RE:WEAR

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How it works
Garment upload for repurposing
Design interation
How-to guide

Inspiration

The fashion industry is one of the world’s largest contributors to environmental damage. It is the second largest consumer of water globally and is responsible for roughly 10 percent of global carbon emissions. At the same time, millions of clothing items are discarded each year not because they are unusable, but because people no longer feel inspired by them or do not know how to restyle them. While thrifting has grown as a more sustainable alternative, it has clear limitations. Stores are overwhelmed with donations, many items never reach the sales floor, and shoppers often struggle to find pieces that fit their personal style. Traditional textile recycling also falls short, frequently downcycling fabrics into lower-quality materials rather than preserving their value. RE:WEAR was inspired by the idea that sustainability should not feel restrictive or inconvenient. We wanted to bridge the gap between wanting to be environmentally responsible and actually enjoying the outcome. A key influence was the clarity of IKEA-style instructions, which break complex tasks into simple, approachable steps. We aimed to bring that same clarity to clothing repurposing, reframing garments not as disposable items, but as starting materials for creative reinvention.

What it does

We built RE:WEAR as a web-based application with a frontend that allows users to upload garment images and interact with the AI through prompts and keyword selections. The backend handles image processing and prompt construction, using Google Gemini’s vision and generative capabilities to analyze garments, generate redesign ideas, and produce visual previews. A major focus of development was structuring AI outputs into clear, logical steps rather than open-ended suggestions. This ensured that recommendations felt practical and actionable, not abstract or unrealistic. We also prioritized simplicity in the user interface so that the creative process felt intuitive rather than overwhelming.

How we built it

Challenges we ran into

One of the biggest challenges was guiding the AI to generate realistic and wearable repurposing ideas rather than overly conceptual or impractical designs. Balancing creativity with feasibility required careful prompt design and iteration. Another challenge was translating AI-generated ideas into concise, step-by-step instructions without losing clarity or detail. We also faced time constraints integrating multiple technologies, which required rapid debugging, coordination, and trade-offs to keep the project focused and functional.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are proud that we built a fully functional prototype that demonstrates how AI can be applied to reduce fashion waste in a practical and creative way. Within the hackathon timeframe, we successfully implemented garment image uploads, AI-generated redesign concepts, visual previews, and clear, step-by-step transformation instructions inspired by IKEA guides. Most importantly, we created a user experience that makes sustainable fashion feel approachable, personal, and achievable rather than intimidating or restrictive.

What we learned

Through building RE:WEAR, we learned how important structure and clarity are when applying AI to creative tasks. We gained experience refining prompts to produce outputs that are not only imaginative but also useful and easy to follow. The project also taught us how thoughtful user experience design can make AI-powered tools more accessible and impactful, especially when addressing sustainability-focused problems.

What's next for RE:WEAR

We envision RE:WEAR growing into a full platform for sustainable fashion creativity. Planned features include a community gallery where users can share their completed transformations, a difficulty and cost estimation system for each repurpose idea, integration with local thrift stores and fabric recyclers, and a mobile app with real-time camera capture. We also plan to add RAG-powered retrieval of similar past projects to inspire users and a skill-progression system that encourages increasingly ambitious repurposing over time.