Mending Frenzy

Calling the lackadaisical mending I am doing frenzied is taking it a bit far. It's the other aspects of life that have been frenzied for the past week or so. Mostly in a good way. But my brain is scrambled. Mending is the antidote to the swirling maelstrom. Especially when I sit on the porch by the nesting box of peeping baby wrens and the nearby woodpeckers tap out an arrhythmic tattoo. Delightfully relaxing.

The gardening overalls are progressing at a snail's pace. Here's the hole in the knee stitched round with blanket (or buttonhole) stitch to prevent it from growing. Fusible interfacing is my new found friend. Rather than hem the patches for the knee, I folded under the edges of said patches and fused them in place. By fusing the patches to the jeans, I was able to wrangle these bad boys around my sewing machine. Unlike with pinning, the fused patches couldn't slip or buckle or wrinkle while manhandling the jeans on the machine. I can sew, but I'm no seamstress. This shortcut definitely saved a bunch of time and prevented a bunch of cursing.  

This is one of my favorite summer skirts. I keep wearing it even though it is falling apart. As you can see, the lace that encircles the entire skirt is coming loose. Sewing the lace to the fabric of the skirt has become an exercise in futility. The lace disintegrates as soon as it is mended in place. Sew one tear closed, another appears. I happen to have some ribbon slightly wider than the lace insets. I might simply cover the lace with it. But I'm not sold on this solution. While I let the idea rest, maybe a preferable solution will present itself.

In the meantime, I moved on to another skirt in a sorry state. This is a wraparound number given to me by a friend. The "buttonhole" where the wrap tie threads through is completely shredded. I don't know what kind of fabric this is. I have a similar skirt that's a silk and rayon blend. Regardless, this is one slippery skirt. Not the most practical fabric for a wraparound. The waist constantly slips from under the wrap ties. I plan to add belt loops to (hopefully) keep the ties and waist in place. Because the fabric around the buttonhole falls apart when attacked with needle and thread, I added scraps of wool felt to the back side. (You might recognize the felt from here.) Don't know if this will work in the long run, but it seemed like a good idea.