Recycling at the Mall: Some Tips

A Saturday morning phone conversation with my brother:

Him: What are you doing today. 
Me: Well, I'm going to the mall.
Him: What... Why?
Me: I'm going to go recycle some things.
Him: Oh I knew something had to be up, you wouldn't just go there. What kind of recycling?

I'm so glad he asked. It makes for a perfect setup for this post.  But before I get into what and where to recycle at your mall, let me commend my brother.

He is a very smart man who knows me well.
He knows I would not go to a mall just to shop.
Further he knows I would not use my precious Saturday hours to battle finding a parking spot, looking for pants that just don't fit and spending too much money.

That's not to say I would never go to the mall.  I would and I do. Occasionally.

I would go to the mall to: 

To buy an Auntie Anne's pretzel,
To watch a movie, or
To fix a wardrobe emergency. 


What is a wardrobe emergency?
A wardrobe emergency for instance could be if your strapless bra decides to cease having elasticity in the middle of church, slips around your waist and can't be convinced it is not belt. This is a wardrobe emergency, and it warrants leaving service and driving straight to the mall.

Here I was, instead of the above reasons, taking old things to the mall and leaving them there.

I've been taking bottle caps to the mall for years.
Did you know the plastic used on soda bottles and milk jugs can't be recycled normally?

Aveda collects them and...at this point I have heard 2 different things.  I have been told/ read that
they turn them into new bottle caps for their products. (Now their caps are recyclable so this possibly changed). Saturday I was told they redistribute them to schools to use to make art projects.
Either way, I feel good about it.

Next, is a new one.
Did you know you can recycle old clothes at H&M?  Recently, Julie Johnson photographer/ blogger/ friend from Life Astonished posted about this not so long ago.

I know some of my clothes are so ratty they should not go to Goodwill or any other clothing donation for that matter, and consequently I have held on to them. But no more! H&M wants my old clothes. It wants your old clothes. It wants old clothes.
And if recycling pitted out ripped up clothes and freeing up closet space wasn't enough of an incentive, they also give you an in-store coupon for your effort.

Finally, one you probably know about, is shoe recycling. Look into where you can recycle your old shoes. I typically do a shoe roundup for me and my friends every couple of years and take a trek out to the Nike outlet, but more and more stores want your rubber soles.

See? Malls have something for everyone, even for the wary consumer.

Today's lesson: Do a little research, reduce, reuse and recycle.

Loving My "Ride" on the Rack and Clutch Fashion Truck

This weekend I got to try something new to me: hop on a fashion truck.

Now food trucks you know about, but a fashion truck?   

There is only one fashion truck in St. Louis, Rack + Clutch.  

I had heard about it from a friend.  We were attending a clothing swap together and she floated the idea of setting up a Rack + Clutch event.  If we had enough people, perhaps it would drive to us.  I was intrigued. 

Buying food from Food Truck Friday is one of my favorite things, provided I beat the crowd, so it would stand to reason that I would like a mobile clothing store as well.

And I did.  I loved everything about it.  From the concept to the execution to my purchases, I was impressed.  The truck drives to different locations in the city, including outside large businesses and parks to get lunch hour customers.  (As I said, impressive and helpful idea!)

The truck is owned and operated by Emily Ponath.  She started Rack + Clutch in April of 2013.    Clearly, she is a smart business woman, and she couldn't have been more friendly. 

Friendliness is likely one of her survival skills.  You'd have to be friendly in such a small space.  

When the truck had more than 5 shoppers on board (This was a party after all!) it took a little negotiating and movement planning to not bump into people or wares.  But if you came in mentally prepared, that's not a problem; it's a logistical reality.

 

The amount of items and the layout was ingenious.  

There was a check out area, dressing room with enough space to not run into anything, racks of clothes, and 2 display cases of jewelry.  

As it happens, that day the truck's back rack was on sale.  Everything on it was 5 dollars.  The prices are generally fair (no single item over 100 dollars) but this was rock bottom low.  

I snapped up several dresses (I had a wedding to go to in a few hours and nothing planned to wear) and tried them on.

True to form, I had a difficult time choosing which frock to get, so I purchased all of them for about 16 dollars. 

This isn't completely representative of the pricing you'll experience on the truck when you go, so don't be misled.  Mine was a right time and right place experience.  I got to grab up some Winter items to make room for Spring's collection.

I would absolutely recommend following the Rack + Clutch truck on the website's calendar, Twitter, or Facebook.

Or, if you're looking for a fun get-together with girlfriends, get 15 buddies to commit and do what we did: schedule a private event. 

It's fun to see such a bright truck parked in your driveway!