I recently noticed a movement in fashion that is hard to miss. Even if you’re not on social media, or don’t keep up with the industry, it’s likely you’ve seen it too. Whether it be high-end designers or everyday consumers, everyone across the fashion industry appears to have embraced upcycling.
It’s a timeless practice, but it’s growing popularity in ways that are brand new. I have seen Tik Tok creators make a dress out of an NFL jersey and blankets into sweatshirts. Even less extreme clothing modifications like cutting the collars off crewnecks or making patch-work pieces are examples of upcycling too.
Upcycling is the creation of something new from old materials by repairing, refurbishing or repurposing them and it is not exclusive to just fashion. The sustainable hobby can be used to make all sorts of different trinkets and purposeful goods.
[RELATED: COLUMN: Finding solace in Madeline The Person's EP]
Since upcycling in its essence is repairing and giving meaning to no longer useful goods, it’s difficult to find an origin to such an intuitive human practice: resourcefulness. But there was a time when it turned from a method of practicality into an expressive art form.
A brief history of fashion upcycling
Upcycling is the child of desperate times.
During World War II, Great Britain announced a clothing ration limiting the amount of new clothing people could buy from June 1, 1941 until 1949. At the same time, Britain ran the “Make do and Mend” campaign. The campaign encouraged citizens to repurpose clothes they already had so textiles could be used for the war effort instead. Not only did the campaign ads teach citizens how to transform old into new, but also how to take care of garments so they can last longer.
But when it comes to fashion, upcycling means much more than just thrifting, patching a hole or replacing a button.
Reiner Pilz, a German engineer, coined the term “upcycling” in a 1994 interview for the architecture and antiques magazine “Salvo”, where he referred to recycling as “down cycling,” and said instead that, “what we need is upcycling, where old products are given more value, not less.”
What Pilz meant by “value” is ambiguous as everyone finds value differently. So, what value does the currently popular take on upcycling create? What time of need are we in that has encouraged the practice of upcycling to become so ubiquitous?
Contemporarily, fashion connoisseurs need individuality and sustainability.
[RELATED: Step Afrika! to open IU Auditorium 2023-2024 season]
Saturation of aesthetics
Coquette. Coastal cowgirl. Coastal grandma. Quiet luxury. E-Boys.
All are manufactured fashion buzzwords curated to categorize you and your style into an aesthetic, one that encourages consumers to buy hyper specific products to fit a certain mold. Style aesthetics aren’t completely bad, but they lack originality.
Trying to adhere to a singular aesthetic limits expression — and upcycling provides a solution. There is such a surplus of predefined styles, but upcycling is an opportunity for customization, allowing people to create something new and one-of-a-kind that won’t be found anywhere else.
It's all about accessibility, too. Sustainability and creative expression don’t have to be difficult.
In the era of micro-trends and overconsumption, upcycling gives us the tools to exercise self-expression in the aesthetic-dominated fashion ecosystem.
Reduce, reuse and recycle
The need for sustainability in the apparel industry is not new, groundbreaking information. It is a heavy weight on the shoulders of both the current and future generations of fashion creators and consumers.
Choosing to upcycle makes statement about sustainability. It is a solution to the problem of excess waste and shopping. In terms of textile waste, 85% of all textiles end up in landfills on a yearly basis — equivalent to approximately 81.5 pounds per person every year. Upcycling helps save clothes from going to landfills by showing people they can give their clothes new life.
In the past, upcycling gained popularity during times of crisis due to a lack of supplies. This time of need is driven rather by an enormous surplus of textiles. Today’s crisis is the search for a solution to major apparel waste.
Ultimately, the creativity of designers and consumers who transform their wardrobes through upcycling is truly admirable. Thinking about the current state of the planet can be disheartening and discouraging to fashion lovers. You don’t have to stop engaging in fashion altogether to be accountable. Times of need leave room for innovation and creativity.
Upcycling is not a new solution, but it serves to new problems in the face of 21st century sustainability and fashion.
