Reconstruction Step-by-step Tutorial

Reconstruction Step-by-step Tutorial

With Wan & Wong Fashion

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Extending the life of clothing by an extra nine months of active use would reduce carbon, waste and water footprints by around 20% to 30% each.

Reconstruction is the process of making new clothes from previously worn garments or preformed finished products. Reconstruction is often incorrectly perceived to be an exclusive design approach, as the designs are often not easily reproducible because of the variable supply of working materials. However, by using common garment types that are regulars in the fashion chain, there are many possibilities for creating reproducible reconstruction.

In this guide, we feature a reconstructed design by Wan & Wong Fashion’s Kelvin Wan and Joyce Wong. They explore the reproducibility of reconstruction using a regular dress shirt and show different ways to use fabric cut-offs.

MATERIALS

• Dress shirt sample
• Bodice pattern
• Scissors
• Pins
• Pencil
• Sewing thread
• Brand label

1

Using a simple dress shirt, a common and easily found garment, we used a standard bodice pattern as our starting point. This pattern could be adapted to various other styles, such as a sleeveless dress or other styles of tops, according to the size or features of the original shirt. Our first step is to deconstruct the shirt at the seams. 

2

Next, we trace our new pattern onto the shirt. If you are building a collection, you will need to rescale the pattern to get a full range of sizes from multiple shirts. Make sure to take time to develop your patterns.

You can also try mixing two or more garments together to create a more unique design. For example, you could combine fabrics from two dress shirts with different patterns. 

3

Cut out the pieces you need for your new design. Don’t throw away the scraps – they can be used later or in your other designs!

At Wan & Wong Fashion, we minimise the waste produced by using our fabric scraps to create accessories. We also renew shirts, for example if they have holes or stains, by using scrap fabric as piping or by adding a transfer print.  

4

Then, we pin the pieces onto a mannequin. We always look for ways to be creative with the leftover pieces of fabric. For this design, we consciously decided to show a connection to the original garment by using the sleeves as a belt and we used the scraps as a bow to add a feminine touch! However, with reconstruction even the most uninspiring original garment can, once stripped down to its fabric, be transformed into something completely unrecognisable with a little creativity! 

5

Finally, we sew up the pieces into the finished ‘new’ design.

6

Complete! Before we started our reconstruction line, we only created clothes for ourselves to wear. But as we received more and more clothing samples, we began to experiment and developed different designs, which can be reproduced.

We now have established good relationships with various wholesalers and manufacturers in Hong Kong and China and so it is very easy for us to source clothing waste and we are given end-of-rolls and sample garments periodically. So, try to find and connect with local companies to get hold of their valuable waste!