Used Clothing Drive / Upcycling

Dear users, dear authors,
What do you do with your used clothes? Do you donate them to a used clothing drive, or do you prefer to upcycle them?

ALWAYS upcycling… even for pillow stuffing ;) 

I only put things in the used clothing bin that are truly worn out and can’t be repaired or repurposed—in other words, real rags.

Otherwise, I sew gift bags out of shirts, for example. I use the fabric for appliqués. I sew doll clothes.

The backs of my embroidered pillows are often made from old shirts, blouses, and dresses.

You can sew great things out of jeans.

No, I don’t really throw away much clothing. Alternatively, there’s the Diakonie. They’re grateful for clothing in good condition. 

... always upcycling. If anyone has any 👖jeans they don’t need anymore, I’d love to have them. 🤩
I can’t get enough of them to sew and test all my sewing patterns.
💙👖👖👖👖👖👖💙
Shirts, dresses, and sweaters (even with moth holes) are perfect, too.👌

It depends on the condition… barely worn items or impulse buys go to the clothing bank; jeans and interesting fabrics go into the upcycling box; some are turned into cleaning rags; and the rest goes into a used clothing bin.

It depends on how good the item you’re sorting out still is. I often sew children’s clothes or bags out of them, etc. Anything that’s no longer usable goes in the trash or into the recycling bins.

Best regards, Inge

Yes, I also decide based on their condition. Items in good condition get passed on, and almost everything else is still useful as cleaning rags or stuffing.
I’ve sewn bags out of jeans from time to time, and made pillowcases out of pretty floral blouses for a friend.
Since almost no one wears fur anymore, I’ve even made teddy bears out of old shearling and other jackets.