Mending Clothes as an Act of Rebellion (1 Viewer)

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Linda

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Saw this title in a post from a friend and was immediately drawn in. I learned to sew as a child because my mother and grandmother were great seamstresses. My grandmother made all my formals in high-school, and they were original and beautiful. I still recall going to the specialty fabric store and the wonders of all the fabrics and trims. The big stores today just don't have that cozy, magical feel.

I mend our favorite clothes because we just like the feel of well-worn fabric. On my own clothes, if the tear is too big or obvious, I use an appliqués to cover them over. I found some little paw print ones, and they are so cute. Children seem to like them. Most of the new clothes I buy now are less expensive because they are worn at the farm, and stuff is going to happen there. :-D Still, I keep them going.

The attached article is very interesting. The author makes the point that mended clothes are considered valuable in other cultures. Also, she notes that what we might consider inexpensive and therefore disposable really are not so cheap in the big picture.

Somewhere down the warp and weft of our relationship with the fibres that clothe us, we have disconnected from the sheer human power that flows into the yarn that makes the cloth. The £3 t-shirt that is cheaper in monetary terms to replace than to mend, but which has cost the earth and her people an immeasurable, inconceivable price is a perfect example of the mindset that the fast fashion industry has brainwashed us with. Things are changing, though at a snails pace. There is a return to slow fashion, and deeper connections to the clothes that warm and protect us, but it will be a long journey, and I fear that we are running out of time.

Once again something old is new again.

https://thephoenixgreenstore.org/2019/11/26/mending-clothes-as-an-act-of-rebellion/?fbclid=IwAR0opkQhQylVSVI4p99B0gByg7NKWgv6t_ecqM9OGiyy-JHbQqJkv64IJt8
 

Lila

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There is nothing as cozy as a well worn favorite shirt/sweater/pair of sweat pants/shoes whatever it is that's the favorite. It is vital to learn how to fix these if lovin' them and wearing them is to continue:-D

Another thing along these lines that I love is a good used clothing store. I am fortunate to have several great ones nearby and, though I never enjoyed malls I now cannot fathom going to one to buy something to wear unless there is some really specific need. Instead, I trundle over on my bike to one or more of my little my neighborhood used places where all kinds of fashions are on sale at the same time, they vary the selection a few times each season and walk away laughing at the prices for really good quality stuff.
I'm not overwhelmed by too much selection nor nasty lights, hype, etc that I find draining. I am thrilled that they have some good quality fabrics (I'm very partial to natural fibers which will probably surprise no one here). I have some fine conversations. I do a few other errands along the way and come home happy, energized and almost always with something that surprised me.
 
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Snowmelt

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There is nothing as cozy as a well worn favorite shirt/sweater/pair of sweat pants/shoes whatever it is that's the favorite. It is vital to learn how to fix these if lovin' them and wearing them is to continue:-D

Another thing along these lines that I love is a good used clothing store. I am fortunate to have several great ones nearby and, though I never enjoyed malls I now cannot fathom going to one to buy something to wear unless there is some really specific need. Instead, I trundle over on my bike to one or more of my little my neighborhood used places where all kinds of fashions are on sale at the same time, they vary the selection a few times each season and walk away laughing at the prices for really good quality stuff.
I'm not overwhelmed by too much selection nor nasty lights, hype, etc that I find draining. I am thrilled that they have some good quality fabrics (I'm very partial to natural fibers which will probably surprise no one here). I have some fine conversations. I do a few other errands along the way and come home happy, energized and almost always with something that surprised me.
And I'm probably the lady on the other side of the counter, helping you with that!
 
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Snowmelt

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I found another new way to maintain my clothes that little bit longer. Because we are a warm climate, we do have a moth problem, and moths love eating cotton, especially T-shirts, wool or any natural fibre. I don't like using naphthalene balls (feel too poisonous), but I recently found some little round carved cedar balls stuffed with lavender, which performs a similar function (drop a ball or two into your smalls drawers and keep moths from wanting to dip in for dinner).
 
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Linda

Linda

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I use the cedar, too. All you have to do is give them a couple of swipes with sandpaper to get the aroma going again.
 
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therium

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I mend my shoes all the time.

I had a favorite sweat shirt I wore to be for 20 years. It was so nice and soft. Alas, the last shirt molecule one day evaporated and *POOF*, I had no more shirt. But it was a great shirt!
 
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Linda

Linda

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I find mending to be similar to meditation. A while back, I received a stack of old quilts because apparently, I was the only person in this group who knew how to hand sew and was willing to tackle the task. It was a great winter activity because I could sit in the recliner with the quilt all around me, as I made those tiny stitches.
 
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Lila

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I mend my shoes all the time.

I had a favorite sweat shirt I wore to be for 20 years. It was so nice and soft. Alas, the last shirt molecule one day evaporated and *POOF*, I had no more shirt. But it was a great shirt!
Lol, I've had shoes and things 'poof' out on me like that, when, as you say, their last molecule suddenly seems to disappear. The most dramatic may have been a pair of patent leather flats which I'd worn to so many dances and parties. I was wearing them out one evening to a show that we walked across the city to. It was a summer when health problems prevented me from doing any exercise other than walking and swimming so my husband and I learned a lot about our city that summer walking through different neighborhoods! The shoe started to feel like there was a pebble in it though every time I looked there was nothing to see. It persisted and got more noticeable with nothing to see until the bottom started to peek out under the front of my foot and I realized I may not get to the theater with an intact shoe. We were on top of a hill just then, walking on rocks and dirt. The shoe didn't last to the bottom of the hill, even after the front half flopped completely open and I flip=walked each step to keep it sort of on my foot. I had to take the shoe off and walk in my socks (ick!) so when we got back into the city at the bottom of the hill I walked into the first store and bought a new pair of cheap shoes. I was sad to leave behind my old dance shoes and so happy they'd lived their live fully. So many memories with them!
 

Snowmelt

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Lol, I've had shoes and things 'poof' out on me like that, when, as you say, their last molecule suddenly seems to disappear. The most dramatic may have been a pair of patent leather flats which I'd worn to so many dances and parties. I was wearing them out one evening to a show that we walked across the city to. It was a summer when health problems prevented me from doing any exercise other than walking and swimming so my husband and I learned a lot about our city that summer walking through different neighborhoods! The shoe started to feel like there was a pebble in it though every time I looked there was nothing to see. It persisted and got more noticeable with nothing to see until the bottom started to peek out under the front of my foot and I realized I may not get to the theater with an intact shoe. We were on top of a hill just then, walking on rocks and dirt. The shoe didn't last to the bottom of the hill, even after the front half flopped completely open and I flip=walked each step to keep it sort of on my foot. I had to take the shoe off and walk in my socks (ick!) so when we got back into the city at the bottom of the hill I walked into the first store and bought a new pair of cheap shoes. I was sad to leave behind my old dance shoes and so happy they'd lived their live fully. So many memories with them!
Oh boy, sides are still quaking with mirth! Flip=walking!
 
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