The growth of thrifting and second-hand fashion has given birth to a whole new way to dress and express yourself, giving fashion lovers a cheap and accessible way to access unique pieces that you can’t buy from mainstream fashion stores. But even though this is a cheap and sustainable way to achieve the style you’ve always wanted, what happens to the clothes that you already have?

Upcycling is the perfect bridge between buying second-hand and building a wardrobe that you actually love, allowing you to create new items from clothes that you already own, often through a few cuts and a bit of sewing. Not only can this transform your current clothes, but it can also extend to thifting when you have built up your skill set, opening up the doors when you do shop second hand, so that the top of your dreams that you saw in a thrift shop for 3 dollars but was too big, can be made to fit you.

So, if this sounds like something that could transform your wardrobe, but you have no idea how or where to start, this blog will tell you everything you need to know to make your old clothes new again.

Seeing Potential, Not Problems

Upcycling isn’t just a physical process; it’s a mental one too. The first step to upcycling your clothing is to mentally shift your mind to see potential and what an item could be. To happen, you must look past clothing sizing, colour and details of items which can make them look dated, to see what they could be.

Training the eye to notice elements such as fabric quality, silhouettes and the structure of items through creating moodboards and style inspiration boards on Pinterest and consuming upcycling content. Through this mental training, you can start to notice potential in everyday items and see flaws as opportunities for creativity and customization.

How To Thrift With Upcycling In Mind

Thrifting to upcycle can be trickier than upcycling your own clothes, as you don’t want to buy an item to poorly upcycle it and have it end up in the bin. To negate the chances of an upcycling disaster, it’s important to remember a few things to make the upcycling process easier and more successful with thrifted items. It’s important to create a list of items that you’re after when thrifting to cycle with specific requirements, such as colour or fit, to avoid mindlessly buying items that are not appropriate. 

Stretch fabrics for sewing- When searching for thrift items to upcycle, it’s best to opt for those with stretch fabric, as these are the easiest to work with when it comes to sewing. A stretch cotton is very forgiving, meaning there is less pressure to sew it to your exact measurements.

Upcycle-friendly garments- If you’re not ready just yet to start sewing, there are some upcycle-friendly garments that you should buy from thrift stores that only require a pair of scissors to alter. Items such as oversized shirts, denim and knitwear are easy to alter and can look extremely effective when cut.

Easily Upcycling Techniques That Anyone Can Try

There are some beginner, easy methods that beginners should know when they are dipping their toes into the world of upcycling. A few of these are:

• Cropping, hemming and tapering
• Dyeing and bleaching
• Button swaps and hardware changes
• Layering or repurposing garments

Beginners should focus on low-skilled, high-impact changes that can transform an item of clothing without advanced sewing skills.

Taking It Further: Creative Transformations

For more advanced thrift flippers, there are a few upcycling ideas that require more sewing and skill to try. Some of these ideas include turning dresses into two-piece sets by cutting them in half and then sewing elastic to the skirt, combining multiple garments into one, such as combining a cushion and an old top to make a skirt or altering silhouettes, such as making a t-shirt fitted.

However, all alterations should be personal and suit your style, and this can be achieved through experimentation. This is how you can achieve truly unique and one-of-a-kind pieces that will stay in your wardrobe forever.

Building A Cohesive, Wearable Wardrobe

One of the biggest pitfalls of upcycling is ending up with a wardrobe full of interesting pieces that don’t actually work together. To avoid this, you should think in terms of cohesion rather than individual statement pieces. This involves creating a colour palette that works together so you can mix and match pieces, and ensuring you leave a few basic pieces in your collection as neutral bases. It’s also beneficial to buy and create a piece that can span across seasons, so that you can get use out of the items all the time throughout the year. Doing this means that you have a fully functional wardrobe to last the whole year.