The best upcycled fashion brands for all styles and budgets

With sustainability and conscious consumerism rightfully becoming more and more important, we’ve been introduced to a range of new techniques and technologies that are helping fashion move forward to a circular economy model. Recycling, reselling, downcycling, upcycling… the list goes on. 

We're all trying to do our best when it comes to looking after the planet—whether that is shopping from one of the best sustainable fashion brands or sustainable jewelry brands, or planning more sustainable living practices at home. Whatever you do, it's important to start somewhere. And an easy way to make your wardrobe more eco-friendly, is to shop from upcycled fashion brands, who put sustainability at the heart of their business model. 

There are a wealth of brands that are constantly thinking of ways to create a more green product. As such, we've rounded up our favorite upcycled fashion brands that are getting creative and making the most of items and fabric that would otherwise go to waste, to create pieces that are as sustainable as they are chic and stylish.

The best upcycled fashion brands to shop

Seen as a movement more so than a fashion brand, Re/Done is all about championing the history of each individual piece. Based in LA, the brand doesn’t use chemicals, and uses water-conserving practices to give a new lease of life to preowned items. They believe that a pair of jeans tells a story—every patch of color fade or every tear and ripped knee is part of it. To celebrate this, and in a bid to move to a more circular fashion model, the jeans are re-done, carefully taken from their seams, and made into a new a truly unique piece of clothing. 

Re/Done started with using two styles of denim, a skinny cut, and a looser straight leg option, and later added a high-rise option into the mix. Now there are several cut options to choose from including tops, jackets, and other upcycled pieces. Within each option there are several pairs, so that means the very piece you click on and buy is the piece that you’ll be sent. 

We love the High rise wide-leg crop denim ($320) which can be worn with a simple T-shirt and trainers or styled up with a pair of chunky boots and crochet knit. 

Yes, we know that Bode is technically menswear, but there are several gorgeous luxury pieces from the upcycled fashion brand that would fit seamlessly into a woman's wardrobe too. Bode utilizes antique fabric and materials to create new pieces. With everything from relaxed blazers to plaid trousers, bags, cords, and even homeware bits too, there really is something for everyone.  

We love the start detailing on this dinner plate shirt (above), which when worn with sneakers and tucked into blue jeans makes for the perfect summer outfit. 

Gaâla is an international brand in all its aspects: French design combined with Belarusian craftsmanship and Italian textiles. Using mainly excess production materials and deadstock fabrics, the fashion label creates timeless pieces that will go from one season to the other. 

The Gaâla mantra is “create for the needs of today while enabling the needs of future generations”—therefore, they’re always looking for ways to lower their impact on the environment. The brand makes delicate and feminine dresses in all sorts of prints in classic yet fashionable styles. 

We especially love the sleeves and neckline of the button-down Esther dress and the delicate lace-up back. 

Transforming fast fashion’s leftover in slow fashion sustainable staples, Oh Seven Days designs are both original and multifunctional. The brand is based in Istanbul, Turkey, where they source their surplus fabric from local factories —as Istanbul is one of the main textile manufacturing capitals in the world that’s a great advantage.

Oh Seven Days works around a different business model: the availability of the fabric dictates production, which makes total sense for an upcycling brand. 

And we’re obsessed with the brand’s modern aesthetic. The tops with contemporary shapes and neckline, in particular, are our favorites. We can totally see ourselves wearing the Winnie top in black with high-rise light blue denim and trainers for a casual brunch or lunch.

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This pioneering sustainable fashion brand has been championing upcycling and recycling since 2007. Using reclaimed materials sourced from Yorkshire in England and mixing heritage craft fabrics and processes, Antiform creates modern pieces that have a story behind them. 

Speaking of clothes with a story, the brand has gone one step further with their Antiform x You special customized collection. You can choose the central material from their huge fabric library and add your touch to it by using some of your own preloved clothing. This special collection is available in two designs: the folk dress and box jumper, the latter being their signature style and our favorite piece. The box jumper comes in different combinations of colors and patterns and is your go-to option to elevate up the weekend cozy-jumper, denim, and boots combo. The tassels and the patchwork silk detail on the sleeves make it even more special. 

Originally created two years ago under the name ‘Fabric for Freedom’, Fanfare is now one of the best options when it comes to statement upcycled fashion. Think of patchworks, pieces in different shapes, and creative, unique designs—exactly the opposite of dated preconceptions of sustainable fashion as boring and tasteless. Fanfare mixes recycled and organic materials with repurposed fabrics, creating contemporary and classic pieces. Linen suits, cargo pants, and co-ord sets are some of their wardrobe staples.

However, we have to admit that what really caught our eye were the over-the-top styles—in particular, the incredible patchwork and voluminous sleeve top. You can let it take center stage by pairing it with black trousers and loafers, or wear it with a leather skirt and boots. 

Denim jeans are a staple piece in every capsule wardrobe—and we love them even more when they combine sustainability and great design all in one. E.L.V Denim, who specialize in sustainable jeans, sources all of its denim from vintage warehouses around the UK, and they use only 7 litres of water in their washing process. As a comparison, it takes around 7,000 litres to make one single pair of new regular denim trousers. 

Their production is based in East London using traditional and sustainable denim methods and ensuring their workers are paid a fair living wage. They have a variety of colours, shapes, and washes, as well as jackets and shorts. Our top pick is the straight leg trousers in dark and light shades of blue—the uneven hemline seriously ups the style stakes. Wear it with a roll neck, wool blazer and heeled boots for the ultimate cozy and stylish look. 

Amour Vert, who we love for their brilliant and high-quality basics, uses sustainable practices all the way through its production processes. They create limited quantities of clothing in their California workshop in order to eliminate waste as much as possible. The opposite of fast fashion, they use only natural eco-friendly fibers to create their clothes, that are kind to the environment.

Not only that, but the brand also has a resale marketplace—ReAmour—where shoppers can buy and sell classic and timeless pieces from the brand to ensure as much of their stock as possible avoid landfill. Shoppers are free to upcycle the clothes they want, to make them work for their wardrobes. 

We love their elegant shirts in particular, and their other stylish basics such as their striped tees, comfy loungewear and simple jumpers.