Help me find my abused clothing a new home

December 16, 2008 1:47 AM

What to do with my scrap clothing in Seattle?

I have a bunch of clothes -- jeans, shirts, pants -- that are in some way or another useless to me, but I feel it would be rude to leave them with Goodwill. Most of them have holes in them, or are beyond repair, but still have what appears to me to be large, usable pieces of fabric left. Some are bleach-stained. I just don't want to throw them away. Is there a place in Seattle that would take my scrap clothing?

posted by gc to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (4 answers total)

Best answer: Go ahead and take them to any thrift store. Years ago, while in college, I worked for a short time at a thrift store. My job was to sort the unwearable clothing and put them in large bins to be taken to a factory that shreds the material and weaves it back into those wonderful blueish-purple shop cloths we all use.
The buttons go elsewhere. Magical Button Land, I think.
posted by Acacia at 3:03 AM on December 16, 2008

Best answer: You could also offer them on freecycle to people. Be upfront about the condition -- that you're offering them in case people want the fabric for rags or small crafting projects, not as really wearable clothing -- and I bet someone would take them.
posted by jacquilynne at 6:57 AM on December 16, 2008

Send them where they're already going: cut 'em up & use around your house for dishrags, washcloths, etc. Old jeans & corduroys are particularly good for dishes, because of the strength, but lighter cloths work well, too.

Alternatively, see if your municipality offers textile recycling---the city where I grew up, you could just toss your old clothes in a plastic bag, write "textiles" on it & toss it out next to the newspaper bin on pick-up day.
posted by FlyingMonkey at 9:08 PM on December 17, 2008

a late reply, but in the event you still have them - free section on http://seattle.craigslist.org

you can seriously get rid of ANYTHING there, and it'll go to a crafter or someone who's going to use it productively =]
posted by groovinkim at 6:28 PM on February 4, 2009