It’s hard to decide sometimes what objects to keep or get rid of. With clothing, I find this an easier decision.
If it is:
- stained
- hole-y
- ripped beyond easy repair
- really faded, worn or stretched
then I definitely put it in the donate pile. What about clothes with sentimental value? Maybe you might keep your wedding dress, a christening gown, your child’s first day of school outfit. . .what other clothes hold sentimental value for you?
For me, I have a few things that I am keeping from our trip to India in 2003/4. That was our first big trip together, and the start of my obsession with travelling. Besides, the clothes are so well-made and beautiful. Even though I don’t wear them all that often, I think fondly of that magical trip and time in my life every time I open my closet and see those pieces.
Like many others, I have a few ‘skinny’ clothes. Maybe I will never be as small as I was pre-India, when I was in my early 20s, I do hope to lose 20 pounds in the next year or so—and I know I’ll be happy to have those skinny clothes (bought in India). I try to keep these clothes to a minimum, though. I don’t want constant reminders of all the weight I’ve gained!
Do you donate or sell your clothing? I mentioned donating or disposing of clothing that is damaged, but what about those items that you simply get tired of? I haven’t tried selling clothing before, but know of some people who are constantly rotating clothing in their closets and who swear by consignment stores.
How do you decide which shoes to donate? I have recently donated several pairs of sandals that turned out to not be very comfortable. They are in good shape, so I didn’t feel weird donating them. With shoes, I don’t mind having many pairs. I know others have many more than I, but I do walk a lot and my shoes wear out more quickly than others’ might. With shoes, it is easier to give them up if they are not useful to me. I don’t keep or wear beautiful shoes that are uncomfortable.
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About Tazim Damji
I'm Tazim, a 30-something Vancouverite who is passionate about home decorating, writing, and travelling. Content on Being Tazim ranges from smart tips for home décor, to smart ways to use and enjoy technology. Read the full story 
If I have not worn it in a year, I donate it. Anything that is worn out, stained, ripped etc should not be donated because they can not sell it (only as rags) With my younger kids I put their clothes in consignment shops and use the money again in the store to replace. My older kids are too hard on their clothes to do anything but throw them out ;(
Yeah, I agree that damaged clothing should really just be thrown out, unfortunately. Maybe if I find a good consignment store in Calgary I'll start using it, but often I find that the clothes look too worn to buy.
Every spring and fall when I rotate my closets, I donate things I haven't worn that are clean and in good repair. Although I look for shoes for myself in thrift shops, I never seem to have any that are good enough or stylish enough to donate.
My sentimental clothes include my daughter's Guide uniform (she's 38 now), my own Brownie uniform (you do the math), and my second wedding dress – which I'll wear again, if I could just lose this weight LOL
I've become better at giving away things as I get older.
My recent post Raindrops Keep Falling on My ….Beans?