After the release of Marie Kondo’s Netflix show “Tidying Up With Marie Kondo” it seems like everybody is ridding their lives of things that no longer “spark joy”. Don’t know what I’m talking about? Read about Marie Kondo and her famous Konmari Method of cleaning here. As soon as I got back to school I Konmari-ed my closet, my bookshelf, my desk drawer, my bathroom, and my kitchen area. When I was watching the show I was shocked by the amount of waste leaving peoples’ homes, and never thought I would have close to the same amount of stuff to let go of. I have prided myself on being a conscious consumer for the past two years, yet I have still accumulated a ridiculous amount of stuff that doesn’t “spark joy”.

Today’s blog post is not about giving you step-by-step “how to Konmari your life” lessons (that’s what Marie Kondo’s book and Netflix show are for), it’s all about what to do with that stuff once you’ve decided it no longer “sparks joy”.

Clothes & Shoes

Want An ROI? Sell Your Best Stuff.

If you know anything about me, you know I’m a huge sell-your-stuff gal. I’ve been on Poshmark for four years, Mercari for two years, and Depop for the past few months, and I’ve made over $5,000 selling my things over the past few years. Here are some of the most important things I’ve learned about selling my clothes:

You can’t get money for everything you own! That plain white sweater you’ve had for years that is from some no-name brand? It probably won’t sell. Those sandals with the sole falling apart? Don’t waste your time.

Do your research before posting. Doing research will give you a better idea of what your items will sell for, and will allow you to price competitively. Do a quick google search to see what your item retailed for, and do a quick search in your chosen app to see what it’s selling for on there.

Take good photos. It’s practically scientifically proven that items with good photos sell quicker and for more than items with bad photos. If you can, take a photo wearing the item, or find a stock photo online. Take photos in natural light, and don’t edit the colors too much.

Use the right app. Poshmark is great for brand name clothes and stuff like Brandy Melville and American Eagle jeans. Depop is great for shoes, bags, and funky/vintage items. I’ve sold everything from pom-poms to books to beauty products to sorority tee shirts on Mercari. Know what sells well where so your efforts can be as efficient as possible!

Know when to let go. I have unhealthily held on to a lot of lower quality clothing hoping that it would sell someday, and when I came back to school this semester I realized I’ve been storing some of these clothes since last January. If you try your best and don’t sell in a reasonable amount of time, move onto the next step and donate or recycle responsibly.

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Want To Clear Out ASAP? Donate Responsibly

Donating all of your clothing to thrift stores or charity boxes can actually be quite problematic. There simply is not a large enough resale or redistribution market in the United States for all of the clothing that is donated here, so most clothing gets shipped overseas. Planet Aid describes exactly why this is problematic; “Donating the clothes to developing countries would actually be detrimental to the local economies. Simply giving things away only puts a band-aid on the larger problem of poverty, and if clothing is free than the livelihoods of local retailers, tailors, and others in the textile industry are put in jeopardy.” Nylon Magazine even says that “less than 20 percent of clothing donations sent to charities are actually resold at those charities”. I have definitely donated a few bags of clothing to my local thrift stores and my local Goodwill in the past few weeks, so don’t feel as though you need to avoid thrift stores at all costs, just think a bit more deeply about what you are dropping off there. Is it in good condition? Is it sellable? Or will it be put in an “other” pile to ship abroad?

The best thing to do is donate specific items to specific organizations, and support local organizations as much as you can. And don’t skimp out on research before you choose to support an organization! This may take more time, but there’s a bigger guarantee that your used clothing/shoes will be given a second life here in the US, or will be brought abroad responsibly.

ThredUp: I’ve talked about how much I’m a fan of ThredUp as a buyer before, but have also heard great things about their donation program. I have chosen to take selling my clothes into my own hands, but may definitely turn to their Clean Out program in the near future to Konmari my “selling” drawers. For items they accept, you’ll receive cash or credit to shop on their site. For items they cannot sell, you have the option to have them returned to you or responsibly recycled. Learn more about their Closet Clean Out program here.

