by Michelle Lynne Smith

Created on: January 11, 2010   Last Updated: January 12, 2010

One of the first things I learned about having a baby was that they usually have more clothes than they’ll ever need. Between the baby shower, excitement from the family, and the new parents zealous (sometimes overly so) attempt at making sure they have everything they need, babies can end up with enough clothes to outfit an entire third world country. The problem with this is that they usually grow so fast, they’ll only end up wearing about half of what they have, and even that stuff will only get worn a few times. Once your baby outgrows their clothes, you’re stuck with a whole bunch of clothes no one else in the family can wear. But there are things you can do with these clothes so they're not just sitting in a box in the garage collecting dust.

One of the best options is handing them down to others. If you have a friend or family member who is about to have a baby or has one younger than yours, ask them if they need the clothes. Baby clothes can become quite expensive, and they’ll certainly appreciate having to buy one less thing.

Some pieces of clothing may hold sentimental value for whatever reason, and it can be hard to let go of those. If you have a scrapbook or photo album started for your baby, try incorporating some of those clothes into it. When it came time to send our son’s old clothes to a friend of ours, I couldn’t bear to part with the shirt my son took his first picture at the hospital in. Instead, it’s in a box with other supplies and pictures I have saved for his scrapbook.

Of course one of the more popular things to do with old baby clothes is to resell them at garage sales or online. You usually don’t get anywhere near what you originally paid for them, especially if they were worn. Even brand new items with the tags still on only go for a couple of dollars if you’re lucky, but at least you get something for them.

Or if you’re really feeling generous, you could always donate them to places like the Salvation Army or Good Will. Or even better, you could take them to homeless shelters or other types of women’s shelters, as they’re probably always in need of clothing for babies. With this option, you can be sure that the people getting the clothes are in real need of them, with the added benefit of reducing clutter in your home.

And if you want to take the term recycle literally, there are always plenty of options. I know someone who took all of her kids’ old clothes and turned them into a part time business. When they outgrew something, she fixed what she needed to and sold them as clothes for pets. So not only are some of the pets in her neighborhood really nicely dressed, but she also earned a little extra money. There are all kinds of other crafty ideas for old clothes, like sewing the pictures or words onto pillows for your kids or using small pieces of them to decorate picture frames.

There are a ton of options out there for all of the clothes your baby has outgrown, so pick a few and enjoy a couple moments of less clutter in your home before it’s overrun with new clothes.

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