“I’ve spent the first half of my life acquiring all this crap and now I’m gonna spend the second half of my life getting rid of all this stuff.”
-Mother (Patricia Arquette), Boyhood-
Although crap sounds a little harsh, as people grow older they inevitably accumulate more and more stuff that they no longer use. The problem is that loads of people love that old stuff they don’t use anymore because of nostalgia. Clothes make up a large amount of this gradual amassing of clutter: mothers saving their children’s baby clothes, uncles reluctant to chuck their old Led Zep shirts, young professionals holding onto their high school sports jerseys that have long since refused to bend to the will of their growing beer bellies, and the list goes on on. There’s nothing wrong with getting nostalgic, those clothes define a part of a person’s life, and there’s no need to feel like one has to donate or chuck it all out.
So what does one do with all that old clothing they love? Well, these two sisters have got a great solution!
Ayesha and Manisha Desai had the same issue, all their old clothes began overflowing from a large trunk in their mother’s home. Finally, their mum declared it was time for some ‘spring cleaning’, which turned out to be the spark behind the successful upcycling duo, Cornucopia. You see, they didn’t want to part with their old clothes, but also realised they couldn’t keep on stuffing a poor old trunk unable to withstand anymore of yesteryear’s garments; so, they made a lovely quilt out of their collective clothing, the patchwork a collage of memories that is threaded together with nostalgia and practicality.
The sisters had spent their life working in the developmental sector and “didn’t even know how to sew a button on!” However, that didn’t stop them from creating a quilt that turned out so wonderfully friends and family members began giving them their old clothes to upcycle. “I realised that I was enjoying working with old clothes and seeing them transform into something completely different. I also discovered a creative side in me which I didn’t know existed,” says Manisha.
And so it began, the transformation of used t-shirts, kurtas, sarees, bedsheets and dupattas into their second life — a life that better appreciated the sentiment attached to the old cloth as well as the practicality of using it.
Fast forward eight years later and Cornucopia has operations in Gurgaon and Pune, as well as clothing-pick-up facilities in Gurgaon, Delhi, Pune, and Mumbai. Currently, Cornucopia takes roughly 30 - 40 custom orders a month as well as offering readymade products, such as, shopping bags, baby quilts, and bedcovers, all made from locally sourced fabric. Although, we find their custom work to be the most interesting aspect of their business, we also thought it might be a bit stressful working with material people are very attached to.
However, Manisha says it’s not stressful, and elaborates that, “working with people’s precious keepsakes is a job with a lot of responsibility. We have to do more than our best and can’t afford to make even a single mistake. Most often we have women giving us their mothers old sarees to be repurposed into quilts. These sarees have been stored in cupboards for years as keepsakes. “ Oh I would love to be wrapped by my mother’s love all over again” - it’s these kind of statements that get us to put our heart and soul into making that quilt the most gorgeous quilt ever!”
Manisha is quick to add that being meticulous no way infringes on the fun they have. “Actually, what is fun about this work is that no two products are the same! Because all of our products are customised, we land up doing something different every time. We keep changing things around to keep it interesting. But having said that, I have the most fun with T shirt quilts. It’s like getting a peek into the customer’s life... getting to know their favourite band, or University or cause or sport.”
Entry Level Projects.
“It’s always good starting small so it doesn’t seem too overwhelming. The simplest upcycling with cloth is making shopping bags out of old clothes. This is also the first step towards refusing plastic when you are out shopping. Once you start, it’s pretty addictive! You suddenly see all your old clothes in a new light. Converting souvenir t-shirts into quilts or cushion covers can be the next stage. ( I know it took me some time to cut up my University and work souvenirs - I wasn’t wearing them, but still... taking a scissor to them for the first time was a little scary. But I after cutting that first t-shirt there was no looking back!).”
Favourite Fabrics.
Manisha’s favourite fabric to work with is, “Cotton - whether its soft old sarees or kurtis. Cotton comes in the most vibrant colours and it’s a fabric that is not only good for the environment but also for the person wearing it - it breathes.” Otherwise, she finds denim to be a durable material that also belongs at the forefront of cycling, “but only after its been worn and re-worn and worn again. It’s always more sustainable for a pair of jeans to be used as jeans for as long as possible. They can be handed down, donated etc. Upcycling this or any fabric for that matter should only be an option if 1. You can’t bear to part with it 2. It can’t be reused in its current state.”
The Future Of Upcycling.
“Indians have been ‘Upcycling’ and repurposing long before the words became cool hashtags! The lower middle class and the poor repurpose and upcycle most of their belongings on a daily basis. If you go back a generation or two - almost everyone did. Things were saved to be reused, clothes were handed down, products were repaired and not thrown. But all of this has changed . Why? Speculative answers are many - disposable incomes, rushed lifestyle( no time to breathe and you are asking me to reuse/save/repurpose?! mad-o-wot?!) easy access to new products ( aka online shopping) the list is endless.
The biggest challenge is to re-introduce upcycling and repurposing to today’s super consumers. It’s so much easier ( and sometimes cheaper) to buy a new phone than repair one. Today, upcycling is done by people on both ends of the economic spectrum - by the poor and by the rich. It’s still a niche area and if we want to make any difference - it needs to become a mainstream movement. This movement calls for a change in mindset, a change in consumerism and a basic want and understanding of why we need to conserve our fast depleting resources. So unless these issues are addressed first, upcycling is still going to remain a cool hashtag used by only a few.”
We at Homegrown think these sisters are sewing up a new attitude towards upcycling, which has the power to influence the middle class when it comes to reusing — and not for an absurd price like how the upper echelons do it. So if you want artisans to help stitch up some of your old memories into a creation you’ll use, reach out to the good people at Cornucopia; otherwise, give it a shot yourself, even if it goes horribly wrong, it’ll at least be a good story.
Check out Cornucopia’s Facebook page to get a better idea of their work and talent.