The idea behind recycling is to take trash, break it back down into raw materials and then reuse those raw materials to make new things.

The idea behind upcycling is to take trash itself as a raw material and use it to make new things. The trash directly becomes part of the new object. If you think about it, quilting is a very old example of upcycling.

Here is an example of modern upcycling. In the following video, plastic shopping bags are fused together to make a fabric that is then used to make a messenger bag:

Here’s another idea using plastic shopping bags. First you use them to create plarn (plastic yarn)…

And then you use the plarn to knit/crochet things, or braid the plarn to make cheap plastic rope.

Juice boxes are another possibility:

With some creativity, old cardboard boxes turn into furniture:

Plastic drink bottles are useful for flotation. Here are two upcycled boat ideas:

At the high end there is container housing made from upcycled shipping containers:

The trend has gone far enough to start encouraging stores catering to upcyclers, like this one in Portland, OR:

Upcycling Movement Gains Momentum in Portland

A clothing store:

See also: How recycling works