
Attempting Upcycling
Finding ways to make old things new when you have basic sewing knowledge but no patience
The Mission
up·cy·cle
/ˈəpˌsīkəl/
verb: to reuse (discarded objects or material) in such a way as to create a product of higher quality or value than the original.
I wanted to try to upcycling, which is the radical idea that things can be recycled into better — not lesser — objects. A lot of clothing we don’t want is donated, and for us it’s out of sight, out of mind. However, the earth we live in still has to deal with our junk, and I want to mitigate the amount of junk I put into the world as much as possible. So, I went on this journey to upcycle a piece of clothing, looking at where it came from, to where it is now.
I decided to take on the endeavour of creating two pieces of clothing from one piece of old, unused clothing. I already mend a lot of my clothes, so I had to search in my family’s closet for this project. My dad has these Colosseum Athletics brand shorts, which he bought from Winners, that no longer (or rather, never did) fit him. A while back, I came across this tutorial by Nava Rose which shows you how to make a two piece bralette and skirt set from a large pair of gym shorts. When I saw my Dad’s old shorts I knew that this was something I wanted to try making. I have never made anything like this before, and I figured it would be a good idea to challenge myself and improve my sewing abilities.
The Company

Colosseum Athletics is a collegiate apparel manufacturer, and is ranked as the 4th largest collegiate apparel company in the US. They sell both branded sports merchandise for college teams and their own labelled merchandise. The company was started in 1992 by Stuart Whang, a graduate of USC. He started off making branded hats and has gone on to build his company, with many contract factories in China, and one in-house owned facility in Vietnam called The Cotton Shop. (Source: Colosseum)
Currently, their headquarters are in Compton, California, but their manufacturing factories are based in Shanghai and Ho Chi Minh City (Source: Colosseum Athletics LinkedIn Profile). The particular shorts I am working on are made in China, so I concluded that the manufacturing was done in Shanghai. As of 2017, the company contracts 11–15 different suppliers in China to produce their garments (Source: FLA Assessment 2017).
In terms of fair trade, it seems to be decent, and has made many improvements since the company’s earlier days. I found multiple reports from the Fair Labour Association (FLA) which does annual assessments of its members to ensure compliance with fair labour laws and standards. A report from 2009 showed that many factories that it was contracting were not up to code, they did not pay their workers minimum wage, and they only had 2.5 days off per year on average, with no overtime or holiday pay (Source: FLA Independent external Assesment 2009). However, a more recent FLA report from 2016 shows that Colosseum’s factories are now up to FLA standards — they pay their workers above minimum wage, they have specialized positions within the company to ensure worker’s are given a voice, and they provide systems which allow workers to gain new skills (Source: FLA Assessment 2017).
100% Polyester

Despite this improvement in terms of their labour, there isn’t much I can say in terms of sustainability. The shorts are made of 100% polyester, which is a fabric made completely of the treated plastic compound polyethylene terephthalate (PET) which is made from a “chemical reaction involving coal, petroleum, air, and water”. Using “a petroleum by-product, alcohol, and carboxyl acid”, the materials are mixed into a monomer or ester — this process is called polymerization (Source: Craftech).The polymer is then further processed one of four ways to create fibres:
1.Filament: Polyester filaments are continuous fibers, and these fibers produce smooth and soft fabrics.
2.Staple: Polyester staples resemble the staples used to make cotton yarn, and like cotton staples, polyester staples are usually spun into a yarn-like material.
3.Tow: Polyester tow is like polyester filament, but in polyester tow, the filaments are loosely arranged together.
4.Fiberfill: Fiberfill consists of continuous polyester filaments, but these filaments are produced specifically to have the most possible volume to make bulky products like pillows, outerwear, and stuffing for stuffed animals.
(Source: Sewport)
I learned a lot about how exactly polyester is made. Below is the generalized process for creating polyester from Sewport:
The Polyester Manufacturing Cycle
(Source: Sewport)
Polyester is extremely common for athletic clothing since it is wrinkle-free, strong, quick-drying, non-shrinking or stretching, and most importantly, wicks away moisture. However, due to its low rate of recyclability and its large consumption of energy and petroleum to produce, it is definitely not a very sustainable material (Source: The Sustainable Fashion Collective).

