Day 56: Consignment Shopping
Have you ever wondered where all the cloths go that get thrown away in the world? Here are some shocking numbers from a site called Planet Aid. They are a not-for-profit organization that has embraced recycling clothing as their mandate to help save the planet one textile at a time.
On average every person in the US throws away 68lbs of clothing every year.
Of that 68 lbs only 15% are recycled / reused.
By recycling 50,000 tons of clothing 103 billion gallons of water would be saved.(one day we will have a shortage of clean water)
There are many ways you can donate your clothing. The Salvation Army Thrift Stores, Value Village, Goodwill, shelters,the homeless, even your neighbours or friends – the list goes on.
One of the great ways my son and shop for his clothing are at consignment stores. They aren’t not-for-profit but they are helping to save the planet by keeping good cloths in use until they are fully worn out and can be turned into rags. Do you have a consignment store near you?
Give 56: Day 56
My son Nic and I love to shop together. He was adopted and we had about 4 days to prepare for his arrival. We lived in a small town where dropping into “Babies for Us” was not an option. This is where I began to shop at consignment stores for him. The selection of items have been fantastic. You can get named brands (Tommy Hilfiger,Nike, Ralph Lauren) at a quarter of the price.
We have a local shop just down the street that we pop into weekly just to see what they have in stock. The inventory is changing so quickly you have to stop buy on a regular basis and the sales on the cloths also change weekly. The longer the item is in the store the cheaper it gets. Today I bought Nic a fantastic pair of Tommy Hilfiger baby blue running shoes.
No matter what the size, I buy it when I see it, as I know it will be gone the next time I stop in. My son is very picky about for a 3 years old about what he will wear, so when I find something he likes I buy it. Take a guess are how much a new pair of Tommy Hilfiger running shoes for a 3 year old would be at regular price, in a store. I took a look on line and they average about $50 a pair. Ouch.
The good news – I paid $12 and saved 1 pound of textiles going into a landfill. It feels good to help save the planet on day at a time.
Time Commitment: 0 (I have to shop for my son and keeps me out of the mall)
Cost: $12 for a gently used pair of shoes