Upcycling and recycling are two methods of managing old luxury bags, but they differ in how they transform materials. Recycling involves breaking down materials into their basic components in order to transform them into new products, often of similar quality or, in the case of Philip Karto's work, replacing recyclable materials with parts designed by him that are of a higher quality than the original (mainly steel parts and leather straps, with the original fabric and appearance remaining unchanged). Upcycling, on the other hand, involves transforming discarded bags into new products with potentially greater value, without necessarily breaking down the original material. In the case of Philip Karto bags, this mainly involves the work already done on the recycled bags, but above all, hand customization (painting and embroidery) that makes each bag unique and numbered.