Oprah Winfrey Cleans Out Her Closet, Lists 250 Items On Ebay Starting At 99 Cents Each
Oprah Winfrey has shed nearly 30 pounds since teaming with Weight Watchers last fall, and now the media mogul is doing some more shedding. Oprah has cleanied out her closet to benefit her school in South Africa. According to ABC News, Oprah has turned to eBay to curate an action of more than 250 items from her own closet, with all proceeds going to The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls, the school Winfrey founded in 2007 for academically gifted and talented girls who come from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Oprah Winfrey’s closet cleanout comes in conjunction with her O magazine cover story, “Make Room For a New you.” The popular magazine features tips for clearing out closets to lighten your load. And based on this supersized auction, Oprah really lightened hers.
.@Oprah's @eBay4CharityUS auction is LIVE! Browse & bid to support girls in South Africa: https://t.co/oxJHheDL3l pic.twitter.com/K8Gc7iUo4V
— eBay Newsroom (@eBayNewsroom) March 1, 2016
Many of the items included in Oprah’s eBay auction will be recognizable to fans. In addition to selling several O magazine cover shoot dresses that she posed in, Oprah’s unloading a top she wore when she and bestie Gayle Smith hit the road for their famous 2009 “Oprah and Gayle’s New Adventure” road trip. In addition, viewers may remember the embellished Naeem Khan skirt that Oprah wore on the 20th season premiere of The Oprah Winfrey Show. There are also designer clothing pieces, shoes and accessories from Alexander McQueen, Dolce and Gabanna, Oscar de la Renta, Donna Karan, Manolo Blahnik and more. The best part? Bidding starts at just 99 cents per item. While Oprah fans likely won’t get dollar store deals on these items, they can have a piece of Winfrey’s past while helping out a cause close to her heart.
Oprah Winfrey cleared out her “work” closet after closing her Chicago-based Harpo Studios, where she helmed The Oprah Winfey Show for 25 years. In an interview with The Coveteur, Winfrey dished on why she was ditching her designer duds now that her talk show is no more.
“I just don’t need all this intense color, the embellishment, the heels anymore. When you’re in front of TV cameras every day, you have to stand out, but I’m in a different place now, and those things no longer serve me.”
O magazine creative director Adam Glassman said fans can own a piece of television history while supporting a great cause.
“Most of these items are timeless and classic pieces. They have appeared on the covers of the magazine or episodes of her show, which make them so special.”
Winfrey and Glassman also revealed that one item didn’t make it from Oprah’s closet to the charity auction. A yellow-and-black “bumble bee” dress that both of them agreed had to go somehow ended up in Gayle’s closet.
Of course, this isn’t the first time Oprah Winfrey has hosted a high-profile eBay auction. Not only has she auctioned off her old designer outfits in the past, but she even had a supersized sale when she cleaned out her Montecito mansion in 2013. According to the Los Angeles Times, Oprah’s “yard sale” boasted items like hand-wrought iron panels from her staircase, a green and white plaid George Smith couch, and a Louis XVI chest and Louis XV armchairs in hand-embroidered yellow silk upholstery.
The talk show titan sold the household items to benefit her Leadership Academy after she decided that her ornate home no longer represented her lifestyle. Oprah commissioned designer Rose Tarlow to makeover the 23,000 square-foot mansion because her tastes had changed, so she coordinated the sale of ornate items from the Montecito home, as well as items from her Chicago apartment and her homes in Indiana and Maui.
As for Oprah Winfrey’s designer clothing action, bidding runs through March 10.
Take a look at the video below to see some of the items up for grabs in Oprah Winfrey’s eBay auction.
[Photo By Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images]
