Dumpster diving – searching through the trash to retrieve items others have thrown away – isn’t a subject I’ve given much thought to as a frugal solution. (My thoughts on it have tended to be worries about potential identity theft.) However, this week’s “E-Journal” from the American Bar Association carried the headline Law Grad Spots Stylish Attire in Trash, prompting me to pay extra attention. (Most weeks, there isn’t much that catches my attention, though the one about a prisoner convicted for self-love was interesting.)
Apparently, recently-graduated law student Lauri Apple, who is currently unemployed, is an avid dumpster diver, and runs her own blog – the aptly-titled FoundClothing – about her dumpster-diving adventures.
The Chicago Tribune featured Lauri on August 5th, and the ABA picked the story up from there, expounding on the money-saving and environmentally-friendly practice.
According to Lauri, the dumpsters of New York City are overflowing with designer duds waiting to be dived, but Chicago has it’s own sartorial treasures. “I see something every day, and a lot of the stuff, it miraculously fits.”
I’ve personally never gone fashion fishing in File 13, but I have found some wonderful couture castoffs in my local Goodwill. If Lauri’s blog is any indication, America’s dustbins are brimming with designer clothes just waiting to be rescued.
Lauri’s story moves me to ask: Have any of you guys out there been dumpster diving, and if so, what’ve you found? Share your “trashy tales” in the comments.