The great abundance of things at our fingertips temps us to forget the value of caring for the things that we do have and the way we can make more of that which we already have in our possession.
mending
Mending can come in many forms. I always admire the ways that jude mends. I’ve spent some time too, really looking at the examples of boro fabrics I have. Recently, I’ve been mending jeans that my son and I wear. Putting lots of different thoughts I have been having into action. And of course I have plenty of my own indigo dyed fabrics and threads which to utilize. And then there is the utility of it all. It seems I just can’t give that up. I want things to be useful. And beautiful. Maybe not universally beautiful, but at least in the eye of the beholder.
jeans mending kit
We all know that fashion, industry, and media push us towards wanting new and more. But what if we collectively began to desire less and old (used,worn,repaired) and saw the beauty in that? The folks of the Tohoku region in Japan created their boro textiles out of necessity but today we can appreciate and take meaning from this unintended artform and apply it to the new necessity that we have to conserve our modern resources using and reusing that which we already possess.
modern boro mending
I also recently listened to an interview with the author of the book “Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion” by Elizabeth Cline. It seems that there are more and more people beginning to consider this. Her blog “The Good Closet” gives practical tips on how to reduce, reuse, and resist the urges to fill our closets with, well, crap.
What if it simplified our lives, mended our ways, and just used less. Would we be better or worse because of it? Jeans seem a good place to begin. We all wear them. They last. They are very mend-worthy. So with that in mind I offer this:
Ready-To-Wear Again Mending Service
Now of course, you don’t need someone else to do your mending, but but if you would like me to do it for you I will. I’m just putting out the thought…the idea…and wondering.
More or less, less can become more.
Shibori Girl 
I love Boro textiles which I personally first came in contact with in Japan about 6 years ago… I was in a shop with great antique katazome fabrics BUT what drew my attention was the RAGGED thing covering the owner’s TV set… I wanted THAT!!! So with a perplexed look she sold it to me… I think we BOTH THOUGHT we had been robbed!!! IT IS SO GREAT!!! I LOVE IT as much as my best astounding pre-Meiji fabrics!
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like warp and weft, fabrics can tell a story in and out of time.
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glennis, this service is brilliant. it is service to sew for one another indeed, and to do another’s mending is a humble thing. i like that you’re doing it so much. i have sewn for others in a similar way over the years, just a mend or two, but it satisfies deeply. there was a time when no woman sat down without her basket of mending, and today we throw the torn things out. how fine to stitch a way between!
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wanting to get down to basics…and be of service.
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This is such a beautiful idea. The listing and the photos are simply lovely.
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ideas can be beautiful too-
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I have been a mender all my life. That is what I have been taught. I especially love to buy handmade lace, vintage children’s clothes, embroidered tablecloths. Someone took the time to make them lovingly. I then have the joy of mending them. There is a ritualistic peace in mending. I am totally relaxed. Love your work and Jude’s of course. By the way I am always mending my grown children’s things, sometimes not so happily. lol
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let’s teach it again!
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This is a great message! I love the idea of reviving treasured items. Jeans in particular have many qualities that makes them desirable over time, so mending with the different indigo threads looks beautiful.
I enjoy reviving vintage and everyday garments by re-dyeing them. Just adding a bit more intensity of color can make such a dramatic impact. thnx!
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