I'm hard on the things I love. And I like to get my money's worth. I will wear the things I own until they fall apart and there is no turning back.
In this earlier post, I speak about the importance of buying second-hand (or at least sustainable and ethically made) clothes or even better, holding clothes swaps with friends. Recently, however, I've been thinking about endings and not beginnings. I've been in a bit of conundrum about what to do when the clothes and shoes I acquired so thoughtfully secondhand are now beyond repair, beyond gluing or sewing back together, beyond their lifespan - these items are, essentially, at the end of their lives.
These shoes are my current inspiration:
I bought them secondhand and wore them for almost five years, mending and repairing them along the way. Now that the zipper is broken, it's officially time to let go:
So, I started to do some research. I live in Los Angeles so this is geared toward Angelenos but similar programs may exist where you live (shoutout to my European readers!). I recommend calling these stores beforehand so you don't waste time and energy. I made a lot of calls and not every location offers these recycling programs.
H&M: Will take your old clothes, any brand, and old linens (blankets, pillowcases, table clothes, etc.) and then give you a 15% discount coupon (multiple ones if you bring in a lot of stuff, like the ones in the picture below) to use at a future date. They DO NOT take "intimates" (a.k.a. underwear- learned this the awkward, hard way!!! yikes!) and they DO NOT take shoes. This is a great program for all of those fabric swatches you may have from upcycling your old clothes like I do. More about it here.
Nike: Will take any brand of athletic shoe (but only athletic shoes) to cut up and turn into playgrounds somewhere magical. It's the easiest thing to do - just walk in and hand a sales associate your old shoes. Viola! This is service available in North America and Europe. Read more about it here.
The North Face: Will take any brand of clothes and shoes in any condition for their Clothes the Loop program. You get a $10 coupon to use next time you spend $100 in store. This is available in Canada and Germany as well. Learn more here.
Vans: Vans has partnered with Terracycle to take your old shoes, any brand and in any condition, and will recycle them on your behalf. This is currently only available in California but hopefully it will expand. Furthermore, not every Vans location offers this service. I called around to a few locations and they only offered taking your gently used shoes for you to donate to Goodwill. For the state these sandals are in, I have to find a Terracycle location! Learn more about it here.
Goodwill: Will take your electronics in any condition to either resell or recycle for you if not in working condition. Goodwill Industries of Southern California will not take anything that is not in working order or good condition, other than your electronics, as a donation. Here are their guidelines. However, during my research I found that in the state of Washington, Goodwill will take anything and recycle it for you if they can't resell it. That's awesome! More of that please. Read more here. I'm not sure about Goodwills in other states and what their policies are, so definitely research first. Also, learn more about what really happens to your donations to Goodwill here.
BestBuy: Although not clothes/shoes related, will recycle all of your electronics and appliances. Please, oh please, don't put these items in the trash. I have recycled with BestBuy many times, just go to the information desk and hand them your old stuff. It's so easy! Find out more here.
If all else fails, you can always invest in your own Terracycle Zero Waste box for fabrics and clothing. They are a little pricey, but you could split the cost with friends and neighbors. This is great for those really hard to recycle items like mattress covers and outdoor furniture covers. More about it here.
Thanks for reading and happy end-of-life recycling!