I have gone down a dark rabbit hole of Youtube videos and Pinterest boards relating to visible mending. I am sure, in the grand scheme of things, there are far worse places.
Visible mending is repairing ripped or worn clothing with fixes that are not hidden, they are done with different fabrics, different textures and embroidery embellishments or contrasting colours that bring attention to the fact that the clothing item or fabric item was repaired.
The imperfection becomes a feature.
This is one of my favorites, I have actually watched this twice through, and I find it so satisfying. Here is a video where the Knitting Man, darns a sock… I think his repairs are absolutely beautiful. (note: If you like this video, don’t forget to give it a thumbs up.)
Why would you do such a thing?
I think that visual mending has been trending primarily as a response to fast fashion and the environmental issue of waste from the fashion industry. Visible mending allows us to upcycle and individualize our clothing.
How do you do visual mending?
There are so many different ways to practice visual mending, my favorites are through embroidery or patching techniques. As a matter of fact, there are whole online communities that practice this as an artform.
I fixed this shawl this morning, but I promise I will revisit this topic later, because there is just so much to learn.
