musing about mending

Sometimes after all my earnest goodwill and big plans, my patches just have not worked out…

or more accurately stated, my blue jeans are just a muddled, fuddled, puddle.

As a result, I'm confronted with the dilemma to either rip it all out and start over

or say farewell and bury the remains.

And so it has happened (more than once) that I've bit the bullet and ripped out a massive amount of stitches. This character building experience has convinced me that that not only is ripping out every stitch

actually doable,

but it is also

not so painful

and furthermore …

it feels rather virtuous!

Yes, one can honorably discover

(sitting in a hovel of blue threads)

that they have patience and willpower,

and good old-fashioned stubbornness.

Never the less, there are only so many hours in a day, and one wants to move forward as opposed to just treading water, so these valuable experiences need to be limited and avoided.

With that in mind, I put on paper some thoughts and lessons learned about mending denim that can be useful and amusing as you toil away or consider toiling away on your jeans. Some were passed along to me, others I learned from trial and error, books, blogs and through my own curiosity. Some of you may have seen this list here, but as a warm welcome to newcomers and with different sketches and a couple more ideas if it's the second time around -- polish your thimble - and here goes...

Soft, worn denim is very pliable. Handle it gently so it will not stretch out of shape when you mend.

Baste patches before sewing. In this way you won't be fighting a bundle of straight pins and your stitches will be much, more lovely and professional.

Most jean side seams are closed with one, easy to rip out row of stitching. Using your seam ripper, open it from a couple inches above the hem to a couple inches below the pocket. This will make it easy to maneuver around and stitch as you mend. When you have finished with all your repairs, re-stitch the side seam closed, along the original stitching line.

Patch the enlarged, worn area, not just a specific hole, as otherwise you will soon be mending again.

Make the inside as neat and tidy as the outside. This will make your repair more durable.

For added durability, secure with lots of back stitches.

Sandwich the thread end knots between the patch and the jean to avoid the knot rubbing open with wear.

Denim has a character all its own and will easily adapt to all sewing abilities so let your mending flow along and enjoy the satisfying pleasure of accomplishment.

Denim comes in many different shades. When choosing your thread, take your jeans along to the notions shop, as you will be surprised at how many color variations are possible. A shade matching the color of your jeans will be more subtle and blending, while a novelty color of thread, such as a bright red, metallic or ochre color, or embroidery floss, will be more decorative. All these choices are viable, interesting and effective – they are about expressing your individuality, creativity and style – so enjoy the process of choosing.

The thread color can make or break a look. Sew a test swatch, to check if you like the way the thread color matches or contrasts. In this way you can test freely and come up with unexpected colors. (Keep your test swatches in your re-cycle bin for future patches.)

Approach the thread and denim patch choices like a designer. Think about the characteristics that you love in the jeans and if you want to enhance those features, compliment or contrast them. You are going to re-make, re-invent your jeans with your own signature, one-of-a-kind detailing. It is a fun, creative, process. AND you deserve lots of kudos!

If you are not satisfied with the end results, grab your ripper, and take out the stitches and do it again. A favorite pair of jeans is worth the extra effort of creating something you adore.

Jeans in need of repair arrive in many different forms. Sometimes you have a favorite pair of jeans with a hip "worn-in" look, which is too fragile, breaking into annoying holes. Or you want to juice up a pair of boring jeans with some creative patchwork. Maybe the knees need to be strengthened. Choose the repair method that will be enjoyed by the wearer for both the durability and the style.

You can patch with a variety of materials – denim, printed cottons, or other novelty fabrics. But you do want the patch to be washable (for example, don't use leather.)

Patches can be cut in amusing shapes, such as flowers, butterflies or hearts.

Make the inside as beautiful as the outside. The wearer will enjoy the beauty every time they slip them on.

If it seems all too overwhelming, then pause, and make a pin cushion from denim scraps….

Denim can be tough like leather so use your thimble when hand stitching.

Sometimes the edges of a rip can be brought together and repaired so that the rip is almost invisible. Other times there is a missing gap. Either way, always let the denim lay naturally smooth and flat when you sew.

"Denim" or "leather" needles are handy for sewing heavier weight denim.

A machine stitch length of 8 to 12 is appropriate for basic denim, and 10 to 12 stitches for lighter weight denim.

