UBC Woodward Library: Textile Mending Kit & Repair Guide
TL;DR: Visible mending techniques can transform textile repairs into artistic expressions, extending garment life and fostering sustainable consumption practices.
- Learn visible mending to sustain clothes.
- Utilize household items for repairs.
- Strengthen weak fabric areas.
- Customize garments with boro techniques.
- Reduce textile waste and overconsumption.
Why it matters: Embracing textile mending reduces waste, promotes slow fashion, and empowers individuals to maintain their belongings, lessening reliance on new purchases and fostering self-reliance.
Do this next: Locate a needle, thread, and an old piece of clothing to practice a simple running stitch on a small tear.
Recommended for: Anyone looking to learn practical skills for sustainable living, extend the life of their clothes, and express creativity through textile arts.
This resource from Woodward Library at UBC details a comprehensive approach to textile mending, centered on visible mending, slow fashion, and sustainability, with hands-on tools and book-based instructions for practical repairs. The Textile Mending Kit available for borrowing includes essentials like darning and sewing needles, pins, stitch ripper, threader, measuring tape, darning egg or mushroom, tailor’s chalk, fabric scissors, pinking shears, and assorted threads and fabrics—everything needed for hand repairs without purchasing extras. It highlights 'Mending Matters,' which provides photo-illustrated instructions using household items like scrap fabrics and basic threads to fix common tears and holes. Techniques cover both concealing repairs and making them visible as design features, emphasizing enjoyment of existing possessions over new purchases. 'Visible Mending' book is reviewed in depth: its first section reviews core skills from basic sewing and darning to dyeing cloth, with step-by-step instructions and illustrations for repairing and modifying textiles. The second part offers projects like everyday clothes repairs, embellishing/renewing old garments, and remaking scraps into new items. Additionally, it covers boro techniques by Harumi Horiuchi, using simple running or sashiko stitches to reinforce and uniquely customize clothes, extending their life while adding creative value. These methods teach users to mimic fabric structures, strengthen weak areas, and transform repairs into art, directly supporting self-reliance by reducing waste and overconsumption. Practitioners learn specific, actionable steps for holes, tears, and reinforcements, applicable to everyday wear, making it a deep resource for homesteaders and sustainability enthusiasts building resilient wardrobes[2].