Dispose Responsibly

 

What happens if you have clothing that no longer fits you and fixing them still won’t make them fit? What about clothes that you simply don’t like to wear at all (and you have decide you will never wear).

The first option that we think of is to donate to an op shop. Just remember that op shops don’t want rubbish – it costs them lots of money to send rubbish clothes to landfill. Also, don’t just leave clothes on the street outside an op shop – they go straight to landfill. Another option is to donate to groups and distributors which upcycle, distribute goods directly to charities such as Givit, or distribute clothes which they know will be used in our local community.

Upparel.com.au  will sort through your clothes and reuse, repurpose or recycle. The recycling involves turning clothes into other products. Another option is to sell your unwanted clothes at a second-hand market or online. You can also contribute garments to a local Facebook clothes exchange.

What happens when you have repaired the clothing to a point that they are rubbish (and unsuitable to donate to the op shop)?

Some people turn old clothes into bags to replace plastic bags. You could cut sleeves off shirts and use them to protect arms against the sun, especially good in the car. Some people with good sewing skills can convert clothes for someone in the family or a friend, by removing the worn areas.

Old clothes can be used for cleaning. You can also use clothes in your garden to stop weeds, instead of using newspapers and cardboard: wet the material and cover with a layer of mulch. The clothes should be made from natural fibre – If they are made of synthetic fibres they will stay around for ever.

Rather than zip ties or other plastic fasteners in the garden, you can cut cotton, linen or other natural-fibre clothing into strips and use them as ties. Cut according to the size of your plant and the support it needs. It may be good to use something thin like a T-shirt, or thicker like jeans, or leather from belts and shoes. You can reuse these ties until they get old and tired, and then they can be composted.

Further Reading

Why clothes are so hard to recycle https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200710-why-clothes-are-so-hard-to-recycle

Planet Ark’s suggestions on recycling clothing https://recyclingnearyou.com.au/clothing/

Started in Queensland, a targeted way of channelling all types of goods to meet the exact needs of charities https://www.givit.org.au/.

Donate baby and children’s clothes to Roundabout Canberra  https://roundaboutcanberra.org/

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