Recycling & upcycling textiles

We have been talking about sustainable textiles recently and how fast fashion is affecting our world. We have been looking at how to fix old clothes and reuse the materials to make new things rather than buying too many clothing items that we don't need. I think it is so important to look after the items we have until they are no longer wearable, then when they get to that stage to reuse the fabrics for something else rather than chucking them away. Giving items to charity shops is all another sustainable way to recycle clothes.

We learnt different darning techniques and how to sew on buttons for thicker fabrics (shanks). I practiced doing this on a piece of fabric from an old shirt:

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I also practiced darning, I cut a small hole in this same piece of old fabric and I practiced the darning technique. I wanted to use two different colours to make it visible and artistic.

To start with you have to do a running stitch a bit further away from the edge to strengthen it so it doesn't rip.

I have started to realise how important it is to recycle your clothes because buying new ones damages the world by a huge amount.