When I say the words "clothing swap" what do you think of?

If you had asked me a year ago, I would have answered with something along the lines of "ugly hand me downs" or "pieces no one else wanted."

Looking back on that opinion now, I see that that was not my personal mindset on the topic, but was/is a societal view on what makes items valuable and what kind of shelf life your clothing has. In fact, thinking back to when I was little, I loved getting hand me downs from my cousins, it was exciting to get new clothing without having to pay for it.

 If you take a snapshot look at American homes today, we have walk in closets stuffed to the brim with pieces we've worn once and shoes that haven't even gotten dust on them. This isn't what clothing is made for and you do not have to have a negative connotation about pieces you want to wear over and over again or pieces that others have given you. 

For this post, and future ones, I want to change the view on clothing swaps and hand me downs. I want to make sure that my readers want to participate in them and that they see that items from clothing swaps are not your home-schooled friends old sneakers and "mom jeans," but that you can create put together outfits that look brand new. 

During a clothing swap at St. Kates in the fall I picked up this mustard colored, lace dress and plum colored booties. I never anticipated putting them together, but after returning from India with this hand made scarf, the whole outfit fell into place. I can mix and match all of these pieces with other items in my closet and they can all be dressed up or dressed down so that they are suitable for multiple occasions. 

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Participating in clothing swaps and accepting hand me downs can be a strategic move for many fashionistas. Adding pieces that compliment your wardrobe is a win whether it's from your closet or a gift from a friends.