We’ve all been there before: we’ve accumulated stuff that we don’t know what to do with.  Whether it’s clothes that you don’t wear anymore, gifts you didn’t like but still have, or things that are just falling apart.  Have you ever had the problem where you wanted to get rid of stuff, but just didn’t know where?  And as Americans, we just keep tossing things in the trash, when we shouldn’t.  You know that Americans throw out 11 million tons of clothes a year?  Did you know that you can sell or donate almost anything you own?  Keep reading to find out!

 

-Sell your clothes.  I have written an article about it, Cleaning out your closet!! And MAKE SOME MONEY while doing it!!, where I listed places where you can sell / donate your clothes.  For a quick summary, you can sell them in places like Poshmark, Tradesy, or Ebay.  These places you will have to post pictures of specific items, & correspond with possible buyers that are interested in your stuff.  If you want to skip all that hassle & just get rid of it immediately, there’s Thredup, where you can request for them to send you a bag to fill up, to send them your clothes where they will sell it for you on their website!  (Keep in mind unless you have high end products, you won’t get a lot of money for them.  This is a quick way to get rid of things that you don’t want & to make a bit of cash off of them. Also keep in mind, Thredup doesn’t accept menswear.)

 

-Donate your clothes.  For your (non high end) clothes that are decent shape, you could donate them to the Salvation Army (proceeds are given to disaster relief), United War Veterans Recycling, Veterans of America (proceeds given to war veterans), Tuesday’s Children, (proceeds given to families impacted by 9/11 or other victims of terrorism) or the Lupus Foundation of America (proceeds go to fund research for Lupus). Nowadays there are lots of organizations that will come right to your house to pick up your donations; and all of these organizations will!  And all of them take things other than just clothes!  They will take accessories, bedding, housewares, household appliances, toys, the list goes on!  Click on the links to find out what they’re looking for, or to schedule a pickup!  For a list of more organizations that you can schedule a pick up, click here!

 

-Recycle damaged fabrics / clothes.  You may have some clothes that have gotten torn, pilled or damaged in some way, that are not really worth donating to someone, but a shame to go in the garbage either.  You don’t have to!  Go to any H&M location, where they have a bin to collect clothing that can be recycled!  And it doesn’t necessarily havve to be only clothes; it could be towels, beddings, curtains, etc.  And get 15% off your entire purchase when you do!  Click here for more info on their recycling program, or to find the closest location near you!

 

-Donate old electronics.  Don’t throw away old electronics.  Especially computers!  Hard drives tend to contain a certain amount of lead; & once discarded the lead can leak into the ground.  Check out this link for places you can donate / recycle your electronics!

 

-Sell / give away your books.  There are lots of places you could sell your books!  On Craiglist, Ebay, or Amazon.  On all of these sites, you can list the book(s) you want to sell.  Of course, if you sell on Craiglist, you will most likely have to meet the person.  On Amazon, do a search of the title of your book, & underneath the price it’ll have the question, “Have one to sell?”  And you can click on “Sell on Amazon”!  For textbooks, you can check out Bookscouter, which will scan 42 different vendors to get you the best price for them!  If you have a lot of old books that you’d like to donate, (that aren’t worth selling) you can always donate them to you local public library.

 

-Donate old bedding.  You may have some blankets / sheets that have gotten worn, pilled, discolored, etc, but still usable.  You could arrange for a pickup (from one of the organizations above) or donate it to a homeless / animal shelter.  Both could use any kind of bedding that you could offer.  Click here to find the closest animal shelter near you!

 

-Donate food.  Perhaps you have some food that you may have overbought; but don’t want it to go to waste.  You can donate to a local food bank near you, for the items that you can donate vary by location.

 

Have I covered all the bases?  Are you holding onto things that are collecting dust?  Don’t throw them away!  Sell or donate them!  Give your living space a breath of fresh air, & give your items to others that could really use them.  Is there something else you would like to get rid of but don’t know where?  Drop a line below!

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