An Examination of the Upcycling Design Process of Used Clothes among Fashion Design Students : Towards an Approach for Sustainable Fashion Design Practice

Upcycling is a strategy that supports material recirculation and thus reduces landfilling of fashion waste. The study examined the upcycling design process of used clothes among Fashion Design students with a view to analyze what design skills students need for sustainable fashion design practices. A class of nine Fashion Design students was selected from one university in Zimbabwe for the study. The steps that participants followed revealed an irregular pattern in the upcycled design process. The findings demonstrate that problem-solving skills, high-level design thinking, creativity, and a greater understanding of fabric properties are required to upcycle textile waste and thus create products that can be accepted as new fashion. Based on the analysis of the differences between the upcycled design process and the new material design process, it can be concluded that the outcome of the upcycled design process is naturally highly unpredictable. Fashion Design education should challenge students to think creatively of alternatives to invent sustainable designs by utilizing textile waste.