Upcycling clothes - a big project


Last weekend was our school's annual carnival. This is a great day each year - the kids have so much fun, but it's also the school's biggest fundraiser.

I've had an idea swirling around in my head for the past year or two that I finally decided to put into practice.

I went to the clothes stall towards the end of the evening and asked if I could take some of the left over clothes at the end of the day to use for next year's carnival.  They were more than happy to let me rummage through and take away a few bags.

They're now all washed and sorted - and I'm excited with the selection I have to work with!

Lots of lovely jeans...


Even some pretty coloured ones!


Shorts and pants - good strong fabric!


My plan is to make bags, notebook folders, pouches and who knows what else.
Then at next year's carnival have an upcycled, sustainable stall to raise funds for the school - and also raise awareness - getting people into the idea of,

"Use What You've Got"

Now I've committed to this project - it's going to take some planning and lots of hard work, but I think it could be the start of something worthwhile, educational, ongoing and profitable!

Any suggestions of things to make with these clothes would be very welcome!

Has anyone else ever taken on a similar task? I'd love to hear any thoughts or ideas.


Jill
Posted by Jill
Labels:

9 comments:

  1. Pam @Threading My WayOctober 30, 2014 at 8:30 AM

    Fabulous idea, Jill and very resourceful of you!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. JillNovember 3, 2014 at 9:25 AM

      Thanks Pam! Now I just have to figure out the how!!

      Delete
  2. Michelle L.October 30, 2014 at 4:37 PM

    I love the project! I think all your great bag designs will sell well and raise money for the cause. Maybe throw some jewelry into the mix, just to add a bit of something different to the booth?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. JillNovember 3, 2014 at 9:26 AM

      Thanks Michelle! I think I will try to add some jewellery too - that's a great idea, my girls will be right into helping me with that! I'll have to put them onto your site for plenty of inspiration!

      Delete
  3. JulieOctober 31, 2014 at 2:29 PM

    How fun! Well, you can do a lot over the next year! You always have great ideas! I'm thinking tech device covers, and other things the kids might get smitten over...throw on a MLP, or Monster High, Pokemon, etc. emblem/button/decal, and you will appeal to them all. Good luck!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. JillNovember 3, 2014 at 9:25 AM

      Tech device covers are a great idea Julie! Thanks!

      Delete
  4. MichelleNovember 3, 2014 at 10:30 PM

    This sounds like a brilliant idea Jill :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. JillNovember 4, 2014 at 6:52 AM

      Thanks Michelle - I've been 'thinking' about it for too long - figured it was time to just jump in and start and I'm sure the details will become clear soon!! :)

      Delete
  5. diefahrradfrauNovember 12, 2014 at 3:30 PM

    Dear Jill,
    I really like your project! Since I started my upcycling experiments with bicyclce tubes about 1 year ago I am trying out how to integrate old clothes into my projects. I had a second hand shop until some years ago and there are left some boxes of stuff - a really good mix of fabrics. Some of them turned already into nice and useful things, but I am sure: this is an endless job. Also it´s an endless source of inspiration and possibilities.
    Recently I started to prepare a galery of all my upcyclings - to becontinued ...
    Waiting for your ideas - good luck!
    Christiane

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)