Fashion forward: a creative project of upcycling and donating

Abstract

Fashion upcycling is the idea of restructuring a clothing item into something new to give this item a changed purpose or style. With this creative project, I upcycled clothing from my closet into clothing for young children and dolls. To complete this thesis project, I utilized skills I learned in my only sewing class at Ball State University. I made four girl, toddler-sized outfits and one boy, toddler-sized outfit, as well as four girl, baby doll outfits and one boy, baby doll outfit. The purpose of making the same amount of garments in both sizes was to create five matching sets, or pairs, of garments so that the children can feel a personal connection to their doll. These sets of hand-made outfits will be donated to a children’s classroom at a church in Muncie, Indiana.