If You Have a Bunch of Stuff To Get Rid Of, Do You Sell It?

Or do you just donate it, instead?

In an attempt to clear space for new stuff, I am doing my best to get rid of the old. There’s a shelf in my closet that is full of handbags and a jumpsuit purchased under duress that I have never, ever worn. An under-the-bed storage container holds sheets, winter hats, scarves and a fair amount of moths. I pulled a weekend bag out from behind the old air conditioner in my closet, only to discover that it was full of house shirts. I don’t need all this stuff. I must make room for more, you see, so it has to go.

Most of it is fairly worthless — stained t-shirts, old sheets, towels with holes — but some of it might not be. The handbag collection I’m accumulating for no good reason might have some value; there are shoes I’ve been given for free that I don’t and won’t wear that someone else could possibly benefit from. Nothing I own, clothing-wise is worth anything to anyone including myself, really, so I don’t know if the schlep to Buffalo Exchange is worth my time or mental energy.

Don’t Feel Ashamed If Someone Doesn’t Buy Your Secondhand Stuff

Every year when the calendar tells me that it’s “spring,” the itch to purge rears its ugly head. If I just get rid of the things I don’t need, I tell myself, I can make room for the things I actually do.

The first step is to make the pile; I’m halfway there. The second step is to figure out what to do. In years past, my spring cleaning techniques involve sorting everything I don’t want into piles based on their value, a technique bastardized from my nemesis Marie Kondo, then assessing whether or not I think the people at Buffalo Exchange or Crossroads will actually buy it. Much like wondering whether or not anything actually brings me joy, I tire of this exercise very quickly. Everything gets shoved into a bag, which is then dumped on the street for collection. This year, I bet I could make some money. The prospect feels exciting enough to give it a try.

What do you do when you have things you need to get rid of? Do you bag them up and sell them? Do you try and give them to others? Will you eBay that wallet your mother-in-law gave you that you really don’t like? Or do you just throw them in one of those dubious clothing donation boxes and call it a day?

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