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Tag: green halloween

  • Virtual Halloween Costume Swap with thredUP

    Virtual Halloween Costume Swap with thredUP

    prisoner halloween costume

    Clothes make a statement.  Costumes tell a story. 

    -Mason Cooley

    Can’t make it in person to one of the cool Halloween swaps in your area? (I know that my weekends are booked solid from now until Thanksgiving, thanks to selling my soul to youth sports.)

    You can still save money and keep costumes out of landfills! thredUP allows you to swap unwanted and outgrown Halloween costumes with other families online.

    alice in wonderlandDude, what’s thredUP?

    It’s a virtual thrift store. Browse boxes of gently-used clothes and toys listed by parents like you; find one you like and have it sent to your house for just $5 plus shipping. You can even tag favorite sellers and be notified when they list new boxes.

    Pack up and list your own boxes for credit towards new boxes— thredUP will send you USPS flat-rate boxes for free, and you can print out pre-paid shipping labels at home. Your postal carrier will just pick your box up from your mailbox or door.

    The Halloween costume exchange works exactly like the existing swap service: moms can browse Halloween-themed boxes and pick one they’d like to receive for $5 + shipping. Swappers also post their kids’ outgrown costumes online and send to other families upon request. thredUP e-mails the pre-paid shipping label and schedules home pick-up.

    Or, if you’re in dire need of a new costume (somehow, I doubt I’m going to find an old Smurfette being exchanged; seriously who knew the Smurfs would ever make a comeback), thredUP has partnered with two costume companies for discounts so deep they’re scary. 🙂

     

    Almost October!

    Have your kids decided what they’re going to be for Halloween?

     

     

  • Get Ready for a Green Halloween: National Costume Swap Day

    Get Ready for a Green Halloween: National Costume Swap Day

    muppets costumes
    We are… the Electric Mayhem

     

    We are not to throw away those things which can benefit our neighbor.

    Goods are called good because they can be used for good:
    they are instruments for good, in the hands of those who use them properly.

    -Clement of Alexandria
    aka Titus Flavius Clemens,
    (c.150 – c. 215)

    There’s a nip in the air when I walk the kids to the bus stop; I sleep with a blanket at night and I still wake up a bit chilly.

    This weekend I’m taking the kids apple-picking.

    Know what that means? My favorite holiday is right around the corner!

    vampire-costumeIf you’re like me, you’ve got tons of costumes and accessories hanging around from Halloweens past. And if you’re REALLY like me, you’ve got some that you’d lovingly handmade and can’t bear to throw away because so much effort went into it. (Most notably, an adult-sized Marilyn Manson wig that I threaded EACH INDIVIDUAL HAIR onto. It could be reused for Raggedy Ann or something similar.)

    Let someone else love those old costumes, and save cash money on your own spookfest this year! Attend or host a costume swap in your area.

    National Costume Swap Day is Saturday, October 8th (fittingly, that is also my 35th birthday. SPOOKY!). According to the website,

    Swapping half the costumes kids wear at Halloween would reduce annual landfill waste by 6,250 tons, equal to the the weight of 2,500 midsize cars!

    halloween-witchI’m sorry. That’s insane.

    Hosting a swap is easy, builds community, saves everybody cash money, and can be a lot of fun. You can find tips on hosting here if you like the idea but don’t know where to start 🙂

    Register your swap on the official website (there’s no charge) so your community can find it— it also helps local and national media channels to find and potentially cover your event. Here’s an idea: hold a swap in conjunction with a neighborhood-wide yard sale! How’s that for a win-win?

    baby-lion-halloweenIf you’re not into hosting, you can check CostumeSwapDay.com to find local swaps to attend. Keep in mind that new swaps will be registering every day right up to Halloween.

    The National Costume Swap is a partnership with Green Halloween, Swap.com and Kiwi Magazine.

    Go give ’em some love for being so dang smart!

    Tell me:
    what’s the best costume you ever made/wore?