Our story
Creative Dundee works with the Wardrobe (previously known as The Community Wardrobe) to desigmatise second hand clothing. The Wardrobe (run by Transition Dundee) acts as a place to learn all about climate change, what's going on around the city and how you can get involved. They also host upcycling and repair workshops to help users build the confidence and ability to mend and prolong the life of your clothes, reducing the amount of clothing going to landfill.
The Community Wardrobe opened its doors in October 2020, with two principles: to keep the mountains of clothes donated to the project out of landfill, whilst making free clothes available to those in need in the most dignified way possible. With the aim to encourage a culture of wearing second hand clothes, and inspire new shopping habits, they wanted to offer an alternative to the culture of fast fashion.
As time went on, and the clothes kept coming, the staff realised that they needed to do more, so they began encouraging visitors to turn those clothes into something else; T-shirts became bags, pretty fabric was used to make bookmarks, and scraps were turned into brooches and wreaths.
The Wee Wardrobe is part of 'CULTIVATE', a regional leadership programme for creative practitioners and local communities to collaboratively explore new ways of embedding creativity and grassroots collective action for climate justice, across the Tay region.
Led by Creative Dundee for over five years, and funded by Creative Scotland's Culture Collective, this project brings together creative practitioners and community groups to explore climate justice in a practical and meaningful way.
Today Creative Dundee is thriving, as can be seen in its published monthly schedule of events, workshops and other community activities.
Our advice
Build partnerships that blend creativity and community action: collaborate with both creative practitioners and grassroots organisations. This helps bring fresh ideas to sustainability work while grounding projects in local needs.
Make second-hand culture positive and aspirational: focus messaging on creativity, individuality, and environmental impact rather than charity or need. Use events, workshops, and storytelling to reframe second-hand fashion as stylish and empowering.
Offer hands-on learning opportunities: practical upcycling and repair workshops give people skills and confidence to take action themselves, extending the life of clothes and reducing waste.
Create a welcoming and dignified space: ensure that the environment and language used avoid stigma, celebrate creativity, and make everyone feel comfortable accessing or contributing to the project.
Measure and share your impact (see below).
Our Changeprint
Our Changeprint can be measured by the total weight of clothes diverted from landfill by reuse, redistribution, or upcycling each year; the number of people attending workshops, events, or accessing free clothing; estimated CO2 saved annually through reuse and upcycling activities; the number of upcycling/repair workshops or creative sessions delivered, and participant feedback on increased awareness or confidence in sustainable fashion.
