It is our ultimate goal to significantly reduce and divert the enormous amount of
discarded items and reinvent them into a treasured commodity. Offering unique
items made with, what I have termed, “upcycled materials”: plastic bags, soda pull
tabs, plastic bottle caps, used CDs/DVDs, broken crayons and more; selling them as
100% green products. The profit from these sales is then used to sponsor
educational programs and our Temporary Flooring Program that offers “upcycled
floor tiles” (made from plastic bottle caps and Capri-Sun juice bags) as a temporary
flooring solution for those who live in severely poor conditions with no flooring in their
homes. At the beginning of the promotion and distribution of the Flooring Program,
we expect to eliminate the needless disposal of millions of these bottle caps and
thousands of Capri-Sun containers.
discarded items and reinvent them into a treasured commodity. Offering unique
items made with, what I have termed, “upcycled materials”: plastic bags, soda pull
tabs, plastic bottle caps, used CDs/DVDs, broken crayons and more; selling them as
100% green products. The profit from these sales is then used to sponsor
educational programs and our Temporary Flooring Program that offers “upcycled
floor tiles” (made from plastic bottle caps and Capri-Sun juice bags) as a temporary
flooring solution for those who live in severely poor conditions with no flooring in their
homes. At the beginning of the promotion and distribution of the Flooring Program,
we expect to eliminate the needless disposal of millions of these bottle caps and
thousands of Capri-Sun containers.
| Our Goal |
| Upcycle Way was created to raise awareness and demonstrate the benefits of reworking items that would normally be discarded or deposited in local landfills into unique, useful, and fashionable products of everyday use. |
Today’s society has created sufficient source material for the majority of mankind’s
needs. By promoting what we refer to as “upcycling,” we can reuse these source
materials and turn them into beneficial products long after their original use has been
completed and they are normally ready to be thrown into the garbage and discarded
forever. We also design programs and teach seminars to families, schools,
businesses, and local community organizations to help collect disposables and show
them how to either personally rework these items or donate them to Upcycle Way
where they can be utilized.
needs. By promoting what we refer to as “upcycling,” we can reuse these source
materials and turn them into beneficial products long after their original use has been
completed and they are normally ready to be thrown into the garbage and discarded
forever. We also design programs and teach seminars to families, schools,
businesses, and local community organizations to help collect disposables and show
them how to either personally rework these items or donate them to Upcycle Way
where they can be utilized.
| Purpose |
Fashion Designer Gabriela Conner has been interested in crafts since she was four years old,
learning skills (sewing, crocheting, knitting, etc.) throughout childhood, then obtaining a Bachelor’s
Degree in Design and Marketing in Fashion. Her interest in creating different things from scratch
and using a diversity of materials meant for other uses became a trigger to experiment with making
items for personal use. In 2004, she found inspiration in crocheting purses out of plastic grocery
bags. The fascination of “not buying supplies but reusing waste” then inspired her to make, along
with other materials, more useful and fashion-oriented items. Since then, her family and friends
have been collecting upcycle materials.
The creation of more products and to aid in spreading the word of what she was doing to interested
groups also facilitated the need of a more formalized image. The Upcycle Way logo was created
based on hand signs that tell the name and colors representing sun, nature, and skies. From there,
seminars to children and invitations to participate in fairs and expos began.
learning skills (sewing, crocheting, knitting, etc.) throughout childhood, then obtaining a Bachelor’s
Degree in Design and Marketing in Fashion. Her interest in creating different things from scratch
and using a diversity of materials meant for other uses became a trigger to experiment with making
items for personal use. In 2004, she found inspiration in crocheting purses out of plastic grocery
bags. The fascination of “not buying supplies but reusing waste” then inspired her to make, along
with other materials, more useful and fashion-oriented items. Since then, her family and friends
have been collecting upcycle materials.
The creation of more products and to aid in spreading the word of what she was doing to interested
groups also facilitated the need of a more formalized image. The Upcycle Way logo was created
based on hand signs that tell the name and colors representing sun, nature, and skies. From there,
seminars to children and invitations to participate in fairs and expos began.
| Origination of the Project |
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