Op shopping is such an adventure and much more fun than shopping for new stuff because you get to make discoveries.

This is a quote from my young New Zealand visitor Olivia after we called into a few op shops during National Op Shop Week, in-between the usual sightseeing and conventional shopping.

What a great insight from a nine-year-old, right, modelling one of her finds. The I Love Aus singlet was perfect, apart from being too long in the shoulders. All we had to do was snip each shoulder on the diagonal and tie a knot to shorten and prevent the shoulders slipping off (see photos below). Olivia then teamed it with op-shop-found shorts to suit her young athletic style. 

And from my own daughter Lily, there is also evidence of her making conscious choices and valuing upcycling. I was thrilled to get this photo, right, from her travels in Europe (ahead of studying in the United Kingdom as part of her university degree).  It is of upcycled demin bags at a market stall in Italy, affirming evidence of reuse activities going on around the world – as we know from Sass Brown’s fabulous books Eco Fashion and Refashioned, and lots of postings from eco-fashionistas and upcyclers.

My goal is to travel the world inspiring creative upcycling of natural fibres – and I’m making a start by getting my New Zealand connections involved in the Sew it Again project.