How would you like to borrow outfits for fancy events FOR FREE from your local library? You just turn up with your library card, browse the rails of beautiful, preloved clothing offering everything from ballgowns to dresses for the mother of the bride to hats and handbags, available in a wide range of sizes.
Sounds too good to be true? Well, it isn’t! Introducing “With Love From…” a shared wardrobe concept, lending party, event clothes and accessories via Oswestry library (soon to launch in Shrewsbury library), enabling people to borrow lovely clothes just like books – and we also offer dressing up bags for kids! It’s completely FREE!
You can choose up to 10 items (so you can have a good try on session at home) and check them out for 3 weeks. No more dragging yourself around the shops, flinching at price tags, and regretting having said yes to the event as you don’t think you’ll ever wear your new outfit again, meaning you get to keep more of your hard-earned cash so your budget stretches further; plus, you can get to wear something different to every event you go to!
All you need is a Shropshire library card, and all we ask is that items are returned in the condition they were borrowed in.
If something does happen to the items while they are on loan, we collaborate with local repair café teams where possible and if items are beyond repair, we put them into a collection for our sustainable fashion workshops where they are customised and upcycled.
Since January 2025, of the 750 items donated to Oswestry library shared wardrobe, 423 were checked out, 99 were renewed and 77 of those were purchased. Pretty impressive.
But aside from the fun of borrowing clothes for free, it also means that we stop clothing going unnecessarily into landfill.
The hard facts are that the current fashion system is extremely harmful to people and planet. It can take around 2,700 litres of water to make one cotton t-shirt. ONE! And approx. 70% of clothing today is made from synthetic fibres, which is basically plastic – and plastic is made from fossil fuels. Each year, the UK generates around 1.45 million tonnes of used textiles, with nearly 350,000 tonnes ending up in landfill instead of being recycled or reused. Shockingly, one bin truck full of textiles is sent to landfill or incinerated EVERY SINGLE SECOND. Think about that.
However, there is good news – extending the lifespan of clothing by just nine months can reduce its carbon footprint by up to 20%; similar research suggests that an extra 18 months of wear could roughly double that saving. By simply by sharing our wardrobes, donating clothes we no longer wear and keeping them in circulation we can slow down the fashion cycle, reduce waste and protect the earth’s precious resources. We want people to keep re-wearing and sharing for as long as possible, reducing their carbon footprint easily, one party / wedding / prom at a time.
With Love From … is on a mission to bring joy to recycling, re-wearing and re-using. Grab your library card and come and have fun browsing through our clothes, hats, bags, and shoes. And don’t forget, it’s completely FREE!
By Pamela Green, volunteer
