Clothes Swaps: Changing the world one cute outfit at a time

Dresses and skirts on the couch, jackets and sweaters on the dining table, pants in the play room, shirts on my son's bed, shoes on the living room floor, bags and purses on the red chair. This is what my house looked like yesterday when my friend Kendra and I hosted our Spring Clothes Swap!

We've been swapping for over ten years now, with one in the Fall and one in the Spring, and at this point my wardrobe is about 75% swap clothes. I had always been a big thrift store advocate, which is where I buy the rest of my clothes, but with swapping not only are the clothes free, it's also an event that fosters community. We sip champagne while trying on each others clothes, everyone in various stages of disrobing. It's like being back in a dorm before a party, but this time we're also doing something to help the environment.

With a large percentage of clothing and textiles making it into land fills each year and a great deal of damage done to the environment through the manufacturing of new garments, it is more important than ever to curb, if not eliminate, our reckless consumerism. Westerners usually buy at the expense of not only the environment, but also the millions of factory workers around the world who are likely earning an unfair wage in an unhealthy workplace.

And that's why I jumped aboard. For many, however, free clothes is reason enough. We are constantly recruiting so we always have a great selection of sizes and styles. And it feels fabulous when someone chooses something of yours. You get to watch it walk out the door to continue on in it's usefulness and have your style validated all at once.

Win win!!