79 Creative Upcycling Examples That Turn Trash Into Something Worth Keeping
I’ve never upcycled anything in my life. My version of repurposing something is using a takeout container as Tupperware and calling it a day. But there’s a specific kind of creativity that upcycling requires that I really envy. The ability to look at an old curtain or a broken chair or a pile of scrap wood and see something completely different on the other side of it is so cool to me.
Someone in this Upcycling subreddit turned an old curtain into a button-up shirt that actually looks cool, which is the kind of thing that makes me wonder why I’ve ever thrown anything away. These are the most impressive examples we could find. Maybe you’ll be inspired.
1. “$2 Thrift IKEA Duvet Cover Into A Dress”
2. “I Take Plastic Shipping /Bale Straps From Hardware Store Waste, And Make Sturdy, Functional Fashionable Baskets (My Cats Also Love Them At Every Stage)”
3. “The Sweater Got A Little Snagged, So Sew A Little Cat On It”
4. “Hi! I Just Started Making Plushies From Old Sweatshirts (Upcycling), For My Mental Health”
5. “Every Year, Deer Shed Their Antlers To Grow New Ones. I Make Hairpins Out Of These Fallen Antlers”
6. “Cocktail Glass Made From A Mountain Valley Water Bottle”
7. “After Years Of Collecting Pull Tabs I Finally Found A Use For Them!”
8. “Old Lace Curtain To Button Up Shirt”
9. “Here’s A Set Of Wings I Made From An Old Fence I Replaced”
10. “My Largest Scrap Yarn Project”
11. “Made A New Firepit”
12. “I Painted These Ornaments Using Salvaged, Burnt Out Light Bulbs! Enjoy!”
13. “I Made A Sun Catcher Using My Empty Insulin Vials”
14. “Some Vintage Jeans I Upcycled. Hope Someone Likes Them!”
15. “Made My Daughter A Maggie Simpson Star Suit”
“Made from second hand cotton and thrifted bed sheets! Pattern made by me!”
16. “Upcycled An Old Cabinet To Dollhouse”
17. “My Sister And I Started Crocheting Bags With Recycled Cotton Yarn As A Hobby. Now It’s A Small Upcycling Business!”
“We design each pattern ourselves, inspired by traditional Ukrainian ornaments. Upcycling can be beautiful and meaningful.”
18. “Antique TV Turned Into A Cozy Dog Bed!”
19. “I Do Hand Embroidery 2 Cranes On My Old Uniqlo Sweater. What Do You Think? Thank You!”
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22. “What Did I Do With Curtain Panels With Rips, Scuffs, Tears, Or Stains? I Made A New Dress, And I Feel Immaculate”
23. “Made A Bunch Of Things From Some Damaged Jeans I Was Given :)”
24. “In My First Year Of Sewing And Decided To Try A Floral Theme For These Designs!”
“Picked up some old blankets and sheets for these and I love how they turned out!”
25. “I Made This From Some Glass I Found At The Beach”
26. “Made This Cutie From A Ripped Quilted Pillow Case!”
27. “I Doubt I’ll Ever See Upcycling Done More Creatively”
28. “Key Hanger With Old Chess Set!”
29. “I Sewed Some Roses On My Black High Tops. Thoughts?”
30. “Upcycled Into Shoeboxes”
31. “Found These Arch Shelves On The Side Of The Road— Decided To Upgrade Our Kitchen”
32. “Bread Clip Fridge Magnets!”
33. “Got A New Dishwasher. Turned The Bottom Rack Of The Old One Into An Organizer For Canvas And Paint Brushes”
34. “Yard Sale Window Into Frame For Wedding Photos”
35. “I Made A Jason Voorhees Mask From An Air Jordan 1”
36. “Y’all Seemed Excited About My Antique TV When I Got It. I Finally Got Around To Finishing It!”
37. “Tunisian Crochet With Tea Bag Strings”
38. “New Life To Old Jacket!”
39. “I Made A Teddy Bear Out Of My Old Jeans”
40. “The Dog Jacket Is Officially For Sale. It Took Me Forever To Make And I’m Pumped About How It Turned Out”
41. “Barbie Malibu Dream House To Bird House”
42. “I Sewed Backpack From Jeans – The Strongest Eco-Fabric”
43. “I Upcycled A Painting Of Me As A Baby”
44. “Turned Thrifted Jeans Into A Walking Album Collection”
45. “I Upcycle Clothes By Hand Drawing Illustrations On Them. How Do You Think This Piece Turned Out?”
