How, Where and Why to Recycle Clothes London

It is such a good idea to recycle clothes London. It leaves room in your wardrobe for all the lovely new purchases you want to buy. And things aren’t going to waste. Someone will love your old dresses as much as you once did. Even if your unwanted clothes are no longer in good condition, they can be turned into items such as padding. Recycling
centre, charity shops and textile banks on the high street collect clothing and create car seats, cleaning cloths and industrial blankets.

The local council has textiles recycling which takes clothes and textiles. Look for clothes bank in car parks and take clothes you no longer want to the recycling services, or charity shops. It will be transformed into padding for chairs, amongst other things.  Many charities also offer a collection service.

Recycle Clothes London – Why?

And why would you do this? Well, there’s lots of reasons. Making space in your bedroom and wardrobe so that it looks nice and you can find things is a big one. Even if you don’t immediately go out and buy more, it’s nice to be able to see what you have. You can then start to organise things by summer and winter, and then put the season’s clothing you won’t be wearing under the bed or in storage. Even in the loft, if it is dry.

If You’re not too Sure you Really Want to Get Rid…

You can get great under bed storage drawers from many places, and if you are very lucky, your bed will already come with them. Also see if you can fit things under the sofa. If your loft or attic is dry and not too dusty, don’t hesitate to use it. Please don’t regard it as a place where things go that you can’t bear to get rid of but don’t really want. And then they get shoved up there and stay forever. Instead, view it as temporary storage.

Not only can you put your seasonal clothes in there, but also just look through your cups and crockery. If you have been building these up a bit, for example, if you get a new cat mug or three every Christmas, then, have a little sort out. Instead of a tower of mugs toppling on your head every time you open the cupboard for a quick cup of tea, curate a selection of maybe four mugs that you love. That’s very brave, so let’s say six. Put everything else away, packing them very tenderly into a cardboard box. Do the same for excess plates and bits and bobs. Then you can just enjoy the crockery without risk of chipping it all by shoving it together (or even your shelves breaking!)

Recycle Clothes London – And Then…

In three months time, fetch out the box again, and have a rotation. You can also view all your other bits and pieces, and if they don’t catch your fancy, maybe then it’s time to send them to the charity shop or vintage store. You can do this for things like ornaments, too. There is joy in having a quirky figurine, but lots of ornaments all crammed together can look cluttered. Take one out at a time, and showcase it. This will help with seeing your beloved items with fresh eyes, and you might not want to go shopping for new ones. Instead, you can shop from your loft!

Other Reasons Why

Ocean plastic. Image copyright free via Pixahive. Photograph by S M R

Of course, apart from personal reasons of space, or arranging your home in a more aesthetically pleasing way, there’s also the matter of the environment. We all know that the production of useful items has turned into over production. Fashion is one of the world’s biggest culprits. People buy things just for one photo on social and never wear it again.

Luckily, now it’s beginning to be more fashionable to wear the outfit regularly, and be proud that you’re making it work so hard. Celebrities often appear on the red carpet now in dresses they’ve worn before, either altered or not. And where celebrities lead, others will follow.

Recycle Clothes London

The problem of ocean plastic is a vast one. The sea has become a dumping ground for rubbish, and it takes a very long time to degrade. In the meantime, it is very bad for the sea life. Is there anything sadder than a hermit crab who has merrily made their home in a bottle top? It can’t be good for it.

Floating bottles and other items of rubbish form massive trash islands in the middle of the ocean. This includes clothing. Clothes are often made from plastics, like nylon and other mixes. Even when they break down a little bit, the plastic becomes micro plastics which are swallowed by fish. Seabirds who eat the fish also end up with micro plastics in their guts. And if any humans eat the fish, it’s the same. Yum, plastic in your tummy.

Microplastics

This also becomes plastics and other contaminants in our drinking water. The World Health Organisation says: “Microplastics are ubiquitous in the environment and have been detected in a broad range of concentrations in marine water, wastewater, fresh water, food, air and drinking-water, both bottled and tap water. ” It’s even in the air! And so it comes around again to, for our own sakes, as well as that of the wildlife, it’s a good idea to reduce, re-use, recycle. While it sometimes may feel like our efforts are a mere drop in the ocean (ha!) every bit we do counts. The WHO continues: “Measures should be taken by policy makers and the public to better manage plastics and reduce the use of plastics where possible, to minimize plastics released into the environment because these actions can confer other benefits to the environment and human well-being.”

Public opinion has also made big changes, and big companies are making efforts towards reducing plastics because of public pressure, which includes simply abstaining from unnecessary plastic. So go ahead, and recycle clothes London.

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