New Life For Old Fabrics – Upcycling & Recycling

With the emphasis on sustainability, giving material a new life has become a business for some, and a serious focus for many manufacturers. There are various ways to transform old material and waste into something new that people can wear. But the more we concentrate on upcycling and recycling fabric, the more we are doing to protect our planet. maake looks at upcycling and recycling fabric, and how the fashion industry can contribute towards going green.

The Effect of Textile Waste

We know that fast fashion clothing, which describes garments manufactured to be worn just a few times until the next trend takes over, is not meant to last. But have we considered what happens to these items when they become waste? 

Canadian non-profit organisation, The David Suzuki Foundation, does intense research to protect the natural environment. According to their research 87% of the total input of fibres used for manufacturing clothes is eventually burned or sent to landfill as waste, and fast fashion contributes hugely to this percentage. Recycling or upcycling textiles takes care of this by reducing the amount of waste ending in landfills, saving water and reducing carbon emissions.

Read how maake looks at the Textile Waste Problem, and our focus on Sustainable Textiles.

Upcycling & Recycling Explained

Upcycling and recycling are different systems, both crucial for material sustainability in their own way. Let’s take a look at each and how it can be used to save the environment:

• Recycling: Transforming waste into raw materials used for manufacturing new material products.
• Upcycling: Finding new ways to use waste materials and create quality products with a different purpose.

Why Recycle Fabrics?

1.        Recycling Conserves Precious Materials

Recycling material means you reduce the amount of energy that would be used to manufacture new fabric.

2.        Reducing Waste

Reusing waste material and giving it a new life means reducing textile waste, and less will end in landfills.

3.        A Lower Carbon Footprint

The process of recycling materials creates less greenhouse gas emissions than when you manufacture new material from scratch.

4.        Fashion Shows the Way Forward

The fashion industry has the opportunity to transform the planet by transforming waste into something useful. The more environmentally aware this industry is, the more we can stop using rare resources and, instead,  discover a way to dress stylishly and sustainably.

5.        What the Future Holds

We have compiled a comprehensive guide to the Future of Sustainable Fashion Fabric. Take a look!

Understanding Recycling

Step 1: Recycling by Collecting Old Clothes

Many people visit vintage stores to pick up stunning pieces to wear. All over the UK you’ll find secondhand shops, charity organisations and recycling programmes that offer old clothes for recycling. Recycling involves finding old clothes and material in decent condition that can be recycled as is, as well as items deemed beyond repair that can be transformed into something else so that they don’t end as waste in landfill.

Step 2: Sorting Different Garments

The sorting process involves taking the best materials for recycling – quality natural materials, like cotton, hemp and wool, that can be spun into new materials. Certain synthetic materials, like nylon and recycled polyester, which is made by recycling plastic bottles, are also reprocessed. These waste fabrics are also divided into different categories, depending on the type of fibre, texture and colour, melted and transformed into new fabric.

Unfortunately, those who discard materials into the ocean don’t discriminate between whether it’s natural or synthetic. Plastic waste from the ocean is bountiful, but luckily we are successfully transforming this plastic into usable materials and making a sustainable difference.

Step 3: Creating New Fabrics

Creating new material from waste is the most important part of recycling. Natural materials like cotton are shredded into little pieces and transformed into a substance resembling pulp, then they process it into new yarn used for manufacturing fabrics and clothes. Synthetic materials are melted into pellets and then reprocessed into strong, hard-wearing fibres and threads that are subsequently knitted or woven into materials.

One of the most recycled synthetic materials is Recycled Polyester – see our updated guide here.

Step 4: Recycling – Giving Old Fabrics New Life

These new materials made from recycling waste are frequently used for décor and fashion items. More and more design houses are using these 100% recycled materials for their products to show their move towards sustainability and how ‘green’ materials can be stylish and of great quality.

This is what we call ‘a circular fashion economy’, where garments are produced in a way that doesn’t impact the environment. Each garment is manufactured sustainably using as little waste, energy and water as possible, and is of exceptional quality so that it will be long-lasting, can be repaired and worn again or resold.

The more we concentrate on recycling and reusing once-worn materials and support those brands who focus on sustainability, the faster we can make circular fashion a reality.

Understanding Upcycling

For upcycling, we need to be creative, as this process of giving waste a second life is similar to how we produce fabric. We also do a lot of material upcycling, which we discuss here. We can use worn clothes and material to make other items, like bags to hold pegs in, skirts, aprons, patchwork cushions and bed covers. That’s what upcycling involves. If we’re not talking about fabric, there are many ways of upcycling used items – like using glass jam jars as storage jars, toilet roll holders to make baby’s fun toys, and so much more.

Why Upcycling Fabrics?

Let’s take a look at some of the benefits of upcycling:

Reason 1: The Item Doesn’t End in Landfills

When you give items a new life by upcycling them, they don’t end in landfills, so you reduce your impact on the environment and the amount of waste. You’re taking things you don’t have use for and making them useful again. The products could even be more valuable to you in their second iteration, depending on what use you find for them. Also,  if you don’t have a use for the items, giving them away to someone who will find them useful is a sustainable move.

Reason 2: You Save Money & Natural Resources

Upcycling can save you money as you’re making old items useful and won’t have to buy something new for that particular purpose. By upcycling products, or finding a new way to use them, we are saving the environment by not having to use the planet’s precious natural resources to manufacture something new. This can also limit our effect on climate change, which is also affected by producing items using less energy.

Reason 3: Upcycling is Great For the Economy

Upcycling creates jobs, as upcycling businesses contribute to sustainability and businesses concentrating on upcycling, like second-hand stores, are becoming increasingly popular.

Why Recycled & Upcycled Fabrics?

1.        Saves Money

In the current economic climate, the more money we can save, the better. So, recycling or upcycling items or materials saves us more money.

2.        Preserves Energy & Water

Manufacturing new products uses more energy than making products from reused material.

3.        Teaches us to DIY

By creating something ourselves with upcycled items, we’re being sustainable and creative, too. And we’re learning how to live more sustainably by making the best of our resources.

Find out how to be more environmentally aware with this informative guide on Choosing Eco-Friendly Textiles for your Sustainable Materials & Products.

A Greener Fashion Journey Through Upcycling & Recycling

Whether we’re upcycling or recycling products, there are so many opportunities open to the fashion industry to help sustainability and be creative at the same time. If we embrace upcycling and recycling and use each process in our businesses, the fashion industry can ensure we don’t harm our environment, and instead, preserve it for future generations.

Whenever you can in your business, it’s important to carry on recycling fabric, and upcycling what’s left so that these upcycled products can also have a second life. The more we make the world aware of how we can be sustainable, the better. We can make the fashion industry more sustainable by making people aware of upcycling and recycling.

For more inspiration, read all about Sustainable Fabric Dyeing & Textile Innovations 2025