Month: January 2015

Connecting Stuff You Don’t Want with People Who Want It

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The other day when I arrived at work, I found a mysterious box sitting on my desk. On it, this note from my coworker Katina:

Would you like these boots? Never been worn.

Tall brown boots in shoebox

Surprise boots! I giddily tried them on and modeled them for everyone in the department. I also got the origin story from Katina—the boots originally belonged to her cousin’s coworker, who gave them to Katina’s cousin, who gave them to Katina, who gave them to me. Whew!

The convoluted journey of these boots made me think about the ways our unwanted stuff circulates. One man’s trash is truly another man’s treasure (somebody didn’t want these boots! seriously!), but sometimes the path from person-with-stuff to person-who-wants-stuff isn’t easy to find.

My typical practice has been to throw all my unwanted stuff in a bag and take it all to Goodwill. Don’t get me wrong, this is way better than throwing it in the trash. But I’ve caught glimpses of the back rooms of some thrift stores… SO MANY PILES. And have you ever been to a Goodwill outlet? It’s the stuff that didn’t sell at regular Goodwill stores, and they sell it by the POUND. Eeek. The amount of stuff we donate is overwhelming, and when you donate to a thrift store, you’re rolling the dice on whether anyone else will even want it. Oftentimes surplus donations are shipped to developing countries overseas, which on the surface appears charitable but may actually undermine local economies.

Infographic listing ways to connect unwanted stuff with people who want it

With the rise of the sharing economy, I think how we get rid of stuff is going to change a lot in the next 5-10 years, or even sooner. Companies like Lyft and Airbnb demonstrate that people are willing to make personal connections to share cars and homes. Not only are they willing to do it, it’s the cool thing to do! On a smaller scale, I think people are going to become more and more excited about the idea of making personal connections to share their unwanted stuff.

Here are a few ways to connect your unwanted items with people who will be excited to have them. Some of them are more personal than others, but they all offer an extra level of likelihood that your stuff will be used and appreciated:

  • Sell online (eBay, Amazon, Twice, thredUP, Vinted, Poshmark)
  • Exchange in an alternative marketplace like Yerdle or Bondsy
  • Swap with friends, or give to a friend
  • Give away on Freecycle
  • Sell or give away on Craigslist
  • Sell to a store that sells used items (Half Price Books, Disc Replay, etc.)
  • Consignment stores

Admittedly, all of these methods require a little more effort than dropping off a box at Goodwill. You may have to make a trip to the post office or set up an appointment to meet a buyer/recipient. However, knowing a little about where your stuff is going can be incredibly satisfying. Over the summer I gave away some screen printing supplies on Craigslist. The guy I gave them to told me the kit was for his daughter who has been learning the screen printing process and has made some prints in the past. Just hearing those few details made me really excited to give him the supplies, knowing they were going to someone who would be interested in using them.

I have also been the grateful recipient of other people’s junk. A couple of weeks ago I wrote a Facebook post asking where I could find some reclaimed wood for an art project. Within a day I got suggestions of eight different sources, none of which required me to buy wood off the shelf at a lumberyard. I ended up getting wood from two different friends who just had it lying around. It’s amazing what people will provide if you just ask! In the same way, if you just put it out there that you have X item, you never know who might be interested in it!

Indiana wall art made with reclaimed wood

My reclaimed wood art! Also featuring leftover artificial turf from a work project and old Christmas lights.

Will I still shop at and donate to Goodwill and similar stores? Of course. You can’t beat big thrift stores for convenience and variety, and some items may be too small or low-value to be worth the effort of those other channels. But this year I want to make more of an effort to connect the things I don’t want with people who will be excited and happy to have them.

Have you used any of these methods to get rid of stuff you didn’t want? Have you ever made a great connection with someone who really wanted what you were giving away?

My Favorite Ethical Pinners on Pinterest

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favorite-ethical-pinners-on-pinterest

I have a confession to make: I am teetering on the brink of a Pinterest addiction. I make a conscious effort not to rely on my phone for constant distraction, but I do find myself checking Pinterest at least 3-4 times most days. Despite its drawbacks, like the fact that it helps exacerbate a culture of aspirational consumerism and feelings of inadequacy, I find it to be both entertaining and helpful for the following reasons:

  1. Even though the majority of items in my feed aren’t ethically made, pinning things I like gives me an idea of what my own personal style is. I can then look for ethical alternatives or DIY projects that would give me a similar look.
  2. There are tons of tutorials for DIY projects, including recycling/upcycling projects and basic sewing tutorials, both of which I am all about right now.
  3. It’s a great source for finding artwork and photography I wouldn’t have seen otherwise.
  4. I like evening gowns, and Pinterest shows them to me!

There are a few pinners I follow in the ethical lifestyle realm who I can always count on for interesting pins. Here are some of my favorites:



Fair Trade Quilts & Crafts – This account was fully responsible for me embracing aspects of bohemian interior design. The gorgeous interiors they pin give me inspiration for creating a home full of eclectic fair trade and secondhand items.

Visit Fair Trade Federation’s profile on Pinterest.

Fair Trade Federation – The FTF uses Pinterest to showcase cool products from their members.

