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Save Money on Clothes | Have a Clothes Swap

Ranked #12,089 in Healthy Living, #193,305 overall

Swap Clothes with Your Friends | Host a Clothing Exchange Party

In this day and age of recycling, we often tend to forget the simplest way to get more mileage out of clothes--sharing. Most of us have clothes in our closets that we either never wore or are tired of wearing, but have lots of wear left in them. One of the greatest ways to save money, reuse and recycle them is to swap clothes at a party with a group of your friends.

This is a great way to hang out with your friends, save money, and have fun at the same time. And you get to swap clothes to boot. Everybody wins including Mother Earth.

(All the clothing images in this lens are clickable links to organic and eco-friendly clothing products.)

Swap Clothes: Here is How it Works


  1. 1. Invite Your Friends
  2. 2. Explain the party.
  3. 3. Make it a potluck.
  4. 4. Allow for Enough Time
  5. 5. Give Guests a Ticket
  6. 6. Play Dress Up
  8. 7. Bid on Clothing Items
  9. 8. Donate the Rest.
  10. 9. Add other Twists.
  12. About the Author
  13. How Do You Swap Clothes?

Have You Switched to Reuseable Grocery Bags Yet?



Red Hibiscus TuckerBag

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1. Invite Your Friends


Evite all your friends to the clothing swap. This way you can save money and paper at the same time to start this eco-friendly event out right.

2. Explain the party.



Instruct your friends to bring 15 to 20 pieces of clothing that they do not want but that are in good to excellent condition. You can restrict the clothes to tops or bottoms or seasonal clothes. You can also choose a color theme if you wish. But it is best to give them specific numbers of items to bring.

Unisex Solid Canvas Pants

100% cotton wrap around pants in OFF-WHITE. They are unisex and versatile and can be used for yoga, meditation, Tai Chi or just comfy everyday wear. And as a wrap around pant are flexible in sizing. Men are encouraged to buy one size up. If you are very tall, both women and men, should consider a larger size for length. Width is easily accommodated by a variety of easy wrap and fasten techniques. Designed and manufactured in India in sweatshop free environments. They traveled a long distance to be with you. Go ahead get a pair they're terrific!
Unisex Solid Canvas Pants

Unisex Solid Canvas Pants

Amazon Price: (as of 05/23/2012)Buy Now

3. Make it a potluck.


Make it a potluck to keep the price of the event down. That way it will truly be a shared event and you can have a good time without all the stress of preparing for a full blown party. You can divide up the types of food among your friends to make sure you have enough of each kind of food. You can even have them each bring a plate and silverware so you won't use any paper products.

4. Allow for Enough Time


Make sure to allow for at least three to four hours for this event because you will all be trying things on. It is best to prepare a couple of rooms for dressing rooms with good mirrors in them. This way several people can try things on at the same time.

5. Give Guests a Ticket


When the guests arrive, give them a ticket for each item that they bring. You can buy a roll of tickets at any discount store for just a few dollars. The tickets will be used for bidding later in the party.

Ecozuzu 'Falling Stars' Organic Long Sleeve


Ecozuzu illustrations and graphics are created by a local artist in Santa Barbara, CA. The graphics are also printed by a local printer (silkscreened and embroidered). Hand-crafted. We offer apparel and accessories that are made out of 100% certified organic cotton. We also offer apparel made out of recycled materials such as disposable food containers, soft drinks and water bottles! Our eco-apparel is made from all low impact dyes. Our high quality fabrics are super soft and comfortable. All of our tags are printed on recycled paper with eco-friendly soy inks. Even our packaging is made from recycled materials from local shop "Art from Scrap." From the big picture to the small details, we run our entire business as environmentally conscious as possible. Together we can make a difference!
Ecozuzu 'Falling Stars' Organic Long Sleeve Charcoal with Bright Blue Silkscreen Graphic (Medium)

Ecozuzu 'Falling Stars' Organic Long Sleeve Charcoal with Bright Blue Silkscreen Graphic (Medium)

Amazon Price: (as of 05/23/2012)Buy Now

6. Play Dress Up


Then enjoy an afternoon of playing dress up. You can each try on different combinations of items while putting on a fashion show for your friends. It will be fun, and also will give you all new ideas on how to wear your clothes.

There is hope if people will begin to awaken that spiritual part of themselves, that heartfelt knowledge that we are caretakers of this planet. ~Brooke Medicine Eagle

7. Bid on Clothing Items


When everyone is ready and to make it even more fun, and fair, guests can use their tickets to bid on clothing items, which are raffled off. That way no one will be left disgruntled by not having a chance to bid, and it will drive the value of the clothing up for those who want them.

8. Donate the Rest.


If any clothes are left over at the end of the party, you can donate them to a local charity to help others who can't afford new clothes.

