Clear out your wardrbobe – use the old to make the new

Out with the old and in with the new?

Maybe you got new clothes for Christmas and you need some cupboard room, or maybe in the spirit of new year you’ve decided to look for a change in style. Maybe you just fancied going to the sales and a few things so wanted to get rid of old clothes. Whatever the reason a lot of people are throwing out clothes at this time of year.

Well let’s try and look at this differently. There is a lot you can do with unwanted clothes. One of the most basic ways is to use them as rags for dusting, but there are also so many inventive ways to upcycle clothes.

• T-shirts alone have many possibilities, If you want a change of style, ink prints, tie dye or cutting a t-shirt into different shapes can give a tired old garment a new lease of life. Or if your shirt is beyond saving there are all sorts of things you can turn it in to, such as a patchwork cushion or tear up the fabric and turn it into cool bracelets. Pleated t-shirt fabric could also be used as a pretty fashionable belt for your jeans.
• If you want to upcycle worn jeans and denims there are even more ideas – a very common upcycle project for denim is making a handbag and they can look really cool and can be very unique in the way you decorate them. Phone sleeves are also a good idea for upcycling denim.
• Another good idea for a bit later in the year, when the weather gets warmer, is to take your warm winter clothing and create a warm blanket ready for next winter.

Upcycled Memory Board

I decided to take on an upcycling project of my own. Before this I had only ever cut up my parents old t-shirts for school costumes, so I had a rake through some of my unwanted clothes to get my creative juices flowing and see what I could come up with. I decided to use two pairs of old jeans and a used cardboard box to make a memory board for my wall. I cut open jeans legs and pockets and used a bit of cardboard from a cut up piece of cardboard box.

As my arty instincts aren’t so good it took me a while to decide what to make, and when I had decided I felt like I didn’t have the skills to do it. With the use of tape, glue and scissors I managed to make the memory board. It may be messy at the back but luckily no one will see it if it’s on my wall. However, it goes to show no matter how limited you are in crafts and creativity, there is always something you can make! If you are really good and interested in crafts, you could easily make one or more of things I mentioned earlier in the blog.

Hopefully this has inspired you to try some upcycling of your own, and even though I’m proud of my creation, I’m sure you could come up with a lot better. So try and make a resolution this year, to make something new out of something old.

Other things you could do with your old clothes are swapping them with your friends or donating them. And Greener Kirkcaldy can help you do just that – bring unwanted clothes to their January Closet Clearout and you can swap them for something else or donate them and they’ll distribute them to local charities.