✨ This week’s reflection: why the most meaningful pieces in our closets rarely come with the highest price tag, and how upcycling changes the way we value what we wear.
In fashion, we’ve been taught that value comes from newness.
A $400 designer dress feels worth it because of the label, the scarcity, the story.
But if you look at cost-per-wear, resource use, and personal utility, the numbers tell a very different story.
Buying New Designer Wear
$300–600
Worn 1–3 times
Cost-per-wear: $100+
New materials, packaging, manufacturing, and shipping (all with a footprint)
Excitement fades fast
Upcycling What You Already Own
$75–250
Worn more often (better fit + more personal)
Cost-per-wear: often <$20
Uses what you already have → tiny footprint
High emotional return: you co-created it
When you’ve had a hand in creating something, you wear it differently. You keep it longer. You value it more.
Upcycling shifts spending:
From mass production → skilled creative labor
From waste → regeneration
From short-lived novelty → long-term value
The more I work in this space, the clearer it becomes:
Upcycling isn’t niche. It’s inevitable.
We don’t need more clothes. We need to reimagine the ones we already have.
That’s the smartest investment decision—for your wallet, your wardrobe, and the planet.
✨ I’d love to hear from you:
What’s the most meaningful piece in your wardrobe, and why?
Reply to this email and share your story—I may feature it in an upcoming issue 💛