An upcycling tutorial

"Un tutoriel surcyclage"
French C1 writing exercise

Find out a few ideas for your upcycling projets.

Pay attention to the hints!

Some vocabulary you may want to look up before or during this exercise: "to be in search of", "to upcycle", "it's better to [do]", "to focus on", "a sewing kit", "to embellish", "a sewing machine", "to make alterations (sewing)", "faded (clothes)", "flannel", "to make oneself [something]", "cosy (fabric)", "to turn [something] into", "the remaining fabric", "a handkerchief", "a cheese grater", "a display rack (jewellery)", "to give [something] a good scrub", "a paint spray can".

I’ll give you some sentences to translate into French

  • I’ll show you where you make mistakes
  • I’ll keep track of what you need to practise
  • Change my choices if you want
Start the exercise
How the test works

Here's a preview of the text for the writing challenge, when you're ready click the start button above:

Are you in search of ideas to upcycle these old objects [which] you don't need any longer? If you've never done it before, it's better to focus on simpler and easier projects. For example, an old glasses case will make a very pretty sewing kit after you've embellished it with some bright and colourful fabric. If you're at ease with a sewing machine and [that you] enjoy more ambitious projects, you will love this other idea: making alterations to a pair of faded flannel pyjamas. Start by keeping the pyjamas' legs to make yourself a cosy scarf for the winter, before turning the remaining fabric into elegant and soft handkerchiefs! One last idea is to recycle a rusty cheese grater into a display rack for earrings. Give it a good scrub and paint it a bright colour using a paint spray can. With a bit of imagination, you'll be able to make magnificent creations.

Thinking...