46. “I Upcycled An Old Chest Of Drawers I Didn’t Really Like Anymore”
47. “First Jacket Of The Fall”
“I found a pretty cool table cloth recently and wasn’t sure what to do with it until I woke up one morning and it was kinda chilly. That’s when it hit me. I need to make a jacket. So ofcourse I got right to it. I’ve only made a handful of jackets so I was a tad nervous but I caught a groove and this is how it came out. This jacket cost me under ten dollars to make but did take some time and strategy. Cutting the fabric was the most annoying bc it was a little slippery.”
48. “A Pair Of $25 Nikes I Turned Into Something That Looks Like A Photoshop Flex”
49. “Turned Two Pairs Of Thrifted Pants That Didn’t Fit Into One Pair!”
50. “We Make Patchwork Jackets From Old Village Fabrics – Each Piece Tells A Different Story”
51. “My Co-Worker Makes What I Call “Junk Bugs” And I Told Her She Should Sell Them At Craft Shows. I Think They’re Really Cool”
52. “Upcycled Plushies Into Weird Art!”
53. “Made This Jacket From A Vintage Quilt From 1980s”
54. “I Saved An Old Chair Frame With The Power Of Macramé!!”
55. “I Made These Bags Out Of A Punctured Air Bed”
“It definitely wasn’t the easiest material to sew / embroider, but I wanted to challenge myself and see what I could make from it. Especially, as it was something I would have had to throw away.
I’ve been creating embroidery designs for a while now, and this was my way of experimenting with something completely different.”
56. “A Few Hand Painted Bags I Made Recently. Hope Someone Likes Them!”
57. “Made A Jacket Out Of Upcycled Saris”
58. “Broom Fits The Sword Holder… It’s Beautiful… My Husband Hates It”
59. “I Made Tiny Pants Keychains From Rare Denim Fabric. What Do Y’all Think?”
60. “Headphones + Neck Tie”
61. “Jeans That I Don’t Wear Have Been Put To Use Again This Time”
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63. “I Made A Christmas Tree From Pistachio Shell, Cardamom And Cork”
64. “Broken Charging Cords”
“Our son is autistic. He needed sound to fall asleep. At 17, still does. This means, over the years, we went through a lot of long charging cords, typically the braided exterior ones because we worried about fraying and electrocution.
I hated throwing them away and our son had an attachment to them too. He cried when we tried to throw a blue braided one that had been his favorite away.
So, we kept a Ziploc bag of them, never knowing what we might do with them. They were too stiff to knit or crochet with, not pliable enough for macrame.
I found some cotton cord at a thrift store recently. Again, no clue what I’d do with it. Then, while organizing yesterday, I found the bag of cords and inspiration struck.
My weaving work is far from perfect. I was remembering from a lesson I had when I still lived in northern Maine. Still, not bad. I gave it to my son. He has a memento of all those charging cords over the years. I’ll use the rest to make useful items.”
65. “Apple Watch Band Made From Recycled Fabric”
66. “Don’t Toss Those Fabric Scraps – Transform Them Into Decorative Art”
67. “Old Blanket Turned Into A Dog Bed! Used Old Shredded T Shirts For Filling!”
68. “My Croc Charms Made From Broken Jewelry And Junk!”
69. “Made A Crab Bag Out Of Some Damaged Jeans :)”
70. “Saved From The Landfill”
71. “Made A Beach Bag From An Old Towel”
72. “Fairy Costume I Made For The Ren Faire Out Of Thrifted T-Shirts”
73. “I Turned A Fellow Redditors Antique Silverware Into Rings And Keychains For Them”
74. “Not Sure If This Counts As Upcycling”
75. “Made Monopoly Mirror Out Of Old Monopoly Board”
76. “Old Jewelry Turned Centipede”
77. “Beads Made From Bottle Caps Turned Into Bracelets!”
78. “Made A Few Ornaments From Some Scrap Bike Chain”
79. “Painted A Broken Mirror”
