After the holidays, people scramble to find room for their new gifts. The truth is a lot of us just have too many things, and a lot of these things end up in landfills or tossed in the back of a closet to be forgotten about. However, millions of people around the world don’t have the luxury of having the problem of “too many things,” and many find themselves wishing they could have the exact novelty shirt that’s rotting under your bed right now. Trash is currently ruining our planet, and a big part of that is because people simply don’t know what to do with their unwanted items. But don’t worry, there are simple ways to help this issue and give your old stuff a new life.
One option is donating items. We live in an area with great thrift stores nearby, some including Unique and various Goodwill donation centers scattered around. Unique is a massive, warehouse-style thrift store located in Merrifield, only a short walk away from Mosaic District. A favorite Goodwill center is located in West Falls Church on Annandale Road, named the “Goodwill of Greater Washington.” Both Unique and Goodwill have an easy drive-through drop-off center at the front of their store. Donating is a quick and easy way to get rid of your items to someone who will love them for a low price.
If you have an entrepreneurial drive, selling is an effective way to get rid of some of your nicer items. My personal favorite platform is Mercari. This app is the best because not only is setting up an item for sale extremely easy, but the shipping process is painless as well. You’ll need to download the app and make an account, and then it will take you through a step-by-step process to set up your store. Depop is another popular site, but the shipping process is more complex. With Mercari, all you need to do is take the item to the post office and present a QR code. It will then be packaged and sent with no cost to you.
For the clothes you wanted so badly to love but don’t fit at all or are just straight-up unflattering, tailoring is an underrated alternative to tossing them in the garbage. There are excellent tailors in the area. One outstanding business is Gegi Couture, located in McLean. Gegi is a kind woman with a bachelors in fashion design, a masters in design engineering, and over thirty years of experience. You can contact her through her website: gegicouture.com. Another option is to do it yourself with a needle and thread, but that may take some YouTube tutorials and a lot of patience. A great website for DIY sewing tips is stitchclinic.com.
The overall lesson? Don’t just throw away or stow your old gifts to make room for new ones. Instead, find a way to give them new life that’s good for the planet and everyone on it.
