ABOUT ME

and my journey.

SABINE HEIJNEN

This is me. At the moment of writing I'm 26 years old. I'm living together with my cat Bubbles (who's featured on my Instagram story often for interrupting my work) in a city in the center of the Netherlands. I love to spend my time creating "new" items out of pre-loved materials. Unused, stained or ripped pieces of clothing but also curtains, bed-sheets and blankets are my favorite items to upcycle. Beside being creative, I love to skate. Since 2 years I started rollerskating in skate parks. In my opinion skating is an art form which makes it possible to express yourself. Now let me tell you a bit about my journey and the work I present on this website.

 

 

STARTING OFF

When I was a teenager my mom taught me some sewing basics and since I loved being creative this added to my creative skills. A couple of years ago I decided I wanted to learn more about sewing, mending and making clothes. For a while I had been very conscious about the well being of people and our planet so I decided I could use this as a way to reduce my personal impact. Showing who I am through my clothing is something I had been doing quite some time and that's when I started looking into my own closet to see how I could change these into "new" items, without buying anything new. I just kept making more and more and started drawing and painting on clothing as well. Nearing the end of 2020 I decided that I wanted to share my creations and the mindset behind this. By adding this website as some sort of portfolio I try to reach out to the people interested in my story and work.

THE NAME AND LOGO

Thinking about a proper name and logo did not take me very long. There were a few things very important to me and I wanted to make sure this is what the logo would show. First I wanted it to be clear that it doesn't matter who you are, you can wear whatever you want as long as it makes you happy. It is about being you (UU "you you"). My items are made for anyone, and anyone can wear them. The items are gender less upcycles, therefore Unisex Upcycles. I wanted to take out the labels for men or for women and create something without these "rules" of society. The happy face consisting of the U's clarifies this.

THE ITEMS AND SUSTAINABILITY

The items I use are all gained second hand, I either buy them in second hand stores or get them from friends, family and colleagues. But I have to be honest, sometimes I decide to use new resources. Especially when sewing complete items or when I'm adding things that need to be able to hold some tension: I buy new thread. Then again, something that is more durable will be used longer, and is more sustainable. If it is not necessary I use second hand thread, when adding patches for example.