Who doesn’t look at their wardrobe now and then and feel an overwhelming sense of apathy? It’s so much easier to just buy new clothes, chasing that thrill of “where has this been all my life?” But there’s a few key issues with that. Waste is a biggy (how many bags of clothes do you chuck a year, be honest now) but also cost (who really can afford a new wardrobe every season?) and where they are coming from? The thing is, the things in your wardrobe are there because at one time or another you loved them. To fix them or give them a refresher is relatively simple.
My Betty and I pulled together a designer workshop as part of Zero Waste Scotland’s Love Your Clothes intensive. We asked 4 of our favourite designers to share some basic upcycling skills that were easily transferable to revamp your wardrobe. Everything from distressing, printing to hemming and adding zips. We had a crazy amount of fabric donated thanks to A1 Textiles and the time and talent of ChouChou, Nikki McWilliams, Jennie Loof and Danni McWilliams to aid us as we found new ways to give our wardrobe some sweet sweet loving.
Denim was the real biggy on the day with grating picking, slicing and studding proving to be oddly therapeutic and a great way to give your denim new life. I adored Betty’s rockabilly inspired dalmatian denim jacket and Miss West End Girl’s weather inspired coat with sequins and cute cloud prints.
I spent my day learning to sew, cropping and hemming a top as well as giving pom poms a shot. The thing is, I’d built this whole sewing, stitching, knitting thing in my head as the ultimate big bad but when it got down to it, it was relatively straight forward (thanks in no small part to our talented designers.)
It was great to see what everyone came up with with a few simple bits and bobs you can find around the house. I think I may well and truly have the upcycling bug! Think you’ll turn your hand at it?