Upcycling Workshops
Brought to you by Alterist and Our Planet Needs You
Alterist workshops provide a space for storytelling, creativity, and impact, helping children see textiles and everyday materials in a whole new light.
As part of OPNY’s Shop Sustainable initiative, the workshops introduce pupils to upcycling pre-loved clothing as a fun form of self-expression and sustainable thinking.
Through hands-on making, they learn practical skills in dyeing, customising, sewing, and design – discovering how discarded materials can be transformed into something new and unique.
Explore our workshops below…
HERNAN GUARDAMAGNA
Hernan offers a range of creative, hands-on workshops that introduce students to upcycling, recycling, and sustainable fashion.
Tie Dye / Shibori – Upcycle unwanted garments with simple dyeing techniques.
Patch & Badge Making – Design patches or badges from fabric scraps with playful or sustainable messages.
Customised T-Shirts – Transform plain garments into bold fashion statements using fabric markers, stencils, and paints.
Fabric Collage, Bunting & Banners – Create collaborative decorations from scrap fabrics, tailored to themes or festivities.
Garment Customisation with Iron-On Vinyl – Cut and press vinyl shapes for bold, personalised designs.
ABIGAIL HODGES
Print designer hosting wellness workshops where students use art and sustainable textile design to process feelings around climate change.
Combining mindfulness, self-expression, and sustainable printing techniques, the session transforms eco-anxiety into positive action.
Create climate-related prints using sustainable methods and recycled fabrics.
Explore self-expression through painting, drawing, journaling, and pattern-making.
Collaborate on a collective textile piece, sustainably printed and shared digitally with participants.
Gain tools for managing eco-anxiety and reflecting on personal impact through art.
Inclusive for neuro-diverse students.
GEO KNITS SLOW
Fashion and knitwear designer teaching students how to transform second-hand T-shirts into yarn and use it to create new knitted pieces.
With a focus on sustainability and celebrating the many “hands” that make our clothes, this workshop connects students to the process of making while giving discarded textiles a second life.
Learn how to cut and repurpose T-shirts into usable yarns
Pick up beginner knitting skills and pattern reading
Create a simple scarf in a single session, just in time for the colder months!
Option to extend over three sessions to make a full mini bag using the same technique
All patterns and needles provided.
Our Planet Needs You
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