As the weather becomes increasingly colder, students begin stocking up on new sweaters and start pulling out the bulky jackets. New clothes get added to a closet every season but old clothes rarely get sorted out.

Many great options are available to rid a closet of extra, unnecessary clothing and accessories. Not only is space limited in dorms and apartments, but donating items leaves room for new purchases.

Methods to donate or sell clothing include apps such as Poshmark, stores such as Plato’s Closet or local resale store The Loft, which is located in downtown Ames on Main Street. Another popular option is to donate gently used items to organizations such as The Salvation Army or Goodwill.

Poshmark is an easy-to-use app in which users can create a closet with items they are willing to sell to others in the Poshmark community. All that has to be done is sign up, take pictures of the items and set a selling price.

Sometimes it takes a while for people to take notice since there are many members who offer a large variety of merchandise.

However, by liking other people’s closets and purchasing items, people will take notice and those clothes that aren’t needed anymore can be sold for reasonable prices. Any brand or price range can be added to the closet, which makes it easier to sell items.

Stores such as Plato’s Closet make it a little more difficult to sell clothes because of the specific brands and types of clothing items it looks for, but it is still a great resource. Plato’s Closet prefers accepting Hollister, Lululemon, Miss Me and other well-known, higher-priced name brands. With such specific brand requirements it is much more difficult to rid students’ closets of unwanted items. Many students donate clothing because they lack style, but Plato’s Closet rarely accepts donations that are out of style, creating another difficult factor in donating. 

The Loft also accepts donations. The consignment store requires donors to set up an account either in store or online in order to consign their clothes.

Employee Kaitlyn Miller said The Loft looks for trendy styles and name brands since they are easier to sell.

“Some merchandise they don’t accept is lower-end brands and suits,” Miller said.

However, some of the items the employees of The Loft would love to see more of is ISU apparel, men’s clothing and designer jeans.

Organizations like The Salvation Army, Goodwill and Dress for Success accept any type of clothing in good condition. The profits go toward what the organization is funding and will help people in need. The Salvation Army and Goodwill are both located on Lincoln Way, making them easily accessible for students. 

Next time there is lack of space for new clothes, consider visiting local stores to donate or consign clothing. But make sure the items are in good shape, and people are able to find use out of them.