Each of us discards (on average) 80 lbs of used clothing per year, adding up to a staggering 25 billion pounds of used clothing for the entire population of the United States–every year! To put it mildly, that is not good. And so, in this world where clothing is increasingly devalued and treated as a disposable commodity, it’s refreshing to be reminded that each of us has an emotional connection to the clothes we wear; memories and feelings seem to be hidden inside the very fibers...

Jigsaw is a London-based clothing company with a message: Clothing is for life, not landfill. “We design and create products for life, not just for a season,” their website states. In their Fall/Winter 2015 ad campaign, they juxtapose older used clothing and accessories (borrowed from actual customers) with new pieces from their collection. A new blazer with an older sweater underneath. A new dress with an older purse. Even more interesting are the vignettes that accompany...

In September we blogged about artist Derick Melander, an artist who creates enormous intricate sculptures from used clothing. This month we’re featuring Guerra de la Paz, which is the name of the creative duo that is Alain Guerra and Neraldo de la Paz. Guerra and de la Paz are two Cuban-born artists who have been working collaboratively for almost 20 years. Like Melander, these two Miami-based artists use discarded secondhand clothing to create large sculptures that are both beautiful...

The Space Needle has been a fixture on the Seattle skyline for more than 50 years. Its concrete foundation reaches 30 feet underground and weighs 5850 tons (11,700,000 lbs). The needle structure stands 605 feet tall and weighs 3700 tons (7,400,000 lbs). But there is something in Seattle that weighs more than four times as much as the Space Needle. Your used clothing. Approximately 39,464 tons (78,928,000 lbs) of used clothing and textiles are disposed in King County, Washington (Seattle...

The Council for Textile Recycling (CTR) is a non-profit based in the United States that is “dedicated to raising public awareness about the importance of textile recycling and the need to reduce the amount of used clothing and other post-consumer textile waste (PCTW ) being sent to our nation’s landfills.” By the year 2037 the council hopes to have eliminated all textile waste entering our nation’s landfills. And they need your help to do it! People like you can help by...