Release your inner designer - what would you make out of these old dresses?

An old favourite of mine and many other colleagues’, the light blue summer dress, will be put to new use as our uniforms are redesigned (you can see Finnair’s new uniforms here) . But what will it become, that is yet to be determined. Our light blue clothes have been packed into boxes and are now waiting to be shipped to designers all over Finland who will transform them into something new.

All sorts of designer items have been created out old Finnair uniforms, blankets and even plane parts over the years. Leena Lappalainen at Globe Hope tells us that it has been very inspiring to redesign old Finnair uniforms into new products. “The material is of high quality and quite sturdy. The uniform also has plenty of interesting details. We will be producing those clasp pouches, which have been very popular in the Finnair Shop, in light blue, among other things,” Lappalainen states.

Kati Wischtukat's recycled uniform products

Purser Kati Wischtukat, who has made a variety of innovations out of almost every imaginable material, agrees with Leena Lappalainen. “The fabric of the uniform is easy to cut and make patterns for, and it is easy to sew also with your sewing machine at home. I’m planning to make a lacy number out of the shirt from the uniform. I’d also love to cut carpet rags out of a fabric and weave something,” Wischtukat says, describing her plans.

Uusix, the workshop of the City of Helsinki’s rehabilitation unit, also has a collection of old uniforms in storage. What to create out of the material is still in the planning stages, but so far a new life has been given to blankets and sheets previously used in Finnair’s planes at the Uusix workshop, according to Risto Miettinen at the workshop.

A kids' bathrobe made out of old Finnair blankets (by Uusix)

Now it’s your turn – release your inner designer and come up with an idea to reuse the heap of fabric shown above. Share your idea with us in the comments field – the best idea will be rewarded with a Globe Hope gift!