Business Clothes: As a business major, I have quite a bit of business clothes lying around that I’ll either never wear in a career in the business of fashion, or does not fit anymore. Dress For Success has donation spots all around the US for nice business clothes; “We appreciate nearly new, contemporary, seasonal career appropriate apparel, accessories, handbags, shoes and jewelry. However, we are always in need of very small sizes, 00-2, and plus sizes, 14 and above”. THIS page has all the information you need about finding your closest donation spot, what they accept, and times they accept donations.

Athletic Clothing/Shoes: ASICS has partnered with I:CO to donate and recycle old athletic clothing and sneakers. Find a partnering store on this website.

Shoes: Donate new or lightly used sneakers to HaveASole who will redistribute them to homeless and at-risk youth in the US. Donate through Soles4Souls by paying for a shipping label, or dropping them off at a DSW near you.

Fancy Dresses: Donate prom-worthy dresses and shoes to Becca’s Closet, an organization that distributes dresses to high school girls in financial need. There are hundreds of organizations like this around the US, so when possible support an organization local to your area.

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Can’t Donate Responsibly? Recycle Responsibly.

I will start out by saying that textile recycling is not always effective. Many clothing stores now say they collect textiles for recycling, but textile recycling technology has not yet reached the point where the plethora of clothing coming in to be recycled is actually able to be recycled; “Only 0.1 percent of all clothing collected by charities and take-back programs is recycled into new textile fiber, according to H&M’s development sustainability manager.” The best thing to do is recycle specific items to specific organizations or drives that show exactly what your items turn into, or look into how successful your local textile recycling organization is with giving your textiles a new life.

Jeans: Madewell collects denim in their stores (in whatever shape they may be, from any brand) and turns them into home insulation. You also get a cool discount on a new pair of Madewell jeans.

Shoes: Recycle athletic shoes at any Nike store location through their Reuse-A-Shoe program and they will be turned into Nike Grind.

Get Creative: Turn old tee shirts and towels into rags for DIY zero-waste clorox wipes. Use fabric scraps to create a rug or blanket. Pinterest has thousands of ideas for second uses for your old clothing. Get creative!

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Home Goods

Books

Donate to local prisons (this blog has all the info you need). Donate to local schools. Donate to small business used bookstores in your area. Donate to local retirement homes. Donate to soldiers oversees through Operation Paperback. Live in LA? The Last Bookstore will pick up your used books for free.

Pillows/Blankets/Towels

Reach out to your local pet shelter. In Los Angeles, Kitty Bungalow accepts pillowcases and towels, so I donated some of my extra unused linens to them. You can use pillows or comforters as dog beds in your own home, or donate them to a shelter near you. Make sure you check first before you drop them off!

School Supplies

Huff post wrote an entire article about this, so I’ll just link it here. Binders, pens, pencils, highlighters, markers, used textbooks, glue and empty ink cartridges can all be recycled (and some stores have discount incentives!).

Toiletries

Here’s a big post about where to donate unwanted or unused beauty products. Amenity Aid donates unused hotel toiletries to homeless shelters. Check in with local homeless shelters, women’s shelters, or human services organizations as well to see if they are in need of hygiene products, as it’s always best (and produces less carbon!) to donate locally.

Have something you’re clearing out that isn’t included on this list? Comment below and I’ll help you find a responsible way to clear out!

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Re-Evaluate The Way You Shop

The point of doing a full Konmari method clean out is not to go back to your old ways immediately. Shop for things that spark joy, are multi-purposed, and will last you a long time. Though overused, quality over quantity is definitely a motto to live by. Not sure where to start? In November I tried not buying anything. One of my most recently posts was all about investing in sustainable basics made from natural materials. I talked about shopping sustainably for occasions that have very particular dress codes (like sorority recruitment). And this year there is SO much more coming to T&T about becoming a conscious consumer, so stay tuned. These posts will be sure to spark joy.