Mending magic is a special kind of magic. You have to give it thought, time and you have to bring your hands. Mental meets physical and the outcome can be spiritual.
An excellent example of this in action is through Tom van Deijnen, aka Tom of Holland, a self-taught textiles practitioner who enjoys creating and repairing knitted objects. His interest in sustainability and the UK’s rich textile history led Tom to question when the life of a garment begins and ends.
A love of the old and imperfect led him to found the Visible Mending Programme, highlighting the relevance of clothes repair in a world where more and more people voice their dissatisfaction with fashion’s throwaway culture. Tom explains:
“By exploring the story behind garment and repair... [and] reinforcing the relationship between the wearer and garment... people wear their existing clothes for longer, with the beautiful darn worn as a badge of honour.”
Tom’s approach brings to mind the Japanese art of kintsugi in which broken pottery is repaired with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver, or platinum. As a philosophy, it treats breakage and repair as part of the history of an object, rather than something to disguise. Anti-perfection, if you like.
Sentimental value
Bookbinder Sarah Jarrett-Kerr works at the interface between traditional technique and artistic innovation. Books can be among our most precious objects, so what happens when they’re in need of repair?
“The cost of repair often outweighs the value of the book, but clients often still want to proceed with the repair for personal reasons. There is great satisfaction in restoring a book to as near as possible to its original condition,” says Sarah.
“I very much like the concept of ‘Tomorrow’s Past’ which is to restore an old book into a modern concept in a manner which is sensitive to the book and content of the book. This becomes much more creative rather than just mending.”
“We come to know ourselves better through the process of collaboration with materials.”
Mona Nasseri, silversmith
This creativity is fed by the mending, lending it an almost transformative power. Hannah Broadway is a visual artist who enjoys exploring the value of mending as a vital stage in her work.
“There are days when I fumble about, not quite getting my act together to do ‘proper work’. One day, I painted an old stool red. I did it because it made me vibrate and feel a bit giddy with satisfaction. I just needed something red to soothe my soul. It gave me a kind of different energy, an energy that created more energy. Making, changing, customising things inspires me.”
This experience is one felt by many makers. As the silversmith Mona Nasseri explains: “The maker begins by connecting with the material, through engagement they enter into a relationship with it, experiencing a sense of flow. Beyond that, the maker remakes themselves. We come to know ourselves better through the process of collaboration with materials.”
Ripple effects
But what if this mending culture also has wider economic and political implications? Ruth Potts lectures in ecological design thinking at the Schumacher College. In 2012, she argued the case for a New Materialism, in which we nurture a more deeply pleasurable, and respectful, relationship with the world of things.
“It’s a vital step if we are to find ways for everyone to thrive while living within environmental means,” says Ruth. The New Materialism also offers solutions to key economic challenges such as the need to generate ample, good-quality jobs, rebuild hollowed-out economies and communities – and make everyday goods and services available in ways that escape the consumer-debt trap.
“A culture of repair and re-imagining would create ample skilled employment,” Ruth argues. “High street making and mending hubs could bring life back to the hearts of our towns and cities.
”It’s a powerful idea, one that seems within reach given the mainstream interest in making and mending shows such as The Great British Bake Off, Sewing Bee and Pottery Throwdown.
Sarah Corbett, founder of the Craftivist Collective, believes craft can be a tool for gentle activism, her work aims to change the world, ‘one stitch at a time’.
The quiet, reflective time afforded by crafting allows Sarah and her fellow craftivists to explore global issues and how they affect the world around us, while simultaneously creating something beautiful, considered, positive and potentially world-changing.
“Making and fixing physical objects not only improves the thing but also helps my well-being because it reminds me that I have some control in this messy world,” she says. “It’s empowering to see that I can achieve things and that I’m an active member of society. It also gives me the confidence and encouragement to fix other things too such as broken friendships.”
Time to tend
Kate Freeland is an artist with a passion for mending that covers everything from household objects to friendships. “I’m not sure if I’ve truly encountered a totally broken relationship,” she says.
“With a friend you may sometimes need to re-establish boundaries, often by having breathing space or at least breaking the bad habits. In those situations I find time and space is the healer. One of my oldest friends and I have had a shift in our friendship and I had to apply the same logic to that as I would to an object that needs mending – set aside for a while until the time is right to focus and tend.” The result? “It feels like we got rid of the old and now a new relationship is actually what we have rather than a fixed one.”
Whether you’re reviving knitwear, healing a heart or just trying to fix the world, the magical practice of mending is as practical as it is personal.
The next time you dispatch your once-beloved possessions to their final resting places, think about you, the world and your place in it. And then fetch your mending kit and give it another try.
Mending projects to boost your mood
Attend to that mending pile with these simple DIYs – fixing things fixes your mood.
Swap buttons
Sewing on a button is one of the simplest ways to revive a garment in need. But forget the emergency hotel darning kit, instead opt for a ritual approach.
Carefully select your buttons, perhaps replacing the whole lot if you’re after a different look. Spool out the cotton, take time to thread the needle, and sew. Enjoy taking time to focus.
Spruce up your shoes
There is something inherently de-stabilising about a shoe with a damaged sole. Get re-grounded by gluing back a flappy footbed and, while you’re at it, take time to clean, polish and shine your shoes. Replace laces (new colour maybe? Ribbons, even) if they’re on their last legs. Best foot forward!
Patch it pretty
Patching an elbow conjures up major geography teacher vibes but is actually a great way to breathe new life into an old jumper or cardigan.
Selecting a complementary fabric is a joy in itself. Choose corduroy or leather for durability or go frivolous with a clashing colour or contrasting pattern. Forget invisible mending; this way, you’re adding something new and unique.
Woolly tattoos
Craft blogger and author, dottie angel, aka Tif Fussell (@dottieangel and #woollytattoo) started a trend not so long ago to make showstoppers of damaged woollies, coats and gloves etc by stitching over rips and tears with beautiful, chunky embroidery yarns.
These often floral designs came to be known as ‘woolly tattoos’ and they quickly elevated torn togs to her following’s favourite pieces – so much so that we’re now embellishing stitches on items that don’t even need mending.
3 ways to mend
1. Kintsugi for broken ceramics
Turn your broken plates, mugs and bowls into a completely new work of art with Kintsugi. We show you how to repair pottery with Kintsugi here on Gathered.
2. Dye stained napkins
Give your stained napkins and teatowels a new lease of life by dyeing them! You don't have to use nasty chemical dyes either. In our eco dyeing tutorial we show you how to make sustainable dyes from avocados, strawberries and other natural produce.
3. Patch ripped jeans
Ripped jeans don't need to go in the bin, they can be mended in several invented ways. Whether it's patching using fabric scraps or adding sashiko embroidery, we show you how to fix your clothes here on Gathered.
Inspired to mend more of your broken crockery?
Kintsugi is a Japanese mending technique that turns broken crockery into something more beautiful.
If you want to give it a go, but are unsure of where to begin, choosing a Kintsugi repair kit is a good place to start. Check our pick of the best kintsugi repair kits and classes.
