What Marie Kondo Taught Me About Upcycling

There truly is an art to letting things go.

If you're in the midst of spring cleaning and not sure if you're ready to let some of your old clothing go, you aren't alone.

Marie Kondo, a 36-year-old from Tokyo, Japan, is an organizing guru, author, and TV show host. She has inspired millions of people worldwide to tidy their homes and provides easy guides for how to reduce clutter and inspire joy.

Her teachings, also called the KonMari Method, have simple rules to follow as a guideline. This philosophy includes 6 Rules of Tidying.

Rule number three of the KonMari Method is to finish discarding the things that no longer bring us joy. Sometimes letting go isn’t easy, especially when they still hold sentimental value, even if the joy isn’t there anymore.

We draw things into our lives for a reason or a season. Whether it’s a stuffed animal you won at a carnival or a cute purse that you found online that helped you through a breakup, sometimes cutting the cord is tough.

When I first started with my tidying journey, I felt overwhelmed. I was utterly stuck in rule three and constantly struggling with the idea of letting some items go.

For weeks I had a massive pile of clothes sitting on the floor of my closet. Then it became boxes of clothes. I convinced myself that perhaps some of them were just skinny clothes I would fit into again someday. Then they would bring me joy!

Even when joy turned into resentment, I couldn’t do away with them. I would put on one of my old shirts from ten years ago and practically squeeze my way into it. After all, if I was wearing it, then it justified keeping it, right?

The now-tiny, worn-out t-shirt would ride up, and my belly would show, which made me throw on a jacket to cover it up anyway. The fabric stretched tight across my chest and waist made me aware of every movement I made. I loathed that shirt and the change in my body it represented.

But when I looked at that shirt in my closet, it sparked a cherished memory. I had limited space in my closet and a realization that my body and clothes were no longer in harmony. I knew something had to give.

At the time, I had a complete all-or-nothing approach to my discarding decisions. Then I learned about Marie Kondo's partnership with a company called TerraCycle. They specialize in turning even challenging materials into new products. You can send them clothes, automotive parts, and even action figures.

According to the EPA, the recycling rate for textiles was only 14.7 percent in 2018 and an estimated 11.3 million tons of textiles found their way into landfills. Each year we put more into our landfills, but the great news is that we’ve also been contributing more to recycling as well.

Suddenly, I realized that I didn’t have to let go. I could give my old t-shirts new life and a new purpose. Discarding items isn’t just about removing them from your household; it can also be about changing their nature.

One of the things I love about the KonMari Method is that discarded items aren’t just put into the trash and clogging up landfills. Marie Kondo has always been an advocate for giving things what she calls a Special Send-Off. You can donate gently used items to shelters, donation centers, or other people.

However, you can also upcycle your well-loved items into new and exciting forms. If you are having a tough time parting with something that used to bring you joy, then upcycling might be the perfect solution.

For my once-beloved shirts, I selected five that I wanted to save. I realized that while I don’t have space in my closet, I do have a lot of space on my walls. After a quick trip to Michaels, I came home with 11x14" display cases that I purchased on sale for $29.99 for a 2-pack on a buy-one-get-one sale.

Out of six shirts, I decided to put three of them with larger graphics into the display cases. Once I laid them out, I used a lint roller to remove the fuzz and abundant cat hair that floats around my house. You may want to iron the shirt, but it’s not completely necessary. I tried to center the graphic in the frame as much as possible before folding the shirt neatly into the display case.

For two of my shirts with thicker fabric, I wanted to do something simple that anyone can do, even if you can’t sew. I decided to make these into cute tote bags for our groceries. I recommend thicker fabric because they’ll be much stronger for those heavy grocery items, like milk and vegetables.

I followed this fantastic no-sew guide.

Those who loved Tidying Up With Marie Kondo will be sure to love Sparking Joy With Marie Kondo coming to Netflix this summer.

Donating clothing to companies like Goodwill is excellent, but there isn’t any guarantee that clothes that don’t sell will be responsibly recycled. If you’re ready to part with some older t-shirts, a great program and online shop to check out is Marine Layer. You can donate old t-shirts to their Re-Spun program, which has kept 175,000 t-shirts from ending up in landfills so far. Their re-spun clothing is made with 30-100% recycled materials.

If your t-shirts remind you of old times but don’t bring you joy, there are a lot of fabulous ways to upcycle your old clothing. Whether you display them, re-shape them, or find new ways to wear them, you’ll be saving these treasured items from the landfill. Tidying doesn’t have to be all-or-nothing. With an open mind and a little work, your old t-shirts can inspire joy again.

Happy tidying!

Disclaimer: No affiliate links were used. At the time of publication, the author’s opinions are their own and were not created with a financial interest in the organization(s) or product(s) mentioned.