The red terry cloth dress my mother wore in a 1984 family portrait hangs in my closet.
Clothes often have stories, which makes them easy to keep and harder to part with.
I felt that way until my first clothing swap.
A welcome sign on Stephanie Bolling’s home greets guests who participated in her in annual clothing swap. Tina Russell/The Penny Hoarder
What is a Clothing Swap?
A welcome sign on Stephanie Bolling’s home greets guests who participated in her in annual clothing swap.
Basically,you rid your closet of unwanted clothes and swap them with others doing the same.
A welcome sign on Stephanie Bolling’s home greets guests who participated in her in annual clothing swap. Tina Russell/The Penny Hoarder
A swap can be at a private residence or a business.
This eco-friendly and economical approach to your wardrobe makes for great fashion, friendships and finances.
Invite
I invited friends, coworkers and family and allowed them to invite guests.
Our team has compiled alist of creative waysyou can fatten your bank account this week.
This is a long list, so dont get overwhelmed.
Well keep it updated as offers changes or expire.
Around 10 swappers is a good number, depending on the space.
Theres no right way.
Ive had the most success with women and allowing kiddos in the mix.
Thats optional of course.
I cleared my coffee, dining room and high-top breakfast tables to use as surfaces for clothes.
I had a compact folding table and borrowed a large folding table and two clothing racks from friends.
Arrange the setup to best fit the space.
Give people room to sift and sort as well as privacy to try on clothes.
I already had most of the plateware and nonalcoholic beverages on hand.
I encouraged others to bring to snacks and beverages to share.
Having swappers sort their own clothes alleviates pressure on you and drums up excitement.
I made legible, handwritten signs that helped swappers find and sort items.
Most swappers arrived with several bags of clothes, so keeping it organized made it much easier all around.
The constant shuffling mixes up sizes and presentation, and it all ends in a heaping pile regardless.
Donate or Sell
Youll most likely be left with mounds of clothing.
Its up to you.
I filled nine 30-gallon trash bags after the swap.
I donated the leftovers to a thrift store that supports domestic-abuse survivors and to a homeless shelter.
How you deal with the leftover clothes is up to you.
Rules of Swapping
Theyre pretty chill, especially if hosting with friends.
We made a side fixer-upper pile for the crafty, but thats totally optional.
Schedule your swap on a weekend and give a months notice.
This allows for planning, hype and necessary purging.
It takes time to part with some items.
Youll work up the nerve.
Giveth to the swap and you shall receive is my philosophy.
I mulled over that Shein dress for weeks and finally put it in the swap mix.
What I added back to my closet more than made up the difference.
After the swap starts, everything is fair game.
The basic rule is bring at least one item and take home as much as you want.
Some swaps put restrictions on item limits or use a token-based or turn-taking system, but those are boring.
Theres no thrill of the hunt or vulturing when a newcomer arrives.
I find setting limits doesnt make it very much fun.
My swap had a five-hour window.
Ladies came and went.
When someone arrived on the late end, ladies swooped in and called dibs immediately.
Second, third and fourth dibs followed.
Why Swap?
I cleaned out my closet and got some free stuff.
It was a win win situation, said Patricia Ramos, my aunt who I coerced to swap.
Free clothes entice you to take risks and try on items you wouldnt consider in a store.
Theres no worry over price tags although many clothes at swaps still had price tags on them.
A few swappers brought clothes and refused to take anything home.
Every time I went through it [the swap], I ended up taking more.
I had to stop, she said.
We watched woman after woman pick it up and return it to the mix after it didnt fit.
Finally, it fit a fashion-forward swapper and everyone cheered for the coveted dress and its new owner.
Combined, swappers took home more than 100 items without spending a dime.
As for that Shein dress Maggie took it home.
Stephanie Bolling is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder.
A third of her wardrobe is from clothing swaps.
Read herfull bio hereor say hi On Twitter@StephBolling.
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