Modern Homemakers
Upcycling Ideas That Families Can Easily Get Into
Upcycling offers a long-term solution to our pollution problems and here are some ideas that families can easily get into.
Upcycling vs. recycling—although the ideas sound the same, the process is entirely different. When families recycle their trash, those are broken down back into raw materials to make something new. Whereas, upcycling is when we transform the original product into something new without breaking it down. This slows down the rise of our landfills which we are steadily running out of.
So what are some cool and cost-efficient upcycling families can invest in? Here are some!
1. Fashion alterations: Take some old clothes and change them up!
The only reason we have so much fashion waste is because we think it’s “out of style.” While we agree that some fashion styles should stay in the era when they were trendy, it’d be a shame if we lost those pieces to bugs or Time. Have a modista or alteration shop do a bit of nip and tuck to refashion those old pieces into something more contemporary.
Although they can’t do complicated patterns, at least they can do the simple shorten, lengthen, or widen. We just have to provide them a guide on how we want to transform the old piece.
2. Old furniture: Repainting or changing the hardware.
Old furniture lasts long because, back in the day, furniture technology wasn’t sophisticated enough to create artificial material. Fast-forward to today as the trees dwindle in number, the new furniture is made of a different kind of material that isn’t as tough as the old one. But unless our old furniture has rust or is infested with termites, we can still use it!
It’ll take a bit of arts and crafts but with a bit of repainting and replacing the hardware, we can repurpose it. The best part is, if we don’t like the color, we can just paint it over—especially if we inherit a beautiful cabinet but it’s just in a hideous color that breaks the flow of the room.
If we can’t DIY it, some furniture shops can do it for you.
3. Plastic bottles: Pots for plants
Everyone hates plastic but plants can be placed in a material like big plastic soda bottles that are porous enough to make sure the soil doesn’t grow mold. With the way we drink soda alongside our favorite pulutan like chicharong bulaklak, kwek-kwek, and chicken skin, we have enough material to create pots for our favorite herbs or flowers.
Who knows? We might even be inspired to eat healthier now that we’re growing greens of our own.
Plus, the plastic that soda bottles are made of is soft enough to poke holes in so we can make “hanging” pots. All we need to do is cut the bottle in half, poke holes in the bottle’s base, insert the top inside and then we’ll have our working plant pot!
4. Old pans: Light housings!
When our pans lose all their teflon lining, we usually just throw it away because it’s just metal. But that’s the beauty of it: the concave shape of the pan makes it the perfect lightbulb housing! With a bit of drilling, we can turn those old pans into something durable. The best part is, we know that these are sturdy considering the kind of heat and beating they took when we would cook with them.
But if it’s an inherited pan, maybe apologize to our ancestors first before cutting it up.
5. Old tote bags: Dyeing them or painting over them.
We probably collected enough tote bags from the events we’ve attended or from the grocery but we don’t want to be a walking advertisement. What some parents do is paint or print something on top of the logo so that they can style that tote bag with their other outfits.
But if we don’t have faith in our painting skills, there are a lot of printing shops around the malls so long as we provide them with a transparent PNG file of the design we want.
6. Old shoes: Glitterize, add patches, wrap in cloth!
Old shoes—especially ones made of synthetic leather—are the first ones to go. But with the leather cracking off, we can now place a new material on top of it. Instead of reupholstering it (which will most likely cost more), wrap it in fabric and use fabric glue so it won’t come off. Some people, instead of using fabric, cover their shoes in glue before dusting them with glitter to create a new statement shoe!
Some parents also use leather for shoes, which are made of a softer material. They sew an embroidered patch onto the shoe which we can easily buy online.
So many upcycling ideas, so little time!
While many of these ideas take time, upcycling is worth investing in the long run. Not only does it slow down the filling of landfills, we’ll become wiser with our purchase choices. We’ll know how to fix things up and make sure we get the most out of it.
And although it’ll hurt us a bit to cut up some of our favorite pieces, think of it as a transformation. They have to change if we, their users, are changing too!
More about sustainability and eco-friendly practices?
Irene M. Villaespin on Making the Eco Shift to Sustainable Living
6 Easy And Tested Sustainable Home Cooking Hacks
This Sustainable Clothing Brand for Toddlers is So Eco-Chic!