You can straight stitch, zigzag stitch or hand stitch patches. It is all about style. Do you want it to contrast or blend? I've had to rip-out and re-sew patches when my plans just didn't make the cut. Check your idea on a small section to avoid my blunders.

Iron-on patches are another option. Follow the directions on the package and from my experience, reinforce with a stitch around the perimeter if they will get a lot of wear.

Press all your patches and jeans before sewing, so that you have a smooth and easy surface to sew.

Sometimes, you must admit, that a pair of jeans are simply no longer worth repairing. In that case, toss them into your re-cycle bin to use for other projects or patches. Old, worn denim has many surprising uses.

Since denim varies in color, keep all your old jeans, so that you will have a selection of shades to sort through when you are patching.

Denim patches are wonderful on all kinds of clothing, to hide moth holes in sweaters, patch sweatpants, t-shirts or jazz up something old.

And when you finish, celebrate your accomplishment.  Put on your "new" denim clothing, kick up your heels and enjoy your truly lovely, handiwork!

Best wishes for a nice weekend,

Loving jeans

Dear friends,
you are warmly welcomed

to my new blog

created

just

for old, worn and lovable

jeans.

Dedicated,

with tender loving care,

to the enduring qualities

of our favorite,

old blue jeans,

I hope you will feel cozy,

enthusiastic and curious,

to wander freely and enjoy this comfy spot.

Though only an infant today,

will grow and prosper

with a rich variety of

creative ideas, useful links and tutorials

to stitch, patch and mend

your denim blues.

Join this blue community
from near and far.

Grab whatever you like!

Print it, use it or change it.

It's time to celebrate

let loose,
and whistle those soul-ful blues!

Yeah!!

And if you're wondering about me and how JeanRepair developed … well this is the tale, and it's one of those ordinary stories in life, with one thing leading to another and then another, without a clue of where I was headed.

It all started with having been designated, in my home, as the one that tattered jeans are brought to in need of repairs  (... which logically may be connected to my collection of every imaginable sewing apparatus from pins to threads stashed all over the house.)  So my devoted flock confidently hand me their jeans and casually ask if I could … "make them cooler" or "fix them for tonight" or "add something" (this is always rather vaguely described leaving much to the imagination) and "fix the holes." They expect miracles and I definitely don't want to disappoint (nor diminish my reputation or pride.) So I eagerly rise to their challenge.

These adventures, fortunately, always end with happy smiles. The owner proudly scampers off with their "new" jeans feeling resourcefully eco-clothed.  And I relish the sense of satisfaction and pleasure (admittedly also a sense of relief that the owner is delighted) from my handwork. Mending is a soothing craft a lot like knitting, and denim is a soft, interesting and easy cloth to sew. It virtually improves with wear and handwork. But learning how to mend jeans successfully has been sometimes an overwhelming journey.

There is no basic mending technique, but rather an endless flow of possibilities, depending on fashion's whims and the way jeans seem to magically adapt to the style of the owner. When you mend, you find yourself looking more closely at the jeans. You realize that no two pairs of jeans are the same and also, depending on your mood (yes it's that nonsensical) you can approach the work at hand differently on a different day of the week. Mending denim is not unlike a blank canvas offering the possibility of individual expression.  What worked on one pair does not necessarily work on the next pair. This is the denim charm and cause for its enduring universal appeal.

So through trial and error, ripping out and re-stitching, word of mouth, browsing through books, the Internet and my own imagination, I have developed a range of methods that incorporate both fashion as well as practical durability.


This bundle of information continued to grow, (along with my expanding pile of discarded denim scraps and waistline…) and finally it all needed desperately to be gathered together into a useful organized fashion. I started to write up the techniques, and post them on my other blog and Scrib. And as I stitched and wrote, I mused about you, and you and you, this wonderful global community of people near and far, who so imaginatively re-fashion and repair their jeans. And I was wondering how to bring us all together to share our enthusiasm, our wishes, interests and experiences. Jeans are after all about people. They weave our lives together through our practical needs, our desire to live a less wasteful lifestyle and our dreamy wishes.

So ...after this long tale, long trail and

direct and indirect inspiration,

the seed was planted that blossomed into

I'm most of all

simply happy you are here
and part of this denim journey!