9. Add other Twists.


Another twist to this party is to invite some people who are good at sewing and have them take some of the clothes apart and remake them to show you new ways to recycle your clothing. Remaking clothing is high fashion these days with the emphasis on reusing and on retro looks. The book to the right, Alternation Transform. Embellish. Customize., is a great book about remaking clothing with several projects to help you get started.
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Save Money on Clothes by Shopping Vintage on Ebay

Another great way to save on clothing is to shop for vintage items on Ebay. Vintage clothing is very much in style, and a great way to find clothing on a frugal budget. You can easily add to or alter the clothing you buy yourself or trade the service with a friend at a clothing party. Many vintage clothing items are still in excellent condition, especially if the clothing was party wear. So you can find some great classic clothing for a fraction of the price and be proud of being so in style. Below is just a quick intro of the vast amount of clothing items on Ebay.

Vintage Dresses on Ebay

Just click any link and search to your heart's content on Ebay for more vintage items

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Anvil - 100% Organic Cotton T-Shirt

Finally an organic t-shirt that comes in more than natural! The Anvil organic tee. Short sleeve, 5.0 oz. 100% Organic Cotton. Shoulder to shoulder tape. Seamless collarette. Double needle sleeve and bottom hem. Pre shrunk. White and Natural are sewn with cotton thread. Good sense at a great value.

* Pre-shrunk 5.0 oz. 100% Organic Cotton jersey
* Shoulder-to-shoulder tape and seamed collarette
* Double-needle sleeve and bottom hem
* Offered in 10 basic and fashion colors
* Women may wish to order one size smaller
Could not locate item B000PCN8S4. Please try again.Sorry, there are no results available from Amazon.

About the Author

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How Do You Swap Clothes?

  • Oneshotvariety Mar 5, 2012 @ 7:29 pm | delete
    Great advice! Well written lens! :]
  • Barkely Aug 6, 2009 @ 4:06 pm | delete
    What a great idea! We do this for the kids, why not ourselves too?
  • KarateKatGraphics Jun 1, 2009 @ 12:07 pm | delete
    These swaps are really taking off nationwide. Excellent lens!
  • capriliz May 30, 2009 @ 8:32 pm | delete
    A clothing swap really works well with kids. Kids grow so quickly!
  • enslavedbyfaeries May 18, 2009 @ 12:13 pm | delete
    What a clever idea, I love it! This lens is being featured on my Recycle & Reconstruct Old Clothes lens. :)
  • unique_freak77 May 16, 2009 @ 1:12 pm | delete
    I love this lens! Such a great idea I never thought of. I think I'll have one of these parties since me and my friends wear the same size clothing usually! 5 stars and favoriting!
  • GrowWear May 15, 2009 @ 10:03 pm | delete
    Really good idea, Paula. Nice lens, too. :)
  • EverythingMouse May 12, 2009 @ 6:23 pm | delete
    Great idea. I have so many kids clothes which I need to organise.
  • jaye3000 May 12, 2009 @ 6:05 pm | delete
    Great idea~ we're always giving/receiving hand-me-downs (all the boys), but it would be great to make a gathering out of it. Thanks 5 stars :)
  • seashell2 May 12, 2009 @ 5:24 pm | delete
    Love it... great ideas!
  • MsSnow4a May 12, 2009 @ 2:07 pm | delete
    cool idea , great lens :)
  • Heather426 May 12, 2009 @ 12:28 pm | delete
    Love this idea! I already trade back and forth with a couple of friends, but this is a whole new level!
    Really artistic lens too.(no suprise there) 5*
  • JenOfChicago May 12, 2009 @ 11:45 am | delete
    Excellent lens - have done this a few times with friends!
  • C-Joy May 12, 2009 @ 6:42 am | delete
    This could actually be a great back-to-school activity for the parents in my classroom: both for moms & kids!
  • monarch13 May 12, 2009 @ 2:15 am | delete
    What a wonderful idea! My best friend already gives me her son's old clothes for my smaller son. But it never dawned on me for adults; especially since we all gain and lose weight over the years and have so many sizes endlessly stored in our closets.
Show All
Clothing swaps popular with shoppers
Clothing swaps are a hot ticket for 18- to 34-year-olds, who attend house parties from New York to San Francisco. And they gather online, frequenting such sites as Swapstyle.com, which has swelled to more than 55000 members since its 2002 founding.
Swap shop: Third Annual Women's Clothing Swap bigger and friendlier than ever
Third Annual Women's Clothing Swap producers Jennifer Moore and Michelle Smith are ready to swap till they drop on Saturday. Are you?Photo by JL Stevens By JL Stevens In swaps you give and you get. With the Women's Clothing Swap that takes place this ...
Clothing Swap an Exercise in Give and Take
But a women's clothing swap soon to be held in Riverton is challenging that notion. Main Street's Yogawood hosts the event this Sunday between 11 am and 2 pm Bring at least five pieces of clothing, shoes or accessories, dropping them off at their ...
Clothes-Swapping in benson for a Great Cause
By Angeles Oviedo On Monday, the Office of Sustainability and the Santa Clara Community Action Program held Santa Clara's second annual ?Swap for Good,? a donative drive to collect clothes, books, sports equipment and other gently used items for local ...
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lakeerieartists



I am an artist, writer, and owner of Lake Erie Artists Gallery at Shaker Square in Cleveland, Ohio.

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