Wikipedia defines recycling as the process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects. Downcycling involves converting materials and products into new materials of lesser quality and then upcycling is a process to convert materials for creative reuse. I am a mother of two beautiful girls and on a daily basis we recycle various products in our household but the one product that most households with children really need, tend to be lost and forgotten about… School Uniform.
The cost of purchasing a new school uniform may be a burden on some families. School uniforms are notoriously expensive, even more so if you have more than one child and let’s be honest, why do we need to buy new school uniform? Not because it is no longer good quality but because our children have grown so much during the season that it does not fit anymore, because they are transferring between schools or because they completed their schooling.
Gewoonlik word die ou uniform sommer in die kas gebêre, of in swart sake gestoor net om later by die skool te gaan aflaai (as jy onthou). Soms as jy weer tot verhaal kom is daar al 3, selfs 6 maande verby en die klere lê steeds in die sak in die motorhuis. Intussen moes jy as ouer R150 opgedok het vir ‘n splinternuwe kortbroek en die ander een lê steeds in die motorhuis en die kans is goed dat dit op die ashoop gaan opeindig.
But how can we make our old uniform count? How can we recycle, downcycle or upcycle and more importantly, how can I let my “too small” uniform or sports kit, benefit me as parent when I still have to go and buy new uniform for my kids? How can we as parents help each other to save money on uniform if all of us most probably have a school item that is no longer serving our children but can definitely serve another parent or child, and in the meantime, bring some money back into the household to buy new kit?
I believe that the answer lies in the upcycling of our too small school uniform. The only way to effectively upcycle school uniform is through a network of parents, all with the same goal: to help each other. Schools and Stuff have created a network of parents all along the Garden Route. We bring parents together to network and to sell their old uniform to other parents that have a need for it. If you are interested to be part of this network, please feel free to contact us on 072 710 7081 and we will gladly add you to our upcycling network.
