What Do You Do With the Clothes Your Kids Outgrow?

What do you do with the clothes your kids outgrow?  Leave them piled up in the basement?  Donate them?  Ebay them?  Have garage sales?  Or do you bring them to a children's resale store?  While I know that some of these strategies yield higher returns than others, to me, time is also important.  I have tried all of these methods at one point or another.  And yes, ebaying did bring in more money per item, but it was also very time consuming.  And there were lots of items that did not go.  I did garage sales- probably the most time consuming for me (although I'm sure some of you moms have this down to a science!).  But, very few people showed up the days I had my sales (two years in a row!), and I felt again that the time was not worth the money.

So, after trial and error, I have a system in place to move the clothes my boys have outgrown out of the basement in a timely manner that allows me to recoup at least some of their value. Here's how I do it.  First, I separate out the stuff that is really worn out- that gets donated off the bat.  Second, I pack up the stuff that is name brand or still has lots of life left to it (including shoes!), and I bring it to the resale store Once Upon a Child.  They go through it and pick what they want to "buy".  They offer either cash for your items, or will give you 10% more in-store credit.  I usually go the in-store credit route, as the store closest to us often has some nice things.  I pick up gently used clothes and toys.  I've gotten matching snowboards for my kids, a really big John Deer tractor, lego sets, Imaginext castles, new PJs, jeans, extra snowpants, and more!   In my mind, the money I've spent on the clothes is already gone and has served its purpose... anything I get in return is a great bonus!  It's fun to shop with "free" money.

The items that Once Upon a Child does not want (and there is usually a good pile left), I give to one our neighbors who has a boy younger than ours.  That way nothing is wasted, I haven't spent hours and hours on the process, I get what I can for the value that is left in the clothes, and then I get to help out a friend too.  It works for me.  What works for you?