swallowsummer

[swallowsummer]

The patchwork of patches that is the cuff of my favourite pyjamas.

Essentially, the more you love an item, the more likely you are to mend it, which leads to it becoming more beloved, and so on.

[swallowsummer]

These combats had been mended once, sighed over and then consigned to the scrap pile. But since my skills (and ambition) have grown through practice, they’re now up and about again, and off to a seed swap.

[swallowsummer]

That’s beautiful! Much nicer than plain purple.

🌻🌻🌻

[swallowsummer]

[swallowsummer]

All my favourite jeans are halfway to being non-original jeans.

New patch job on the jeans progress pic. I think I can finish this to wear tomorrow.

[swallowsummer]

“Ancestors Always Watching” 🧿

WIP details update

she’s almost done!

[swallowsummer]

The response to these jumper cuff repairs has been so wonderful. I know visible mending isn’t for everyone, but I think that picking out colours from the rest of the jumper for a more subtle finish has made the idea of a visible repair way more appealing. I guess this is just a reminder to say, visible mending can take whatever form you want it to!

[swallowsummer]

Stages of a boro mend with cotton perle thread, using a denim patch on corduroy trousers. I was able to use the ridges of the corduroy to align the vertical columns of stitches.

[swallowsummer]

Morning mending

[swallowsummer]

My terrible H&M jeans live to see another day! This fix: the inexplicably worn out outer seam on the right leg!

And my sketch, which better demonstrates how shredded that section of the pants seam really was.

[swallowsummer]

Mending Monday: it was a socks and underwear week. This is largely because a) they are small and portable, and b) plentiful. I have other stuff coming up but it requires prep, creativity, table space, or something else.

Mostly this week I just did the standard darned patch, although I threw in some honeycomb and also played around with one of the patches when I got bored.

Also, the following socks were the first ones I ever darned! You can, uh, tell. I mended them with sewing thread in 2020 before realizing that embroidery floss and crochet thread are much nicer!

And finally, I decided to practice my satin stitch. I followed the pattern in the fabric I used as a patch with a running stitch, then filled in the loops and added a bunch of freeform stitching. I probably won't do this again for something not meant to be visible, but I think it looks cool if a bit hodgepodge.

My favorite is probably the first sock, but the bottom patch also taught me what not to do and gave me some ideas about cool stuff to try.

[swallowsummer]

i may have finally found a good way to mend my trousers

[swallowsummer]

After seven months of poking at this on and off, I'm finally done with the first layer of this visible mending on this skirt!! Doing the dots might have been an overkill, but it does result in a much sturdier fabric - now onto the black waves to overlap with the patch with a more traditional sashiko stitch

[swallowsummer]

patching up my battered old work coat

[swallowsummer]

Did some visual mending on a pant leg today!

Tore the leg open the other week so I just did a quick whip stitch to close the tear and covered it with some quick flowers

The colors match better irl but the camera really washed out the blue in the denim for some reason

[swallowsummer]

We chatted about this at a textiles group once, and how, if you can love your clothes enough to mend them and still love them even when they’re no longer new and ‘perfect’, you’re demonstrating that you can do the same with other things, like people; even yourself.

on visible mending and love

Sometimes I get emotional about visible mending, about mending in general.

you can tell it’s lived a good life.

you can see that that pair of shoes, that sweater, that stuffed animal, was loved enough for it to turn threadbare, to rip and pill over.

It was loved enough that someone out there saw it through its darkest times, just to experience it for longer. It was so loved someone held its hands as it literally came apart at the seams.

and they looked at its broken and battered and war torn body and said, “I will still love you. Even now, as you lay there, fading. I love you enough to bring you back to life”

and you can see it, just there, in the flowers blossoming from your elbows, in the patterns swirling at your knees.

somebody finally cared

[swallowsummer]

Mending Monday: I am chipping away at the sock pile. The honeycomb darn is so useful for when the fabric starts to wear away, as it did on both of these socks. One is still in progress, but I got the first finished!