Entry 1

During our Gaps free-write in class my thesis and overall topic evolved into something very specific and interesting. I started asking questions like: 

“why is upcycling focused on cheaper design? 

Why is upcycling not focused on quality merchandise?

Why is upcycling very DIY oriented?” 

Eventually, I focused specifically on individualism and quality. I began brainstorming key phrases for the counter argument based on these ideas: 

“specific items of higher quality, 

individual, 

profitable, 

upcycling is generalized.” 

My thesis could now stem from something more basic:

“Individualistic upcycling apparel design will stimulate the economy and reduce waste impact on the environment,”

to something more specialized: “upcycled apparel designs focused on individuality and quality will stimulate the economy while reducing waste impact on the environment.” 

At the end of the activity I listed the important ideas I had created: 

“higher quality, 

individualistic design, 

green washing, 

upcyling design generalized.” 

This free-write allowed me to narrow my topic and find an interesting contradiction within my area of interest. Instead of just focusing on how upcycling benefits the economy and environment I’m exploring how it specifically achieves that through design and what types of design are beneficial.

The work in class along with the counter argument has really grounded my opinion and helped me realize that I want to focus specifically on how quality apparel design can benefit a cradle-to-cradle industrial system. I’m excited to integrate different forms of research into my final research paper that should culminate into an interesting proposal for beneficial social and industrial systems.