Although you might feel a strong temptation to throw anything that you don’t use often away, you probably also hear a tiny voice in the back of your head urging you to make a different choice. “This piece of furniture can be salvaged! You can patch up the holes in that sweater! You could use some of that fabric to make pillow cases instead!” If you’ve ever heard that tiny little voice, perhaps you’re already thinking with an upcycling mind. And if not, maybe this article will inspire you start viewing your old items in a completely new light!

The Upcycling subreddit has been around since December 2011, and has amassed an impressive 146k members. With a simple explanation of what exactly upcycling is, “reusing waste or unwanted materials without destroying them in order to create something new,” the group welcomes members to share amazing transformations, ask for ideas of what items can be turned into and bond over the love of all things that have been reused. You can find anything and everything in this subreddit, including products for sale that brilliant upcyclers have created. 

To learn more about the art of giving old items a new life, we reached out to upcycling expert Kristen Hubert, creator of Upcycle My Stuff. Kristen’s site shares tips and tutorials for sewing, transforming furniture and decor items, crafts, gifts and more, and lucky for us, she was kind enough to bestow some of her upcycling wisdom upon us here at Bored Panda. 

First, we asked Kristen how she began her upcycling journey. “I have always been a bit crafty and hated anything going to waste, but I really got into upcycling when I moved into my first apartment and wanted to customize secondhand furniture,” she shared. “I couldn’t afford new furniture in the style I liked but with some paint, fabric and imagination I could stamp my style on unloved cheap furniture other folk didn’t want!”

We were also curious what kinds of transformations Kristen finds particularly captivating and inspiring. “The Upcycle projects that amaze me the most are always the ones where an item gets used for a completely different purpose - like turning a door into a dining room table or a mannequin into a lamp!”

And when it comes to why we should all hop on the trend of recycling old items, Kristen says, “Upcycling is important because there is already so much stuff in the world! We don’t need to be constantly using raw materials to make new items. It would be more sustainable and more efficient for everyone to use the materials that are already out there in the world. It might feel faster to mass produce, but then we have to deal with all the items that go to landfill on the other end. So we are just creating problems for ourselves!”

If you’re interested in starting to upcycle items yourself but just aren’t quite sure where to start, Kristen says her top tip is to just give it a go! “Let go of the excuses about needing the right tools or materials or even skills. Use what you have on hand and get creative. You will be surprised what you can achieve. If you are nervous, start small (for example, a side table or a picture frame) and go from there.”

“You will never learn how to paint, sew, or cut wood if you never take the first step and try,” Kristen told Bored Panda. “Most of the skills needed for upcycling are harder in your head than in reality! I have plenty of beginner friendly tutorials on my site, and I’d love to see you there!”

To find some of Kristen’s brilliant tutorials or learn more about why upcycling is so wonderful, be sure to visit Upcycle My Stuff right here!

We also reached out to Judy Rom, co-founder and curator of Upcycle That, a website dedicated to sharing genius upcycling inspiration and ideas. Judy was kind enough to share her expertise as well, noting that she first got into upcycling in 2012. “I love that it totally changes your mindset around what 'trash' is. Once you start upcycling, you look at the whole world around you differently,” she told Bored Panda.

Judy also shared about some of her favorite pieces that she’s ever made, including an amazing larger-than-life upcycled tennis racket and shoe that she created for the World Trade Centre Mall in Hong Kong and the BACARDI steamer trunk bar. “Upcycled pieces can actually be really premium and high-end. Some of the coolest pieces are Detroit houses turned into guitars, the Boeing 737 chair, Star Wars sculptures,” she noted.

When it comes to why upcycling is so important, Judy urges people to consider, “Where is this 'away' that we think things go to when we throw them 'away'? Fast fashion and fast furniture (items made to last a season) are clogging up our planet. It's essential for us to shift our mindset around the useful life of items. When you upcycle you look at an item and imagine what it could become. Upcycling is another tool in the green arsenal that encourages us to reuse and repurpose, rather than generate trash.”

And if you’re looking for tips to help you get started upcycling, Judy conveniently just wrote a book on upcycling that will help you along your journey. “It's called Upcycling Furniture & Home Decor for Dummies,” she shared. “This easy, step-by-step guide shows you how to get creative and put your own unique flair on your designs. You'll gain the knowledge and confidence you need to select items that are worth transforming or restoring and learn specific techniques to give old pieces a new lease on life.”

“The book is for anyone who wants to: learn the process of upcycling dressers, tables, chairs, and other furniture; enjoy the fun of sourcing items and increasing their value with their creativity; update their decor with gorgeous, upcycled furniture; express themselves and find out how to flip their creations for a profit!” Judy says.

And if you want to start upcycling today, be sure to visit Upcycle That and check out some of their brilliant tips and tricks right here!

I don’t know about you, pandas, but I’m suddenly feeling the urge to go dumpster diving and find something with incredible potential that I can repurpose! We hope you’re enjoying these pics of amazing upcycling transformations. Keep upvoting the ones you find most creative and impressive, and let us know in the comments if you have plans to upcycle anything you own soon. Then, if you’re interested in checking out even more pieces who have been given second chances at life, you can find another Bored Panda article featuring amazing upcycling pics right here!