Now that the holiday season is upon us, the need to indulge my love for sparkle has found an outlet. I won’t be wearing a sequined top anytime soon, but I did put my thinking cap on to figure out ways to re-purpose clothing items into seasonal decorations! Since I am a fashion loving guy, it makes sense to use stylish items and re-purpose them in a new way! While shopping around the Goodwill store the other night, I came across three items. First, I spied this pale pink paillette covered satin handbag for $2.99. I was ecstatic to find an ‘80s retro hat with a brightly sequined hat band, also a steal at $2.99! Lastly, I picked up a metallic floral belt that glittered and spoke to me. It was $.99, an incredible deal. What did I do with them? Take a look.
The way to use clothing items for décor can be as simple or as elaborate as you like. I would suggest you don’t alter these items significantly, that way they could be used once again as clothing items, or even as costumes for a kids dress up box.
For the purse, functionality told me that I should fill it with something, but what? Maybe some Christmas ornaments? I decided to use a faux potted Poinsettia that I had purchased from another thrift shopping excursion. Boy did I get a great deal on that one! After simply plopping the entire thing inside the handbag, and adding some silver balls at the base of the plant, it was transformed into a glamorous holiday arrangement! The genius thing here is that the handbag was not altered in any way and could be used again for its original purpose!
The hat was a no-brainer when it came to displaying it. Since the sparkle was all on the hat band, I decided against filling the hat with something and instead just set it on a wooden Christmas tree that I happened to have. Voila! The colorful cap was now honored with a place of importance all its own. People have already commented on it as they walk into my home!
This year, to keep it green, I purchased a faux evergreen that was down on its luck at a resale shop. Once I fluffed the branches to clean it up, the tree looked amazing. The base however was a ceramic pot that was cracked. Not one to let that stop me, I wrapped some “snow drape” that had glitter in it around the base and cinched it in with the belt! I thought it looked awesome if I do say so myself.
Year round, Goodwill Industries of Southeastern Wisconsin helps others make their lives and those of their families better through job training, and other community programs they provide free of charge. Take a moment the next time you’re shopping, to ponder how YOU can repurpose items you love from Goodwill into beautiful holiday décor. Not only will you get something to help your home shine throughout the holidays, but you can also be proud of the fact that you helped make the season merrier for someone else!
