23-year-old Dinh Thi Tuyet in Thanh Hoa Province’s Sam Son City has created and turned old clothes into unique new products that are favored by many people, especially young people.
Since childhood, the young girl has loved sewing and embroidery. After graduating from high school, she did not go to university but chose to be a tailor and designer. She went to Hanoi to pursue a fashion design training course, then returned to her home in Sam Son City to open a small tailor shop to start a business.
At first, Tuyet sewed for customers like any other normal tailors. Once by chance, she accidentally saw some recycled products from old clothes which made a strong impression on the young girl.
She was wondering why she did not recycle old clothes into new products. She started to find information realizing that garments and textiles produce a large amount of waste. Therefore, if she upcycled old clothes into new items, she could help reduce the amount of waste.
Then, Tuyet began making use of her and her family members' old clothes to create beautiful, unique handbags, dresses, and shirts. She has filmed the process of upcycling these products and then shared them on social networks. Surprisingly, Tuyet's shares on social networks received a lot of positive feedback which encouraged her to continue her meaningful work.
So after just over three months of upcycling old clothes into beautiful items, Tuyet has received many orders, not only in Thanh Hoa Province but from all corners of the country such as Can Tho, Dong Nai, Dak Lak, and Hanoi.
Furthermore, people sent their old clothes to her. Tuyet has designed old clothes into unique items impressing customers with the cost from VND100,000 (US$4.12) to VND150,000.
Tuyet said that upcycling old clothes into handmade items will make a small contribution to limiting waste in the garment industry and minimizing environmental pollution in addition to earning extra income. She revealed that in the coming time, she would design more diverse and youthful designs to attract young customers.
