Councillor to lead free workshops to upcycle unwanted clothes

COUNCILLOR Jane Russ is looking to provide free workshops to encourage people to recycle/upcycle clothes, to reduce the amount that ends up in landfill.

As a keen upcycler for many decades, Jane has found in recent years that she is not alone in the activity but very few people ever think of reusing or repurposing a garment if it is too small or too old. 

With the help of Westbury Town Council’s events committee, she is hoping to offer four free workshops to teach people how to upcycle their unwanted clothes.

Jane said, “Since the arrival of stores such as Primark, ‘fast fashion’ has become a big issue. So much clothing goes into landfill as it has been shown that items bought are at best worn once and often not even that.

“I’m part of a worldwide initiative on Facebook called ‘The Upcycled Cloth Collective’ where people around the world are reusing clothes that no longer fit them.

“I was given a brand new Devore velvet dress by a friend that was too small, but I loved the fabric. I tried to sell it on with no luck. However, I found some copper inserts I had lying around in my stash for around 15 years and made it into something I could wear!

“Similarly, my son left me with four cashmere sweaters that no longer fit him so I put them in a hot wash to felt them, cut them open and upcycled them into a waistcoat!

“Not a lot of people know how to do it, it’s all about thinking outside of the box. The town council has agreed to move this idea to the next stage where dates and times will be arranged to encourage more people to do it.”

If you are interested in attending the free workshops, email Jane on Jane.Russ@westburytowncouncil.gov.uk.  More information about the workshops will be available soon.