New-to-me clothes in my own backyard!
I’m throwing my first clothing swap party this weekend. Below is the invite I’ve sent out to everyone I know in Austin. I’d love to hear from any of you who have done this before. Please share your tips and cautionary tales.
Hi Gals,
Some of you may have heard that I’ve signed myself up for a ridiculous “diet” called The Great American Apparel Diet. Basically, I, along with 35 other women scattered across the country, have vowed not to buy ANY NEW CLOTHES FOR AN ENTIRE YEAR. I know, I’m an idiot and fall for way too many gimmicks.
What we are allowed to do is SWAP CLOTHES with our girlfriends. So, I’m throwing a swap party. I’ll make no secret about it– I want your clothes. Plus, I know women who have done this (my mom’s hippy friends, but still) and it sounds like loads of fun!
How it works: you bring clothes that are in good condition, but that you no longer wear. You offer them up to the masses and pick up clothes that other women have brought that you DO want.
I’m certain ALL OF YOU have clothes you can part with. And who knows what cute little number you might pick up.
As your hostess, I will provide afternoon wine and cheese and turn the sun porch into a decadent changing room. Please extend this invitation to all your friends and colleagues. I want to pack my house full of women!
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Izzy, our first official swap is on Dec. 6th so we haven’t officially done this yet. But I have read up a bit about these things. You need to establish some order so you don’t encounter any arguments on who got what first. You will need to establish how many pieces each person is on the hook to bring (no fair if one person brings 4 items and another only brings one). When your guests enter the door your merchandiser, that would be a creative friend who likes playing with apparel, takes the goods and adds them to her creatively showcased selection of apparel (it’s helpful if you can get a rolling rack). When the guests have all settled down for a drink and an appetizer they then draw a number from the hat. The person who draws the 1 goes first and so on. Each person can pick one item for each turn. You go through the order 3–4 times (depending on how many pieces you have decided each person needs to bring). At the end of the night each person should have as many pieces to go home with as they came with. Fair and square. Sound good?
My friends and I are about to have our second clothing swap. One woman’s daughter in Seattle has a regular, quarterly swap with her friends, and we thought we’d give it a try. We’re far less organized or rule-bound than the other poster suggested. We just brought what we didn’t want and laid them out in rooms, and then we helped ourselves. I didn’t see any fighting. We brought shoes and accessories, too. As the evening wore on, we stopped shopping for ourselves and started coercing each other into trying on clothes we might not have considered. We each brought an appetizer and a bottle of wine, and it worked out pretty well, although I came home with a couple of things I’ll never wear. The good news is, the price was right.
Here are a couple of suggestions. Try to set up some full-length mirrors in whatever room you’re using. And, wear leggings or something you feel comfortable stripping down to in front of everybody. Try to include a variety of sizes. I’m a short women in a sea of height, and the other women did better than I did.
Good luck.
Well Izzy the first mistake you made you made was having an idea. Please remember this is Sally’s show … There are rules !!! Since stumbling across this site several days ago Sally’s musings here and on her blog have provide me with endless amusement.
When the Winter weather starts to turn into Spring and you start looking at what you will be wearing this Summer, its time to pack away your Winter clothes. Sweaters, coats, gloves, hats, and thermals are all thrown into the nearest container and tossed into some out of the way place. Or, if you are feeling organised, you’ll take some time one weekend to sort out and store your clothing properly.