In a perfect world, clothes would be resold, repaired and reused until they become unwearable, then they would be entirely recycled to make new clothes or other items, so that they would never end up in landfill.

In reality, so many people buy poorly made clothes that become quickly out of shape and out of fashion, then they just throw it away to buy new poorly made clothes until next shift.

So, what to do with clothes that become out of shape or out of fashion?

First of all try to keep them as long as possible, repair and take care of them as much as you can…
- Gently wash your clothes so that they stay in shape longer: put them on the reverse side, don’t wash too often, use gentle machine cycle, use low temperature and air dry
- Quickly wash out stains with soap before they stay there for ever
- Learn very basic hand sewing stitches or give the job to your mum, your grand-ma, or your neighbourhood seamstress
- search about new styling ideas on the Internet: any piece can totally look new depending on how it is worn or accessorised

… Then it will be easier to find them a second life when time has come, instead of throwing it away. Here are some options:

1. Upcycle:

- For the arty ones, an old item can be retransformed into a new, more interesting and personal piece. There are so many free tutorials available on the Internet teaching how to hide holes and stains with pretty stitches or embroideries, how to cut and sew pieces together to make new ones, how to alter your clothes etc…
- The important point here is to reuse as much material as possible and to not throw scraps away. You can also find some funny projects online about what to do with fabrics scraps, like jewels, ornaments, decorative soft toys, etc…

2. Sell or swap:

- There are so many stores, online or physical, that can take your clothes in to sell to others; just look for second hand stores in your area or google online options.
- You can also organise a “swap party” with your friends; you will be amazed how an item that doesn’t fit well somebody can be just perfect for you!

3. Donate to charities or give to ‘take back’ programs:

- Look for charities in your area or companies offering a ‘take back’ program. What will happen to you clothes then? They will be given to people in need, or resold to help finance the charity’s functioning; or even recycled in very few cases (depending on the organisation).
- Note about recycling: unfortunately today not many organisations can offer recycling programs because the technology is not there yet to recycle a wide range of fabrics (especially the blended ones) and sorting/ separating it out is very time and labour consuming… Most of the times clothes are "down-cycled", meaning they are shredded and used in  insulation panels for example. 

 4. Compost:

- If you have the opportunity to compost your wastes, composting fabrics can also be possible but you need to find out more about under what conditions and how long it does take depending on the type of fabric.

So yes, it takes efforts on the consumer’s end to make sure landfills don't get even more filled up with mountains of clothes; but taking actions is a good way of taking responsibility over the consequences of our consumption on the planet… We cannot always count on others to do their part even if they should (i.e counting on large companies because they have financial power). Every little step count, right?

More about

> how to keep your clothes on shape for longer
> the recycling challenges for our clothes on this Fabscrap video
> our take back program here