Mending – Jamie Park

Mending and Lazy Daisy

French Knots

French Knots and Cross Stitches

Pants Sideview

Pants Front View

I didn’t have clothing that particularly needed mending, so I decided to alter a piece of “boring” jeggings that have been sitting in the closet. I have not done proper embroidery since elementary school, and I had doubts about my own skill-set. There was an internal pressure that I need to make this look extra nice for me to wear it in real life. But after sampler and various trials and errors, I was able to settle on this final design. I am satisfied with how it turned out; I really like the small French knots at the front of the jean and the cross-stitch on the sides. I think the elements and the colors of the thread do a great job of adding character to the jeans.

I learned that the thickness of the thread really matters. The first element I added to the jeans was the mending technique. But as I continued to explore the interaction between embroidery thread and the fabric, I realized that double-layering the thread would have been more appropriate for the technique. I ended up layering the thread for the knots and cross-stitch. I wish I knew this earlier so the elements would look consistent. I also learned that embroidery isn’t as bad as I thought! It’s a lot more peaceful and fun than I had remembered. Since I have so many different colored threads and fabric, I am planning on altering my clothes in my free time. 🙂