Customise your clothes

Bicycle jumper

March 2009

We've been known to turn our old clothes and random objects into aprons, belts, reflective skirts and other useful things. We're also fans of repairing and restoring old clothes. Your challenge, if you're game, is to make one old item new again.

This month we invite you to get beyond patching denim and turn your jeans into shorts, then your shorts into slippers, use your old slippers to patch a worn jumper, turn your old jumper into new gloves and socks, your socks into toys, after all this you'll be thirsty so you'll want to trade your toys for a drink in a can (which you can make into a book) or a carton (which'll be your next wallet).

If you've got any handmade goods or hideous hand-me-downs that you've given a new lease of life to, send us a photo - email us at info@otesha.org.uk and we'll post it here.

Helen sent us these recycled babies:

jeans pocket bag

"This one is made out of a pair of old jeans- useful cos there's
pockets everywhere!  I even managed to convert the fly into a handy mobile
phone size pocket :P "

'fragile' bag- constructed from a cardboard box

"My bag out of an old box and some parcel tape was quick to make, and
lasted 2 years of UK weather before i needed to make another one!"

HGV tyre bag

"The last one is made out of lorry inner tubes, and fastens with a valve."

Check out www.thisway-up.co.uk for more of the above.

Rosie came in and modelled her customised t-shirt:

rosie in her customised tshirt
roise

Here's Hanna modeling an apron made out of old shirts and Reisen wrappers:

Recycled customised skirt


Georgie showing off her custom-made reflective cycling top-turned-skirt:

Reflective recycled skirt


And Jo modelling her prized tyre belt:

Tyre belt