Upcycling Clothes: The Ultimate Guide For Beginners - Upcycle My Stuff
In this guide, I’m going to share with you years’ worth of experience in upcycling clothes. This is one of my favorite things to do and one of the huge reasons behind starting Upcycle My Stuff.
I just love repurposing old things and giving them a new lease of life, and clothes are so versatile and adaptable that the options are endless when it comes to upcycling them.
Over the years I’ve upcycled jeans into blankets, old boots into a handbag, and men’s shirts into aprons, just to name a few!
Sometimes there is still wear left in the clothes just as they are, I just like to give them a slightly new look by adding new elements or using visible mending for damaged clothing.
I’ll show you lots of the projects I’ve worked on since starting this website, and also some other tutorials from some of my favorite upcyclers.
This post contains affiliate links – please see my for more details.
Why Should You Upcyle Clothing?
This clever upcycling method comes in really handy for kids' clothes. I don't know about your kids, but mine constantly wear through their clothes & small holes and rips seem to be a constant.
Visible mending is not only a practical way of fixing clothes up but also gives them a brand-new look. It's a super easy way to add some character and personality to your kid's clothes (and adults' clothes too if you have a small hole!)
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Photo Credit: www.sumoftheirstories.com
I love how much material men's shirts have when you unpiece them, they can be turned into a whole range of things, including this cute fitted blouse!
Sometimes upcycling clothes involves just a little tweak to the original garment, and others, like this one, involve lots of work for a completely new piece of clothing - I love it!
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Photo Credit: www.almostsupermom.com
This upcycled t-shirt dress uses a few different old coordinating t-shirts, and the result is just beautiful!
You could use this tutorial and any old t-shirts you have to make a unique dress for a special girl in your life!
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Photo Credit: helensclosetpatterns.com
What is it with women's clothes and the lack of pockets? Well, this tutorial is here to remedy that!
Add a pocket to any piece of clothing with this handy tutorial which shows you how to draft and sew the pocket onto a t-shirt.
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Photo Credit: www.youtube.com
Tracy Garcia's YouTube channel is jam-packed with upcycled clothes.
This particular tutorial shows you how to upcycle a regular thrifted top into a much prettier crop top.
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Photo Credit: elisesewingstudio.com
This one is quite a quick and easy make, all you need to do is add a waistband - the length of the dress is left alone.
This is a great upcycle if you have a dress that is too large, or you simply don't wear it anymore.
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Photo Credit: thesewinggarden.com
I don't know about you, but it's so hard to find tops and dresses that fit just perfectly, especially around the bust area.
If you have a dress of top that you love, but the bust doesn't fit, this is a great way to take it in!
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Photo Credit: muumade.com
These kids' skirts are so cute, you'd never even guess they were a skirt before!
Using another pair of shorts as a guide, this tutorial shows you how to turn a skirt into shorts. I love this hack and you can quite easily use any garment you like to use as a template for your new piece of clothing.
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Photo Credit: thesoccermomblog.com
Using a Cricut maker is a great way to upcycle old clothing. You can give any piece of clothing a makeover using your machine.
If you've never used a Circut maker before, this tutorial is for you. It's for total beginners and will talk you through exactly how to upcycle your clothes in this fun way.
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Photo Credit: www.theartofsimple.net
Do you have a piece of clothing that you just don't love? If you love the print but just not the style, how about turning it into a scarf?
As long as you can cut and sew in a straight line, you'll be able to make this project.
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Photo Credit: www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com
T-shirt head wraps are perfect for a whole load of reasons, including people going through chemotherapy (because the material is so soft), and for curly haired girls (because the t-shirt fabric helps the hair to retain moisture!)
So if your old t-shirt is looking a bit worn, give it a new purpose and turn it into a comfy head wrap.
If you're looking for other things to do with t-shirts, check out my post on
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Photo Credit: seamwhisperer.com
This hat is such a simple design that even beginners will be able to follow the free PDF pattern and whip up a new sun hat in no time.
The pattern is available in four sizes, from babies up to 10+, and it is reversible so you can upcycle a couple of pieces of clothing to make this hat!
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Photo Credit: www.theboondocksblog.com
School backpacks can get quite a battering over the course of a year, this upcycling tutorial is a great way to give a dated backpack a brand-new look.
