condition for job interviews etc. Shoulder pads and all. I bet you could find some agency in your community happy to have them as opposed to them just going to the dump.
Check around.
Best wishes!

Bring it to goodwill! They don't actually sell most of their donated clothes, but I think that they "repurpose" a lot of it so it doesn't matter how in style it is.

See if a local theater group has a use for them. Often they look for good clothes for performances that need to meet specific decades. Try high school or junior high theater classes too.

I would definitely take them to Goodwill. As they say, one's trash is another's treasure. I know so many people that start at Goodwill for costumes for different themed parties or Halloween. It sounds like you have some gems that the rest of the world may like for some outrageous occasion!

you could also donate any usable items to a church and/or a welfare program if people don't have enough money to buy other clothing they really aren't going to be picky. There are also many homeless shelters that would grately appreciate the donation. Anything is better than nothing.

A few accessories can make something old look different and fresh. Shoulder pads can be removed, suits seperated and worn more casual, our local Salvation Army Thrift Store had a rack that was the $0.40 rack, I bought lots of older clothes off it and cut out clothes for the little girls. I made one dress/jumper for K that had a denim bodice from an old x-sm adult shirt, and the bottom was from an old floral skirt. The buttons for the top came off an old shirt of mine. Look in you phone book and see if you can find some sewing groups, quilting groups, etc...many churches have them too. You might contact a local LDS church and see if they are gathering clothes to send to Haiti or Chile, they usually have a service project or two going on.

In addition to donating to Goodwill or the Salvation Army, you can recycle your clothes through various other charitable organizations. Here is a link to a blog that gives a good list of different places that accept a wide range of clothing and puts the items to good use:
http://blog.biggreenpurse.com/biggreenpurse/2009/11/recyc...