Mata Traders – I frequently find myself re-pinning links to high-quality blog posts about fair trade pinned by Mata Traders.

Visit Elizabeth Stilwell | The Note Passer’s profile on Pinterest.

Elizabeth Stilwell | The Note Passer – I love Elizabeth’s pins that link to blog posts about zero-waste living.

To follow me on Pinterest, hit me up here! Full disclosure: not everything I pin is ethically-made, since as I described above, I use Pinterest to figure out my style, not to make a specific shopping list. My board Fair Trade & Ethical Lifestyle is devoted to ethically-made products and related links. (And if you’re looking for some evening gown eye candy as well, my Wearables board is where it’s at.)

How do you use Pinterest? Who are some of your favorite pinners?

Make It Work: Skinny Dress Pants DIY

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I have always been afraid to alter a pair of pants—I always have a vision of me sitting down in public and rrrrrRRRIPP! There go my new seams. But recently I found a tutorial on Pinterest that made me think, “OK, maybe this can work!” (I apparently forgot to pin the tutorial I looked at, but there are a bunch if you search for “skinny pants diy.”)

My subject for this project was a pair of gray dress pants I’ve had in my closet for longer than I can remember. I got overzealous to start the project and forgot to take a before photo, but just imagine the floppiest possible wide-leg dress pants from 2002 that are also 3 inches too long and you’ll have the right idea. The pants have a pattern that I’m not sure how to describe—I’ll call it teeny tiny houndstooth. My goal was to take these floptastic pants and turn them into chic slim-leg pants I could wear to work.

The first step was to turn the pants inside out and mark where I wanted to new seams to be. To do this I took a pair of pants that had a fit similar to what I wanted, turned them inside out as well, and laid them on top of the dress pants. I lined up the outside edges of both pairs of pants and marked about an inch outside of the inner edge.

I forgot to take a photo of the pants lining up as well, so enjoy this fine gif!

 

To mark my seam I used a white art crayon I had leftover from college, but tailor’s chalk or a fabric pencil would be the traditional seam-marking media. One thing to note is that these pants already fit me well in the waist and hips, so I only needed to alter the legs.

After I pinned the pants, I tried them on inside-out to check the fit without messing up the pins. Trying things on when you’re altering them is important! When I had the pants on I realized I needed to continue pinning all the way up to the crotch. (I had originally thought I could end my seam mid-thigh, but it looked totally bunchy and weird.) You never know what you’re not going to realize until the pants are on, so don’t skip this!

Once I had all the pins in place for a good fit, I used my sewing machine to create the new seam. I used a standard straight stitch. First I sewed along the line where I had pinned, then tried the pants on again (this time right side out) to confirm the fit. After that I sewed a second straight seam about a quarter of an inch outside the first seam. This reinforces the seam to prevent that rrrrrRRRIPP! moment.

Two seams about a quarter of an inch apart

Two seams for extra strength!

 

Make sure your second seam is outside the first seam. If you put the second seam on the inside, the pants will suddenly be too tight! After putting in the second seam, I tried the pants on again just in case, then trimmed off the excess fabric.

My pants now had slim legs but were still way too long.

Ankle view of skinny dress pants: still too long!

To fix the length I followed general instructions for hemming a pair of pants. This was my first attempt at hemming, but there are tons of online tutorials and YouTube videos that explain how to do it. Basically you fold up the hem to where you want it, pin it, make sure it’s the same length all the way around, then use a slip stitch (also known as a blind stitch) to hand-sew the new hem.

Pinned hem of dress pants

The whole project took maybe 4-5 hours spread over two days. As usual for me, much of that time was spent re-pinning. Once you start actually sewing, you’re in the home stretch!

Here’s the finished product:

Finished dress pants front view

Finished dress pants side view

I’m jazzed about how these turned out. Before when I wore these pants I felt like I was 15 years old and had come straight out of the juniors department. Now they’re modern and work appropriate!

Have you ever been brave enough to alter a pair of pants? After the success of this project I’d definitely be willing to try it again.

New Year, New Name

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As the ethical consumerism movement has grown and evolved over the last year, we started thinking about the name of this site: the Fair for All Shopping Guide. We’re entering a landscape where there are many more ethical shopping options than there were even five years ago, but it’s also a landscape where some brands are beginning to engage in “ethical-washing” to appear more socially responsible (the same way that many brands now engage in “greenwashing” to appear more eco-friendly). Even the purchase of an ethically-made item has implications on overconsumption, natural resource use, and a range of other issues.

We realized it’s important to avoid giving the message that shopping can be the solution to the world’s problems. Shopping differently can make a real positive impact, but it’s not everything. As such, we have decided to remove the word “shopping” from the Fair for All Shopping Guide name. We are now simply the Fair for All Guide.

Our name is now the "Fair for All Guide"

Does the name change mean our content is changing? Yes and no. We still plan to cover fairly made products and ethical brands, because we do truly believe in the power of individual purchases to make a difference. However we will also explore other ethical lifestyle topics that are not related to shopping, like living with less, upcycling, reducing waste, etc.

We’re excited about this change and hope you are too! Conveniently, our URL and Facebook and Twitter handles remain the same. Let us know if there are any topics you’d like to see us cover this year!