Saving The Planet and Getting Some Really Nice Stuff For Free!

I was walking through Odiham a couple of days ago when I walked past the house of a family who were having a bit of a clear out. There was a skip in the driveway full of rubbish and a whole collection of bits and bobs on the floor. It reminded me of the skips that were outside what used to be Number 81 and The Grapevine Delicatessen a while ago and all the perfectly good stuff that was being thrown out and going to waste.

So I thought I'd post some information about freecycle. If you haven't already heard of it freecycle is a very simple and brilliant idea.

This is how their website describes it...

The Freecycle Network™ is made up of 4,586 groups with 5,705,699 members across the globe. It's a grassroots and entirely nonprofit movement of people who are giving (and getting) stuff for free in their own towns and thus keeping good stuff out of landfills.

Membership is free, and everything posted must be FREE, legal and appropriate for all ages. To view the items being given away or sought in the Basingstoke area, you must be a member of the local group. To view the local group posts, visit the local Yahoo Group where they are located by clicking on the link below.

Visit the Basingstoke area Freecycle Group page

My version - if it's something that you think might be useful to someone else (and you'll be amazed at some of the things other people think are useful!) then before you throw it in the bin or take it down the dump post it on freecycle. You save on landfill, recycle something that would have been thrown away and save yourself the time and petrol it takes to get it to the tip.

The other side to freecycle is that you get the chance to ask for things. Whenever someone posts an item that they don't want, if it's something you need then just drop them an email and ask for it. You don't always get it of course, there are a lot of people out there who might be after it but you might be lucky and all you have to do is go and collect it. I've got some fantastic stuff from freecycle that would have gone to the dump otherwise. A pine coffee table, bookshelves, an exercise bike (re freecycled when I joined the gym) books, a tent, kilner jars (put to good use making apple vodka) a computer desk and chair to name but a few.

It's such a great idea everyone should join. Help save the planet and keep things out of landfill.