Being girlie can be expensive, and it can also be wasteful and bad for the planet. Keeping up with trends, having enough new outfits to wear and keeping your closet feeling full can take a toll on your wallet. It also creates tons of waste and excess and feeds the consumer machine. While there are many options to reduce the time, money and resources that you use to stay in fashion (such as thrift shopping or renting clothes and accessories), one of the most fun ways that we’ve found is to throw a New-to-You party with your girlfriends.
What is a New-to-You Party?
So what’s a New-to-You party? It’s an excuse for you and all of your best girlfriends to clean out your closets, jewelry boxes, drawers and storage units and then fill them back up again with stuff that’s new to you. How it works is simple. On an agreed upon date, you all show up at the party destination (usually somebody’s apartment) and throw your stuff down on the floor. Then you enjoy some fine wine, food and conversation while you all pick through each other’s stuff and decide what you’ll be taking home as new to you!
What’s the benefit?
In addition to the social interaction with people whom you (presumably) like and the fact that you’ll save money and create less waste, a New-to-You party also means that (again presumably) you’re swapping items with people whose taste you share. Unlike thrift shopping, the chances that you’ll find items that are your style are pretty high when you’re swapping clothes with your best friends.
Are there rules?
We’ve found that most New-to-You parties stay civil and most people end up walking out feeling excited about their “new” items and like everything was fair and balanced. That said, if you want to set rules about how many items to bring, how many items a person can leave with or the order in which people get to pick items from the pile, you can. It might just avoid a fight over that perfect sweater later on!
How often should you do this?
Many of the women we spoke to said that they typically do their New-to-You party near the end of the year to clean out closets and restock them as the New Year starts. But you should find a schedule that works for you and your friends.
Consider Posting Pics of Items Before the Party
While the element of surprise can be fun, it’s often useful to post pictures of the items that people are taking to the New-to-You party on social media before the actual party. That way, everybody has an idea of quality and quantity so that they can try to match it.
Keep Your Party Eco-Friendly!
Of course, also make sure that you keep your get together eco-friendly as well. No disposable paper plates and cups (and certainly no plastic ones), recycle what you use and try to keep appetizers and food planet friendly. In short, remember that part of the reason for a New-to-You party is to reduce your carbon footprint. Keep that in mind during the get together as well.
Have you been to a New-to-You party and want to tell us about it? Comment below or share it with us on Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.
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Photo via Flickr Creative Commons: verypurpleperson
