Purpose The purpose of this study is to review the literature and practice of upcycling. In particular, the objective of this study is threefold: to comprehend the concept of upcycling and, subsequently, understanding the prominent terminologies used in the literature; to understand the process of upcycling and problem associated with it; and to review current literature and practice of upcycling for clothes. Design/methodology/approach A scientific literature review procedure proposed by Mayring (2002) was adopted to select and screen the paper that comprises the following steps: material collection, descriptive analysis and material evaluation. Findings Upcycling literature has witnessed significant contribution in the past one decade. The paper has identified various terminologies and definitions such as recycling, down-cycling, upcycling and redesign, which are used in the literature. Research limitations/implications The present study may help the scholars to understand the current state of literature. A practitioner of upcycling can use the findings to improve and standardise the existing process. Originality/value The process of redesigning is one of the important steps in upcycling, which comprises ideation, reconstruction and fitting. The limitation of redesigning is variability in size and pattern. This can be overcome through various techniques such as craftsmanship, time, innovation, provenance, desire and narrative.

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This research puts forward a novel knowledge-supported design process for obtaining personalized ready-to-wear garment products aimed at consumers with atypical morphology by using a virtual a three-dimensional-to-two-dimensional (3D-to-2D) design method. The proposed design process starts with designing a personalized garment block, which is then extended into the desired ready-to-wear garment style. The garment block is obtained by using a virtual 3D-to-2D design method. The extension and sizing of the garment block pattern into desired ready-to-wear garment patterns is performed in a 2D environment using classic methods. The proposed design solution begins with a personalized garment block, thus avoiding the complicated operations of simulating a 3D garment directly in the virtual environment. The proposed design process can be fully digitalized, which ensures the involvement of the consumer throughout the design. By repeatedly running the sequence of Design – Display – Evaluation – Adjustment, which is technically accomplished through the virtual 3D-to-2D design method and 3D virtual try-on, the designers’ patterns and principles of elaborating personalized garment products can be validated within a very short time. As a knowledge-supported design process, designers’ design ideas and principles of personalized design solution can be fully extracted to enhance satisfaction of the final product. A set of experiments and case studies validated the approach and application of the proposed knowledge-supported virtual design process, and demonstrated its efficiency.

This research presented a novel method using 3D simulation methods to design customized garments for physically disabled people with scoliosis (PDPS). The proposed method is based on the virtual human model created from 3D scanning, permitting to simulate the consumer’s morphological shape with atypical physical deformations. Next, customized 2D and 3D virtual garment prototyping tools will be used to create products through interactions. The proposed 3D garment design method is based on the concept of knowledge-based design, using the design knowledge and process already applied to normal body shapes successfully. The characters of the PDPS and the relationship between human body and garment are considered in the prototyping process. As a visualized collaborative design process, the communication between designer and consumer is ensured, permitting to adapt the finished product to disabled people afflicted with severe scoliosis.

One of the main causes of disabling deficits is neurological affections. Many times, the evolution of the condition leads to a diminution of the patient’s life quality. Functional electrical stimulation (FES) is part of the neurological rehabilitation process that comprises all the actions one can take in order to increase a patient’s integration and autonomy degree from a social and financial point of view. FES is a method based on substituting the commands that are usually transmitted by the nervous system with an electric impulse. The use of such a method on different body areas required the development of some adequate devices, starting with the stimulator itself and finishing with the way in which the stimulus is conveyed to the effectors. Textile materials that incorporate sensors and, mainly, the clothing products that have such components in their structure, have a high applicability potential; they can be used for preventing illnesses and for the rehabilitation of seniors, of people who are confined to bed, sportsmen, people who suffer from long-term illnesses, disabled people, thus diminishing the time one spends in the hospital. A possible solution for manufacturing incorporated textile electrodes consists in the insertion of some electro-conductive yarns onto textile surfaces by using a variety of technologies. The project approaches the use of knitting, a widespread textile technology. The incorporated knitted electrodes were accomplished by applying the knitting technology on single circular small diameter machines. Thus, we were able to obtain a variety of knitted articles as two-dimensional or three-dimensional tubular knitted fabric. Their dimensions, structures, and parameters correspond to the typo-dimensions of the human body and to the purpose for which the clothing product was designed. The knitted versions were tested by using a Microstim2v2 (PW = 300 μs, 40 Hz) neurostimulator for which the current intensity was adjusted to approx. 30 mA.

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The life quality improvement issue is a problem of national and international interest. This acquires total different values when it is to refer to a series of disadvantaged categories, that is the persons with locomotor disabilities. It is an inevitable social responsibility to create equal opportunities for disabled people, to prevent any intentional or unintentional discrimination that they face and apply positive discrimination if necessary to improve their living standards and to let them have an equal share from social development as productive individuals of society. A disability is any kind of restriction or inability to accomplish a certain activity, which belongs to the interval considered as “normal” for a human being. Disabilities are characterized by deficiencies or excesses in the activity or behaviour that is normally expected from a person; they can be temporary or permanent, reversible or irreversible, progressive or regressive. The physical disabilities that require the use of wheelchairs imply the manufacturing of special clothing products that meet certain needs at a functional and/or therapeutic level. The study presents the main aspects involved in designing and developing textile products for this category of users. Therefore, the apparel that is specially designed for persons with disabilities has to: allow more freedom and independence when is being worn, correspond to the aesthetic point of view, offer psychological benefits and help to socially integrate the individual who wears it. In addition, clothes should not hinder the individual’s mobility and must allow the use of the chest and of the superior limbs to the maximum, they must be durable, have a low level of electrostatic charge, be absorbent and comfortable, present the so-called “rehabilitation functions”, and last but not least, be beneficial for the wearer both from a physical and psychological point of view.

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