Deceased Husbands clothes/belongings.

I’m not sure what to do with my late husbands belongings and clothes. I have given some of his training clothes to friends and bike clothes will have to be sold on ebay as they cost a lot but I’m not sure what to do with his things in general.

He has lot’s of nice quality t-shirts, jeans etc and I don’t want to just leave them in a charity shop. Locally some of the shops have been very rude when I have taken bags of quality clothes to them so I wondered if anyone else has any suggestions.

I certainly wouldn’t do a bootsale as again people are not very kind. I was thinking about a homeless charity shelter but I can’t seem to find any locally.

I live near Romford, Essex but London is close. Does anyone else have any other suggestions about what to do?
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  • Nicki
    Nicki Posts: 8,166 Forumite
    I am very sorry for your loss.

    Sometimes churches can make use of good quality clothes either because they work with the homeless or because they send them abroad to countries where they work. You could contact some of your local ones if you specifically want them to go to charity.

    Alternatively branded clothes even second hand do sell quite well on bay. You could bundle them into sets of about 6 items to make them easier to list and post. And if you did want to go down the charitable route could donate the profits?

    I'd be inclined in your shoes to do the most impersonal way possible. The last thing you want a time like this is people being rude or ungrateful. Keeping it all at arms length might protect you from that.
  • peachyprice
    peachyprice Posts: 22,346
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    I’m not sure what to do with my late husbands belongings and clothes. I have given some of his training clothes to friends and bike clothes will have to be sold on ebay as they cost a lot but I’m not sure what to do with his things in general.

    He has lot’s of nice quality t-shirts, jeans etc and I don’t want to just leave them in a charity shop. Locally some of the shops have been very rude when I have taken bags of quality clothes to them so I wondered if anyone else has any suggestions.

    I certainly wouldn’t do a bootsale as again people are not very kind. I was thinking about a homeless charity shelter but I can’t seem to find any locally.

    I live near Romford, Essex but London is close. Does anyone else have any other suggestions about what to do?

    I live not far from you. One of the mums at school runs a soup kitchen for the homeless, I'm sure they take in clothes. I'll ask her if I see her this afternoon. I think the shelter is Ilford way.
    Accept your past without regret, handle your present with confidence and face your future without fear
  • We took a lot of my late Father's things to a charity shop a good half hour away, so that we didn't see his things being worn by other people. Maybe a trip half hour away to a charity shop that you've already phoned and explained what you're doing might be worth a try?
    It aint over til I've done singing....
  • onlyroz
    onlyroz Posts: 17,661
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    Round our way there is a recycle bin for clothing, textiles etc. I think the better quality things are reused as they are, and the tatty stuff is somehow shredded up and re-woven.
  • There are some great crafters on facebook that make rememberance animals out of clothes... just a thought,

    http://www.facebook.com/#!/sendinthetroops

    K x
    ]
  • McKneff
    McKneff Posts: 38,817
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    Have you actually googled 'homeless charities' There are so many about,

    Give it a try, there may be one closer than you think.
    make the most of it, we are only here for the weekend.
    and we will never, ever return.
  • Thanks so much for the replies, they've all helped a lot.

    Miss_marsters- I will have a look at that when I'm at home, will be interesting (at work now).
  • I'm sorry for your loss.

    I recently read an article about a businesswoman in Nottingham who ran a charity called Stylicious which uses donated clothes to kit unemployed people out for job interviews and work placements. There's a similar charity called Dress for Success which does the same in London, but it's women's clothing only for the moment. Perhaps there's something similar in your area?

    The other suggestions about homeless charites are great, but if you've got some formal business wear to give to a good home, this could be a good idea.
  • My mum died in June this year and my dad asked my sister and I to sort and dispose of her things.

    We had a very tearful but also comical day together, putting clothes, shoes, wigs (she had cancer and has lost her own hair)into various bags which we then donated to our local hospice and cancer charity shops. Before we handed the items in we got a "gift aid" card so the charities would be able to claim tax back on the donation. We have since had letters from them stating they have raised over £150 from our donations so far. There were several clothes items that we just could bear to part with, couldnt bear the thought of someone else wearing those particular items, they were very distinctive and we would have recognised them immediately if we had seen someone wearing them. Those items we kept ourselves, not to wear, but to hug and be able to touch and smell (its helping us with our grief) and of course remember how fantastic Mum looked when she was wearing them.

    Linda
  • Hermia
    Hermia Posts: 4,473
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    When my dad died my mum was put in touch with an elderly man who had fallen on hard times (the doctor's surgery she goes to has other community workers in there too and I think they arranged it). The poor man was walking around in clothes that were almost falling apart. He came to look at my dad's clothes and was absolutely delighted because he and my dad were exactly the same shape/height.
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