Love Me Some Clothing Swaps

I hosted my first clothing swap last week and it went great! All but two of the girls who came were swap newbies so it was fun to introduce a swap to them. I think they all enjoyed it and left with some "new" finds. Nothing better than getting new clothes for free!

Here's my tips for hosting a swap:

Invite a variety of girls - all shapes and sizes - and give them some advance notice so they can gather up items

Encourage them to bring more than clothes; jewelry and purses are a huge hit. Shoes aren't usually as popular due to size differences

Have lots of space for people to sprawl out and try on clothes

Encourage each other to try new things! (One reason I love swaps is because I always leave with something I would have never tried on at a store! Or learn that a color I never thought would look good on me does!)

Choose a nonprofit (or two) to donate leftover clothes to and have fun sorting through the items with your guests! (That's what I love even more about swaps - you get to donate to worthy causes!)

And lastly... just have fun and get ready for some cute clothes! :)

And for kicks: found these cute socks at Target, which I gave out as party favors during my clothing swap!

My First Clothing Swap!

I participated in my first clothing swap this past weekend. I admit when I was first invited, I thought, “Clothing swap? What the heck is that?” The idea of meeting random people and taking their clothes seemed foreign to me. But guess what? Clothing swaps are awesome and I have been missing out!

If you haven’t been to one, I highly encourage you to invite some friends over, open a bottle of wine (or two…) and ask them to bring their unwanted clothing and accessories. I left with 13 “new” pieces of clothing, plus a few bottles of OPI nail polish. Score! I was so excited because these clothes were all new to me and I didn’t spend a dime on them. I threw them in the wash immediately upon arriving home and have already worn a piece or two.

My absolute favorite item I left with was this dress.

I am thinking about hosting my own clothing swap in a few months. Friends, wine, FREE clothes. It’s a win-win-win!

Have you ever been to a swap? If so, what kind?