BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO: VISIBLE MENDING
We’re all trying to be a little more conscious about how we reuse and mend what we have, so this issue we’re looking at four options for mending holes and tears. Paula has chosen two hand stitching methods and two methods which can be completed with a sewing machine.
For all these stitches, you may prefer to stabilise the tear or hole first. This can be done by:
■ Using an iron-on woven interfacing. Pop a piece, shiny side up, between the batting and the top layer where the tear is. Try and cover as much of the interfacing with the fabric as you can and then press, using a pressing cloth. Be aware that if there is still some interfacing showing, it may stick to the pressing cloth or your iron, so press carefully.
■ Covering with fabric. You can place a piece of fabric over the damaged area, matching it with the original fabric or creating some contrast for your chosen design. If it is a larger tear then you can use some fusible web to fix in place before you begin to stitch over.
VISIBLE MEND 1: SMALL TEAR WEAVE
If you have a small tear in the quilted fabric then this design will work really well. You can adapt the size and colours to suit your project, as preferred. You will be sewing at
in intervals, using the 1/ in marks as a guide to keep straight.
1
Using an erasable marker draw
a square that will cover your tear – the example uses a 1in square. Make small marks 1/ in apart along the top and bottom edge (Fig A).
2
Take a thick thread and, starting at
the bottom left corner, come up with your needle through the corner mark and then into the top corner mark. Bring the thread up in away from the top corner. Then go back in in away from the bottom left corner.
3
Continue stitching the lines at in
intervals until the square is finished, as shown in Figs B–C. Using an erasable marker, create 1/ in marks on both sides of the square.
4
Bring the thread up through the bottom left corner and then weave in between the vertical lines and then going back in through the bottom right corner (Fig D). Paula used a contrasting thread to make it easy to see, but you can use the same thread if you prefer.
5
Bring the thread back up in up from the bottom right corner and then weave back to the left side, going back in in up from the bottom left corner. Each woven line should alternate the under/over pattern. Continue in this way until the square is complete and then remove the erasable marks (Fig E).
VISIBLE MEND 2: SMALL HOLE SWIRL
This is a great stitch for covering a small hole. Paula uses a 12wt variegated thread to give some extra depth to the design.
1
Draw a circle around the hole. In the case of this example, the circle measures approx ¾in in diameter (Fig F).
2
For the first stitch, sew from the top of the
circle to the bottom (Fig G). Then come up back at the top on the right hand side of the top stitch, as close as you can. Take your needle down at the bottom of the circle, so the stitch crosses the centre (Fig H).
3
Continue stitching around the circle, always going over the thread from the previous stitch, creating a swirl (Fig I).
4
When you have covered the full circle, knot the thread on the bottom and remove the markings to finish (Fig J).