It May Be Time to Say Goodbye to Second Hand Clothing

The Simple Dollar is a very informative blog that I subscribe to, which is written and maintained by Trent who writes about finances. I read an article by him this weekend that surprised me – Hand-Me-Down Clothes in the Post Hand-Me-Down Era: Has Consumerism Gone Too Far?.

If you buy used clothing for your children, this is a must read. To summarize this article, next month, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act will require that all items manufactured for children ages 12 years and younger will need to be tested for lead and phthalates. This includes clothing, toys, jewelry, backpacks, etc. Due to the cost of this, it seems that many second hand shops will either have to stop carrying children’s clothing or go out of business.

Personally, I am glad they are trying to make sure items made for children are safe. However, it makes sense to me to begin marking items that have been tested and are safe, to make things clear and avoid confusion – and then to allow people to make the choice if they want to buy used clothing that may not have been tested. There are so many items manufactured that are not safe, but they have warning labels on them, so people have the choice to buy or not to buy them.

If this act is passed and makes purchasing untested items illegal, will you still try to buy them or will you comply with the law? How would this affect your family?

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