2 minute read
The time has come to mend our clothes
Flora Collingwood-Norris has published a book “Visible creative mending for knitwear”, with step by step instructions and inspiration for creative repairs. She also runs online workshops, and provides darning kits and materials.
I fell in love with visible mending about six years ago, when I repaired a small hole on an old secondhand cashmere sweater by turning it into an embroidered flower detail Throwing away a much loved garment because of a hole has never felt right to me, and so when a couple of sweaters of mine were chewed by my first puppy, I turned the rips into patches of colour Now I get so much more joy from wearing them Visible mending has become a great creative outlet for me, as well as something that helps reduce my stress levels- I can’t recommend it enough!
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More and more of us would like to reduce our environmental impact, and one way to do that is to keep the clothing we already own for longer, and buy less.
Learning to look after the garments you have is the first step to making them last This is the perfect time of year to give your knitwear and winter wardrobe some love, and learn to mend it
The first step to caring for it is knowing what it’s made of Have a look at the care label to find out what fibre(s) it’s made of, and how best to clean it Fibres like wool are great, as they’ll need less washing (just air them unless they have dirt/ marks on them) If you have any holes or threadbare areas, consider visible mending as a fun way of repairing them and embracing their ageing process
Here in the UK we’re now fully into Spring/ Summer This is the best time to look after your knitwear and repair it in my opinion, for several reasons.
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You’re probably not wearing your knitwear as much just now, or you might even be putting it in storage for the summer. Before you put it away, make sure it’s clean (to avoid moths) and give it a check to see if it needs any repairs or reinforcement. As you’re less likely to be wearing it, you won’t miss it if it takes you a while to repair it!
This way, when you take it out again in the Autumn, it will be repaired ready to wear again, rather than looking sad when you want to wear it next. Working in good light is really important, so this is one of my main reasons for preferring to spend more time mending in summer. It allows you to see your work better, and it doesn’t put such a strain on your eyesight
Secondly, it makes choosing colours much easier I always choose my colours with natural light, and I find it much easier to feel creative and inspired when working with colour in natural daylight Artificial light makes colours look different and it can throw me off my design If you want to create a colourful creative repair make the most of the light at the moment summer Before you put it away, make sure it’s clean (to avoid moths) and give it a check to see if it needs any repairs or reinforcement As you’re less likely to be wearing it, you won’t miss it if it takes you a while to repair it!
Do you have sweaters that aren’t in need of repair, but you’re just tired of them? This is the time to get creative with them- why not customise them to change the design? Add embroidery, or swiss darn a new design onto them to look like it’s knitted in You can use graph paper to plan your ideas (if using swiss darning), or sketch out some ideas for embroidery Add motifs, tattoos, polka-dots, or embrace the abstract!
Personally, I find a few changes to a sweater I’ve had for years can make it feel new and exciting again. Just make the most of the longer and brighter daylight hours- it really does help with creativity, colour choices and will ensure your knitwear is ready to wear when you need it most.
