Living in the Ikea era, it is difficult to find good quality affordable furniture that doesn’t come in a flatpack format. While I enjoy my Billy bookcase just as much as the next girl, the idea of having the same cookie cutter furniture as every other 20-something in the world makes me slightly nauseous. I absolutely hate walking into friends’ apartments and finding an identical sofa, cushions and artwork. What has happened to originality and personal style? Where can you find affordable and unique items? Look no further than Freecycle!

The freecycle revolution has hit, and is here to stay. For whatever reason, most of us collect junk we don’t need and end up with cluttered homes. Well instead of throwing out unwanted items meaning that they end their days in a landfill site, isn’t it just possible that your trash could be someone else’s treasure? I freely admit to being a bit of a hoarder; I rarely throw anything away until the day comes where I feel overly motivated to get organised and rid myself of the jumble of magazines, books, blankets and ornaments that I have amassed. But I know that instead of putting my formerly-loved picture frame into the bin (which involves second and third guessing before it goes trashwards  – I paid for that, surely it has some worth!) I can easily post it onto the site,  and give it to someone who will appreciate it and get some use out of it. Using freecycle means helping out the environment as well as you fellow human beings!

The site is easy to use – you sign up for an account, find the group closest to you, and join their Yahoo Group. Current membership stands at 5,531,000 across 4,556 communities, so it is more than likely you can find one in your area!  The site is very user friendly; entries of items available are listed in the same forum which makes it easy to see what is up for grabs. Items are labelled “offered” “taken” or “wanted” and entries are generally clear and very concise. All scratches or marks are detailed, as well as if the Freecycle members own pets or smoke.

Before I started using freecycle, I was familiar with the concept – there is an expat website  I have used where people sell their belongings before they move back home. In fact this is where I found most of my furniture, and at bargainous prices! But Freecycle is different; the members on the site are friendly, helpful and enthusiastic about giving things about – there’s a real sense of community. And it isn’t just furniture either – on the Munich site, you can find baby formula milk, craft supplies, electronics and pretty much anything else you can imagine. Membership of the site is free and anyone can join and begin freecycling. I moved into a new flat in April, taking with me only my bed and couch. Everything else in my apartment is freecycled from the Munich and surrounding areas.  With a little patience, I had no problem finding what I needed and at the same time was able to give someone else all of my moving boxes once the dust had settled.  A great part of the fun is meeting the people you freecycle with – everyone is so friendly and really glad to see their stuff go into good hands. So the next time you decide to clean out or fill in your home, check out freecycle.org and see what you can do to help the earth a little!