Neither rags nor riches.

February 26, 2004 1:36 PM

Neither rags nor riches. Quite a good human interest story from yesterday's Guardian about what happens to clothes after they go in the recycling bin or off to the charity shop.
posted by biffa (7 comments total)

really interesting thing...thanks biffa! (I've always wondered about all the clothes I've donated to charity over the years, and the clothes i've bought secondhand.)
posted by amberglow at 2:23 PM on February 26, 2004

Great story, biffa. Fascinating, and quite a feat to cover, too, following a blouse from the UK to Zambia. Lots of thoughful nuggets throughout, such as the fact that they might very well prefer to pay for it rather than get it free.
posted by pzarquon at 5:48 PM on February 26, 2004

That was a great read.
posted by dejah420 at 8:52 PM on February 26, 2004

Related: If you have those green GAIA MOVEMENT clothing-recycling bins in your city, you should probably read the Chicago Tribune story detailing how little of the funds raised actually go to environmental causes (most of the money seems to go to an odd Dutch organization, depending on interpretation a collective or a cult, called Tvind). Free summary; earlier story.
posted by dhartung at 11:03 PM on February 26, 2004

There is a lot more information about tvind at the following website:

www.tvindalert.com
posted by davehat at 5:36 AM on February 27, 2004

Clothes from the UK are good. Trousers from Canada are too big round the waist, but UK trousers are just right.
posted by stbalbach at 10:08 AM on February 27, 2004

Tonight on PBS: Independent Lens: T-Shirt Travels -- it follows a t-shirt to Zambia.
posted by amberglow at 1:50 PM on March 23, 2004