We all have one or two treasures in our closet that we haven't worn for ages but still can't bear to part with. Over time, we accumulate an impressive amount of clothes that we no longer have any use for. But that doesn't have to be the case! Thanks to our upcycling ideas, your old clothes will shine in new splendor.
You've probably heard the term, which is made up of “up” and “recycling”, a lot in connection with clothing. It refers to the reuse and simultaneous upgrading of an item. With a little creativity and skill, you can give your clothes a second life thanks to upcycling. On the one hand, this benefits the environment in the spirit of slow fashion, as valuable resources are conserved and less waste is produced. On the other hand, you also save money on new clothes and can let off steam creatively. Sounds good? Then here are our upcycling ideas.
Whether jeans, T-shirt, sweater or shirt – almost any item of clothing can be turned into something new thanks to upcycling. You basically have two options: You can add value to an item using certain textile techniques or use the old fabric to create something completely new. Of course, the decision is entirely up to you – but be sure to weigh up in advance what will ultimately benefit you more.
Have you ever heard of Sashiko? This is a Japanese embellishment technique in which you can embroider various motifs on your clothing using the so-called preliminary stitch. All you need for this:
· selected item of clothing
· embroidery thread
· embroidery needle
· a marking pen or chalk pen
· embroidery hoop, if available
And you're ready to start upcycling your clothes:
- Transfer your desired pattern to the right side of the fabric with the marking pen and clamp it in the embroidery hoop (if you have one, otherwise you can do without it).
- Now work along the lines in even stitches. Pull the thread gently so that the stitches lie flat on the fabric.
- It is best to use several shorter threads instead of one long one, as this makes stitching more comfortable.
- To better control the width of the stitches, pick up several stitches at once on the embroidery needle.
- To make the motif clearer at the end, choose a slightly longer distance at intersections.
Thanks to Sashiko, your old garment will become a truly unique piece. This makes upcycling your clothes really fun!
With this upcycling idea, you can embroider wonderful patterns not only on your clothes such as different shirts, skirts or trousers, but also on towels, fabric bags or even your bed linen. This makes old things look like new in no time.
Is your old clothing damaged? Then you can alternatively use Kintsugi to repair them and at the same time upgrade them. With this ancient Japanese joining technique, the flaws are not covered up, but transformed into a beautiful element of the clothing. Here you will find out in detail how you can, for example, repair and upgrade a wool sweater with Kintsugi or give a torn T-shirt a new life thanks to Kintsugi.
If you don't see a way to upgrade an old piece of clothing that suits you, you can at least use the fabric to create something completely new and practical. For example, you can make handy potholders out of an old pair of sturdy jeans by simply sewing several small pieces of jeans together and adding a practical loop to the end product. Jeans can be turned into denim shorts just as easily and quickly by cutting off the legs and either letting the ends fray or sewing them around. With a little imagination, almost any piece of clothing can be transformed into something new and useful.
When upcycling clothing, it is of course a great advantage if you can sew. But even without sewing experience, you have many ways to reuse your clothing sensibly. For example, you can easily turn an old T-shirt into a skirt or a bag - without sewing at all. We explain exactly how this works in our article on T-shirt upcycling. Even old ties can be used to create wonderful new things, which you can find out more about in the article “Upcycling ties”.
And finally, a little advice from us to you: always take good care of your clothes, and when they have served their purpose, do everything you can to give them a new life.