9 Ways to Get Free Clothing
How much money would you save if you never had to pay for clothes again?
Or what if you were able to make money from your wardrobe?
We are particular about our clothing, we know what suits us and how to get it for free or cheap.
If we bought them brand new, it would cost a few hundred dollars per dress.
So how do we get our clothing for free?
1. Reselling
By selling off the clothes we no longer wear, we are always able to buy more when we feel like it.
How it works is we buy specific brands second hand or on clearance.
When we are done with them or kids outgrow them, we sell them and shop again.
More often than not, we make a profit on the clothing as well.
Brands such as Cue, Review, Hell Bunny, Collectif, Kitten D’Amour and similar cost a few hundred brand new but we can usually get them second-hand for $1 to $10.
When we sell these brands, we typically sell them for $50+
Some of the shops have $2 tags or racks and 50% off certain coloured tags.
This is where we have saved even more.
Rarely do we pay more than $2 or $5 for an item and since we can sell them for more, it means our wardrobes make us money.
Obviously, we take good care of our clothes and this is hard to do with babies/toddlers.
2. Free Gift Cards
There are so many ways to get free gift cards and doing that means you can buy clothes with them.
Cahsback programs, online surveys, entering competitions, using reward points from wherever you shop etc.
We share 5 ways to get free gift cards plus tips to get discounted gift cards in this article.
3. Hand Me Downs
We grew up getting hand me downs.
As adults, we have continued this with each other and our kids because we change sizes and have kids after each other.
It has saved a small fortune sharing clothes this way and some of us do it with friends too.
As long as the clothing is in good condition, well taken care of and useable, why not share clothes when you are done?
4. Clothing Swaps
Most places in Australia have clothing swaps arranged at different times.
Some are done as charity fundraisers, others are arranged through mothers groups, church groups or other community centres.
How they are run varies but generally, everyone can bring some clothes to swap.
Everyone who brings clothes is allowed to swap theirs for a specific number of items so no one can be greedy.
The ones we go to have the clothes dropped off the night or week before and set up on racks on the day for people to shop.
Any clothes not taken at the end are donated.
Because the quality is usually higher with clothing swaps, some of the clothing at the end was able to be donated to charities such as Dress For Success who help people get back into the workforce or similar.
5. Gifts
Clothing can be given as gifts if you know what you want or the receiver wants.
Always keep the receipt so it can be exchanged if necessary.
Provided your expectations are realistic and you’re not asking for a Louis Vuitton handbag from someone who is struggling to make ends meet, clothing can be a good gift.
6. Prizes
Enter competitions and you never know, you might win.
We haven’t personally entered clothing competitions for years but a few years ago we did and won a few items.
A lovely white dress for summer with a matching dress for a child.
PJ’s worth $80, some underwear, shoes and a handbag have all been won.
Separately, when it comes to competitions, we have won thousands by entering competitions for products we buy.
In fact, it worked out to be 75% of the competitions we entered, we won something.
Check out where the best Aussie giveaways and competitions are plus our tips for winning.
7. Learn to Refashion Items
If you can sew, you can refashion items to create something new.
Cut long sleeve shirt shorter or if pants got holes in the knees, iron on cute patches they chose or turn them into shorts.
Mens shirts can become dresses for girls with a little effort.
Tablecloths can be turned into skirts, dresses, tops and aprons.
There are numerous examples online of clothing being refashioned to suit the new owner.
8. Loyalty Programs
Sign up for all the loyalty programs everywhere you shop, not just the clothing stores.
Supermarket and credit card reward programs and similar can often be cashed in for gift cards to use anywhere, which includes clothing stores.
Most of these programs send discounts and gift cards for your birthdays as well.
Some require a certain amount of spending with them throughout the year to be eligible for the bonus offers though so make sure you read the fine print.
Check out how to combine discounts to save even more.
9. Free Clothing Locations
On top of the above tips, there are a few other ways to get free clothes, depending on your circumstances.
Many areas have a ‘tip shop’ or recycling centre that is located next to the rubbish dump.
Often there are brand name clothes in good condition available for free as clothing is such a huge environmental issue.
Another option, if you need help, is charity stores.
They all have the capacity to help with clothing.
Some require you to prove you are on Centrelink or in need.
Others will accept whatever you tell them and aim to help.
Please only access this if you are genuine and not just as a way to save money.
They are overloaded with people needing help, mainly food, but still, it is best not to take advantage of them.
Discounted Clothes
We know the article is about how to get clothes for free but if you can’t do that, we are sure you still don’t want to pay the full price.
You can get discounts on pretty much anything if you know what to do.
Check out how to get a discount on everything and how to combine discounts to save even more.
Also, 9 frugal habits to save you thousands will help with your clothing budget too.
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