Saturday, November 25

We're just about getting on top of the cleaning

A month ago builders came to smash down a stone wall outside our back door, as there was nobody inside the house they didn't think there was any need to shut the back door while they were working, so when I arrived home two weeks ago our home had been turned into the Sahara with drifts of sand reaching up to the top of the house.

Last week The Man arrived from Mongolia with bags of torn trousers and many types of thermal underwear, including woolly longpants  so heavy that I can't lift them on my own. These articles have been in a production line of washing and draping to dry then sorting into drawers or piles for mending.

I might have already mentioned that I am very keen on mending. I have a Massive Fan Girl crush on Celia Pym who currently has work in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Celia is a textile artist who specialises in visible mending, she also trained as a nurse, inviting hospital staff to bring loved but worn or broken items to the anatomy department, she mended them and this became an exhibition.

Visible mending shows the patterns of wear, the way that our clothes work with our bodies, how these and our bags, shoes or clothes become extensions of us - if these things are good at keeping us warm/dry/comfortable/happy then, like a beloved body part, they should be maintained for as long as possible.

11 comments:

  1. Visible mending is a terrific idea. Thank you for bring it to my attention.

    I know someone who has a nice quilt with a few threadbare spots, but she is reluctant to make an obvious repair. I recommend visible mending.

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    1. you should also look at Tomofholland. I like the way that mends can become decorative features in quite different ways

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  2. When the krewe were all little I used to mend their clothes with hearts or stars, but once they got older it was either mend invisibly or use an iron patch! The only one who didn't mind mismatched buttons or embroidered mends was super nana. Good luck with your mending! xoxo

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    1. Super nana has great style - I'd noticed that - I blame it on her mother xxxoo

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  3. My Main Man once complained that I'd consigned an old pair of his black pants to the bin.I said I had no black to patch them.On and On he went so I patched them with bright, colourful curtain swatches.
    And a new post , hot off the press from a friend...
    https://itscrowtime.wordpress.com/2017/11/26/mending-the-never-ending-story-of-a-very-good-old-jacket/

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  5. Thank you for Celia Pym!!! I'm going to try the yellow thread on my jeans - I usually do flowery patchwork - but I think I will try the yellow darning next.
    Sx

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    1. SO glad you like Celia, at the V&A she took in mending projects from the public, I handed in a grey wool vest with a beautiful pattern of moth holes, I'll show when I get it back. xxx

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  6. I have a teddy bear from my uncle that he bought before I was born and well...visible mending is more than evident on him, let me tell you. He's been patched and stitched more times than I have! And he will go on being patched until he's just patch and no teddy. I love the idea of applying visible mending to clothing though! Also, hi! :)

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    1. Hi Veg - great to see you. Those mendings are all part of his story, I love them :)

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