Taking the Old and Making it New

story by Mikko Blais photos by Dylan Hanson design and illustration by Rody Farr

It’s a Saturday morning and in a couple hours you have lunch with some friends. But there is a huge problem, you’re ripping clothes out of your closet and yet you can’t find anything to wear. Your room now looks like a wasteland with things thrown around and clothes draped over every piece of furniture and appliance. But just as you are about to give up hope on finding a good outfit, you see two shirts overlapped on the ground and think, “wait, that would be beautiful.” It’s with this idea that you grab a pair of scissors, rummage through your drawers for thread and start your first upcycling project. A project that will open your eyes to a whole new world of fashion and style.

Upcycling is an innovative way to revamp your style on a budget. From making entirely new outfits to simply altering your favorite pair of shorts, the possibilities are limitless. If you like thrifting and upgrading your fashion expertise, upcycling just might be for you. But beyond style, upcycling has an incredibly lasting effect on the world around us. Andrea Eklund a CWU professor and Program Coordinator of the Apparel, Textiles and Marketing program, explains that “Taking something that would otherwise be thrown in the garbage or not sued anymore, and reusing it in a different way.” Eklund says she enjoys many things about upcycling, but explains her favorite part is its capacity to communicate individuality. “When you upcycle you are putting a personal spin on it. It is what you like, it is your vision and seeing that vision come to life is really cool.” Eklund explains that even when you thrift, the clothes still find their way into dumps and landfills. But with upcycling those clothes are always becoming something new and therefore never even come close to becoming garbage. “Thrifting is just going to a thrift store and buying something, Upcycling is more like you’re redesigning something,” Eklund says.

Eklund explains that upcycling is something that is talked about in her department and that some students do upcycling as projects. “I had a student, he designed his entire line, he went and found old men’s suits and he cut them up and redesigned them into all new clothing. So he used all the fabric within all his designs,” Eklund says. Eklund also explained this is something that many students do: take old garments and cut them up to use the pieces for something new. She says that students are taught to look for ways to use material and be resourceful and eliminate waste. Ashley Castro, a CWU Senior and Apparel, Textile and Marketing major, says her favorite thing about upcycling is being able to achieve a strong personal style. “Making it [clothes] your own, understanding that no one else can have that same style but you,” Castro says. Castro explains that people tend to follow trends but upcycling allows for people to personalize their wardrobes even more. “People are really intimidated by it and people think you need to do a big project but it can really be anything you want,” Castro says. Castro says extensive experience or high level skills aren’t necessary for those who want to start upcycling.

10%

Fast Fashion’s Carbon Footprint - The Carbon Literacy Project 1.2 billion tonnes of carbon emissions are released by the fashion industry every year.

research has predicted the fashion industry could account for 26% of carbon emissions by 2050.

The fashion industry is the second-largest industrial polluter, accounting for 10% of global pollution, ranking higher than emissions from air travel

92 Million Tonnes of Textiles Waste is Produced Every Year

2.6 Million Tonnes of Returned Clothes Ended Up in Landfills in 2020 in the U.S. Alone

Research has shown that extending the lifecycle of an item of clothing by nine months can drastically reduce its carbon footprint.

The Average U.S. Consumer Throws Away 81.5lbs of Clothes Every Year

Eklund ehoces a similar point, “Anyone can do it no matter your skill set, there are a million techniques.” But she does explain that there are times when the final product won’t always turn out the way it was planned. “They have this vision and they found something and ripped it apart and the fabric wasn’t what they thought it would be.” She says that even though problems can occur, it is important to see the failures as learning opportunities. “A big part of our program is yes, you’re going to make mistakes. You’re going to have things go wrong, what did you learn from it and how can you make a different choice going forward,” she says. This learning mindset is something that she urges people to have when they are trying to upcycle themselves, because there are always going to be opportunities to make something new. Castro says those new to upcyclnig should give themselves some margin for eroor when selecting materials to work with. “Personally, I always like to go one size higher that way there’s a bit more room to really explore what you can do with it.” She adds that something to think about implementing are patterns. “Patterns are really good too, especially when it’s a dress and it’s a bit more of an older style or trend that’s not very in right now,” Castro says. “You can make it modernized, which I really like. So patterns, sizes, and the overall look you’re going for.” Eklund advises that when you’re ready to upcycle, it is easiest to start by looking at old and tattered pieces of clothing and trying to find ways to improve and make them wearable again.

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