Using old clothing or pieces of scrap fabric, this tutorial shows you how to add pieces to your rucksack to give it a completely fresh look!
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Photo Credit: seamwhisperer.com
This adorable little heart-shaped clutch is made from off-cuts after a dress altercation, however, you can use any piece of clothing you like.
It's the perfect size for carrying around small things like lipstick, a phone, or some loose change.
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I made this apron in part of a challenge that I set myself to upcycle two men's shirts, using every last piece of fabric - there is a surprising amount of fabric in men's shirts!
It was actually one of the arms that made a perfect size for an apron for my then three-year-old. You could alter this pattern to make a slightly bigger apron for older children.
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I made these bunnies using old scraps of clothing and fabric for my boys as Easter gifts, but they make sweet gifts for any time of the year!
They're really quick to make as last-minute gifts! There are loads of stuffed toy ideas you can make using old clothing, here is another that I loved making.
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Photo Credit: birdzofafeather.ca
I just had to include one more soft plushie idea when I saw this one! It's it the cutest!
This is a really innovative project that you or your kids could use as inspiration to design your own project.
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T-shirts are really popular pieces of clothing to upcycle. They come in such a wide variety of colors and sizes which makes them really versatile.
Who would have known you could make a pencil holder from an old t-shirt?! In this tutorial, I talk you through and some beginner crochet stitches to make this simple project.
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This has to be one of my all-time favorite things to do with old clothing - turn them into quilts! I've made so many quilts over the last few years and have documented lots of them over on my sister site
This particular quilt was made from old jeans, and it's reversible. You can make picnic blankets or quilts from any upcycled clothing, but I really love the look and feel of denim quilts.
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Photo Credit: maplewoodroad.com
This fun and bright rug is made from upcycled t-shirts, by turning the t-shirt into yarn first and then crocheting rounds.
If you're looking for other u
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Photo Credit: www.theboondocksblog.com
If you have a particularly special T-shirt that you'd like to preserve and keep, this is a great and quick way to turn it into a piece of art.
All you need is an embroidery hoop, some ribbon, and your old t-shirt and VOILA! Easy Peasy.
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Why should upcycling clothes be limited to only clothes and not shoes?! When my leather boots came to the end of their life, I decided to turn them into a handbag.
There was enough fabric left from the boots to make at least one more bag, possibly two!
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What’s The Easiest Clothing to Upcycle?
While any piece of clothing can be upcycled, some are easier to upcycle than others. Stretchy fabrics are typically more forgiving and easier to upcycle.
If you’re just starting out with upcycling clothes, start off with:
- Long sleeved tops
Can I Upcycle Clothing If I Can’t Sew?
Absolutely! There are plenty of projects you can make from old clothes even if you can’t sew.
Fabric glue is great for adding cute embellishments or mending small holes. You can turn long dresses into crop tops with just a pair of scissors.
You’ll find at least five projects in the list above that you can make that require zero sewing.
What Are The Benefits of Upcycling Clothes
There are loads of benefits to upcycling clothes, firstly, it’s a lot cheaper to upcycle your own clothes or cheaply thrifted clothes than it is to buy new clothing.
It’s much better for the environment to upcycle clothes, so many old clothes end up in landfill and a lot of our clothes are made from plastic so they won’t break down.
And it reduces the amount of raw materials the industry will need to make new clothing.
If you’re looking for more upcycling ideas, this whole website is dedicated to just that! I even have a if you haven’t quite found what you’re looking for yet.
Enjoy whatever project you’re working on next, feel free to drop a comment or send me an email. I love chatting with you all!
Feel free to pin the image below so you can come back to it later!
Other Upcycling Clothes Projects
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2 Comments
- Carole says:
I love, love, LOVE that you are doing this. I have just started on my own upcycle journey and started off with making quilts from jeans then included more pretty fabrics into the mi from other types of clothing. Then I got into seeing some of the op shop jeans/pants would fit me, so kept those for wearing. Had been doing visible mending to my own jeans and now my hubbies jeans too. Now revamping T shirts with op shop fabric. I recently did an op shop denim shirt over by adding a butterfly print scarf to the front panels of it. Came out quite well. I will be watching what others such as yourself do for inspiration going forward.
- says:
Great projects! Sounds fab!
- says:
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