The end of an old year and the beginning of a new one means resolutions. Many of us set goals at this time, vowing to make the next year better than the last year. If you make green New Year's resolutions, you can also help make the world a better place than it was last year. When you resolve to make your wardrobe greener for 2009, you can help the environment in addition to yourself.

Here are some ideas for green clothing resolutions:

Think about what you need. Vow to consider new purchases. Before buying new clothing, think about what you would wear it for and how it might be used. If you are not planning to wear it a great deal and if you cannot think of several ways to incorporate into outfits using what you already have, perhaps it is not a good idea to buy. After all, new clothing uses a tremendous amount of resources.

Donate unused clothing. If you have clothing that is in good condition, donate it so that it can be recycled. Better yet, resolve to go to at least one fashion swap in 2009. Take your old clothes and trade them for something that is new to you. The best way to be green with your wardrobe is to wear recycled clothing.

Look at where your clothing is coming from. Clothing shipped from far away places uses resources and pollutes the air due to shipping. Additionally, some countries have lax environmental laws, and this means the production of your clothing could be bad for the environment. Instead, try to buy clothing that has been produced closer to home.

Consider what your clothing is made from. In addition to where your clothing is coming from, think about what it is made of. Consider organic cotton clothing and shoes with soles made from recycled tires. These products are less damaging to the environment and offer green clothing alternatives that cannot be had with some of the more traditional materials.

One of the rules of green clothing is to use second hand clothing. This is because clothing that is already made does not use additional resources. Reused clothing is actually the greenest clothing there is, which can seem counterintuitive to some. After reused clothing, clothing that is made from recycled materials is the greenest. In fact, clothing made from recycled materials is often (but not always) greener than clothing made from organically grown materials. The processing needed to turn the organic fibers into cloth uses large amounts of resources.

Recycled Clothing from Man-made Materials
It seems like a contradiction to look for clothing made from man-made materials; so many people know how damaging they can be. However, because of their sturdiness and their specific qualities, man-made materials are often recycled into other things. You may actually end up wearing clothing from man-made materials that is environmentally friendly.

You should consider the processes that clothing has gone through in order to become a wearable product. This is important, since the process that the clothing undergoes can have more of an impact on the environment than anything else. Also, consider that making something new, even if it is made from organic cotton, can be harmful to the environment when compared with something reused or recycled. These types of reused and recycled items, since they have already been produced, aren't usually using additional resources.

However, if you cannot find something suitable from recycled, man-made materials or something second hand, it is a good idea to look for organically grown materials. One of the worst things that you can get -- at least from an environmental standpoint -- is traditionally grown cotton. The pesticides, large amounts of water and other issues associated with regular cotton make it very resource-intensive.

Even though it may seem odd, consider clothing made from recycled, man-made materials, which translates into fewer things going to your local landfill.