I drew an analysis diagram of the shorts, pinpointing what each component is made of, and a bit of how each component is made. These shorts are very soft, stretchy, flowy knit fabric, sewn together with thin threads. Considering the qualities of the cloth, I believe the bulk of it is made from polyester filament. I also think that the threads used to sew the garment together were made from staples which were spun together to form a long thread. This is because spun polyester threads are the cheapest to produce, and are more elastic than cotton thread (Source: Superior Threads). Since Asia produces 94% of the world’s polyester fibres (Source: IHS Markit), I think it’s fairly safe to say that the polyester used in this pair of shorts is made in Asia.
PET is commonly found in food packaging and water bottles, which is why some fabrics can be made using recycled PET. These shorts do not indicate they are made from recycled PET, so I am assuming they’re not recycled materials. This is another factor which makes these shorts score low from a sustainability standpoint. Not only is polyester not great in terms of production and lack of biodegradability, but it “releases plastic microfibers into the ocean when washing which is a HUGE problem.” (Source: Eco Warrior Princess). So, whenever washing this garment, I have to think about the microplastics which are going into the oceans and into our bodies when we eat aquatic life or drink water.
Making the old new again
Here are the before and after photos of my little project!


I created a video of my process creating these shorts, attempting to use as many parts of the shorts as I could instead of using bias/elastic tape like the tutorial suggested. Despite the distractions of 5 dogs (only one is mine, the other four I was dogsitting at the time), I managed to finish this project in 5 hours.
Journey of These Shorts
Based on all this data, we can reasonably map the journey of these shorts as thus:
- Raw materials used to create PET come from either the US, Italy, China, India, Japan, where the largest PET manufacturers are. (Source: technavio)
- Raw materials are shipped to areas in China which produce polyester fibers, which are then woven into fabrics or spun into threads in another facility.
- The fabrics, including the main fabric, laces, and thread, are all shipped to the Colosseum’s contracted manufacturer in Shanghai. The shorts are mass produced in these facilities using a combination of automated machinery and manual labour from 60–200 employees.
- After making a large enough quantity, the goods are shipped across the ocean in tankers to the Port of Long Beach, Long Beach, California. (Source: Panjiva)
- The clothing is cleared by customs and driven in trucks to the storehouses in Compton, California.
- From there, shipments of clothing are sent around. Colosseum typically sells to an American market, since their activewear is most popular amongst a collegiate audience. They send their clothing all over the US, particularly to retailers like Macy’s or Kohl’s, which is where these shorts stay for a period of time.
- Since these shorts are size XL, a larger size, they tend to be less popular than say a Medium. Many larger-sized clothing might not sell well in a large retailer, so it is sold and shipped to a off-price department store like Winners. These shorts, unsold in the US, were sent to Vancouver’s port, and placed on the rack at the Winner’s location in Madison Center, Burnaby.
- My dad picked them up, probably without trying them on, thinking they would fit fine. In fact, he bought TWO pairs of these shorts in different colours. He was that sure 👀.
- My dad drives home with his purchase, and goes to try them on, realizing that he doesn’t really like how they fit. The shorts sit in his closet for a period of time. He might wear it if his other favourite shorts are in the wash, but this pair is generally not worn nor washed.
- I ask my dad if he has any clothing he doesn’t need anymore, and he gives me these shorts to play around with.
- I made the shorts into a two piece set that I can wear during the summer months or to raves. I managed to turn one garment into two separate ones, increasing its longevity, since even if one part becomes unwearable, the other half I can still sport. Additionally, I have the skills and know-how to mend them if need be.
Lessons Learned

For one thing, I need to help my dad curb his Winners shopping obsession, and his tendency to not try on clothing before buying it. But in the cases where anyone in my family does end up buying clothing they don’t want but can’t sell, I can use my improved sewing and garment-constructing skills in order to create new clothes, giving the original garment new life. I learned how to construct a bralette and skirt, which I have never constructed before.
For the first time, I made clothing using other clothing, instead of buying metres of brand-new store-bought fabrics. So this was a sustainable process in a multitude of ways. I also know that when washing this 100% polyester set, I have to be cognizant that it will release microplastics, so I should try to wash it only when I have a full load to reduce energy, and perhaps install a filter or use eco-settings on my machine to catch some of the small fibres released in the washing process. Overall, this was a great and educational experience, and I am glad that I got to turn something old into something new and extend its life while building my own skills.