(¬ -̮ ¬) Nº209 A Stitch in Time Saves Nine 🧵⌛

The phrase “A Stitch in Time Saves Nine” basically means it’s better to solve a problem right away and prevent it from becoming a much bigger one. According to the BBC, the first recorded use of the phrase was in a book way back in 1723 and it’s a sewing reference.

The idea is that sewing up a small rip with one stitch means the tear is less likely to get bigger and maybe require more (9? 😅) stitches later on.

I’ve always enjoyed stitching garments and other things to avoid bigger rips later but also to avoid tossing out torn belongings. I’ve long found it cool to wear your repair.

Initiatives like Patagonia’s Worn Wear program and Tom Van Deijnen’s work to promote #visiblemending both help to really popularise clothes repair.

The #wearyourrepair link above goes to an FT article about the Visible Mending trend and also mentions Japanese textile artist Hikaru Noguchi. Noguchi also recently published: Darning: Repair, Make, Mend. These twelve darning techniques are covered in detail in her book:

1. seed stitching: Seed stitches resemble seeds scattered random length and direction over an area. Like this.
2. square darning: a classic way to repair moth holes like this.
3. reversible darns: It is used on fabrics that are used on both sides, like towels and napkins. like this
4. seed and square darn: as the name implies, a 1 & 2 combo