I somewhat disagree. You do have to get your clothes, but what is about the disposing of perfectly fine clothes that's necessary? It's only because we have too many of them. Wear the clothes until they're worn. Use the rags.
I didn't mean dispose of perfectly fine ones.
>It's only because we have too many of them.
In my case, it's actually because I'm becoming rather sphere-shaped with age, and some things no longer fit. I try to donate what I can, make others into rags (of which now I just have a giant garbage bag full of rags from the last 15 years of cutting up clothing that is too worn-out to donate -- I guess my children can deal with those when I pass).
For what it's worth, I agree with you that a focus on reducing how much we buy is super important. And, in a bit of a tongue-in-cheek way, I just wanted to highlight that there are plenty of legitimate scenarios where someone has clothes that are in decent shape but are no longer usable. And as the article highlights, I have no idea if the clothes that I drop off for donation actually make it anywhere other than a dump.
The disposal of unworn clothes is probably a result of the fast fashion industry. But other than that clothes still get worn out and need to get replaced.
I wish I could repair and recolor all my clothes to make them look decent again, but I just can't.
>Use the rags.
... OP said your comment doesn't seem to address the inevitability of disposal. You only responded with another method of reuse, but let's be honest here - rags need to be disposed of at some point, too.
I think the article was more about no place to donate perfectly fine clothes, and the uncertainty what happens to them after donating. Having to throw away 5 items (e.g. because your size changes) will weigh on your conscience a lot less than having to throw away 15.
Generally if they are made of natural stuff they should be bio degradable, so compost?
I'm not saying it'd be easy.
* A nice new sweater to wear around town becomes
* a nice sweater to wear around the house in the winter to save heating which becomes
* an old but still warm sweater to wear for yard work which becomes
* a ratty old sweater to wear to repair your bike or car without a care for oil stains.
I'm only one generation away and live in a town with good public transport, central heating which I can't adjust (and is always turned up too high) and will probably not be able to afford a house with a yard in the next 20 years.