Clever Upcycling Ideas

In this post we will be talking about clever upcycling ideas. What would make an upcycling idea clever you may ask? Well, clever upcycling ideas to us means upcycled products which have been created from unique materials and fashioned into something totally different. In our opinion, clever upcycling ideas come from outside of the box thinking creating one of a kind upcycled products.

First of all, we are talking about awesome transformations of products taking repurposing to a new level. This requires a totally free imagination and re-invention of what we already know about different materials and items. Upcycling has so many different possibilities. From something such as repainting a chair to massive upcycling installations made from tonnes of different materials which previously would have gone to waste. Although, we are not suggesting that other upcycling ideas aren’t clever because we believe all upcycler’s and the products they create are fantastic. All upcycled products require many different skills no matter how large or small. In this post we are looking into the more unusual upcycled products which have been and are created from a huge array of materials.

However, in this post, we will go through some clever upcycling ideas which we hope will give you inspiration for your next project. Most noteworthy, we hope this will throw you an alternate way of thinking for new project ideas.

Different way of using old floppy disks.

What things can you upcycle?

First, let’s look at what things you can upcycle. When it comes to thinking of different upcycling ideas and clever upcycling ideas there is no end to the possibility of upcycled products you can create. Looking at clever upcycling ideas, upcycler’s have created some very interesting ideas in order to repurpose materials into upcycled products which are incredible.

In order to create clever upcycling ideas, you will need to try and think outside of the box. Look to reinvent the wheel and have a childlike view to different materials to envisage it’s potential. There is no limit to what can be created and what it can be created into. This is because it just needs imagination. We will try and help by giving you some different ideas and inspiration for clever upcycling ideas. On our Instagram page we have tried to feature as many different kinds of upcycled products. Consequently, many of our posts feature upcycled products created from materials you wouldn’t usually think make up the final product. If you haven’t seen our page already, click here to see some of our featured clever upcycling ideas. We’ve seen clever upcycling ideas such as guitar necks made into coat hooks and a crazy rainbow upcycled garden!

How do you do upcycling?

There are many upcycler’s that have some brilliant techniques and methods to assist in their upcycling projects. However, actually doing upcycling is a very simple answer. It’s just to increase the value of an object which would have usually been thrown away into the bin/trash. Therefore, technically there is nothing more simple in understanding how upcycling works. Although, the amount of value it’s improved by is massively varied.

Upcycling has many techniques and there are specific ways in which some upcycling projects can be completed. In addition to this, some upcycled art pieces require the personal touch of the upcycler which would be difficult to replicate. However, upcycling is a great way to let your creative juices flow so you can put your mark on your next upcycling project.

For beginners it may be a very daunting task to know what your first project could be and how to make a start. With this in mind you can find many different tutorials and ideas on youtube. If you are a beginner and you are stuck on what to do for your first project and you need some advice please don’t hesitate in checking out our forum. You can ask our extremely helpful and kind upcyclers who can give you any advice and help give inspiration for your next project. Also, have a look at our other post, how to upcycle? Here you will find a few different tips and tricks to help you with your upcycling projects.

Clever Upcycling Ideas – How do you use old books creatively?

There are hundreds and hundreds of books left lying around in peoples house just gathering dust. What do people do once these books have been read? We all know hardly any of these books are read for a second time. Consequently, the books then end up damp and dusty and just end up in the bin/trash. To prevent these old books going to landfill there are many different things you can do. Here are just a few ideas on how to use old books creatively:

Firstly, one idea is to print or paint onto some book pages. We have started to see many upcycling artists creating their own designs and applying them on old book pages to create fascinating art upcycled products.

clever upcycling ideas, book page art, upcycling, upcycled

Here is some book page art.

Another idea shown below, encourages the reuse of books and magazines in particular to create imaginative artwork:

Rolled up magazines creating a beautifully designed yin and yang.

Clever Upcycling Ideas – How do beginners upcycle clothes?

There are many ways in which beginners can start upcycling clothes. Upcycling clothes is a great way to start upcycling because many people have lots of clothes they no longer wear. In this case, clothes lying around the house are great to use because you don’t have to go out and get anything to make a start. Today is the day! We touched on a few different ideas in our other blog posts, what is upcycled clothing? and an example of a beginners projects such as upcycling clothes into a shopping tote bag in our post upcycling ideas for kids.

Upcycling Clothes

There are countless techniques and skills you can learn which will help with upcycling clothes. Some of these skills don’t require much learning either. For example, one really easy way for the artier characters could be something as simple as painting, drawing or sticking things on a pair of old shoes or trainers/sneakers. Instead of going out and buying the newest pair of trainers/sneakers on the market why not create your own stylish design. The design will be totally unique to you. You can display your own personality with your ‘new’ shoes. This is done without learning anything, anyone can do this.

clever upcycling ideas, custom sneakers, upcycled clothing, upcycling

Some custom sneakers by Sergio Calleja.

If you have loads of old clothes lying about there are countless options to how you can upcycle your next product. If you were to learn how to sew and/or embroider you can start to make some fantastic alterations to those clothes you no longer wear and give them another life. With some embroidery thread you can add many cute touches to some of your old clothes and make them fun again. There are countless modifications you can make to your old clothes with your sewing skills. Whether that’s cute touches like adding frills or totally altering a large shirt into a dress. So many things you can do! Looking for some inspiration? Check out the forum and also our other blog post, what is upcycled clothing?


If you are a beginner please check out the forum and ask a question, I’m sure many people can help out with queries you may have. Hopefully you will have a better idea of what kind of project you want to start with and which forum to post on if you get stuck. Meanwhile if you are a more experienced upcycler then I hope you have gained some inspiration to work on a new area of upcycling or an idea for your next project and also help answer some forum questions if you have the time.

Please head on over to the forum to ask questions and also see our other blog posts on everything upcycling.

Furthermore, check out our instagram page @UpcyclerLife to see inspiring projects and #upcyclerlife for a chance of a feature.


Leave a comment