Did your favourite garment get ripped? Did you lose the buttons or got a mysterious hole in it? Is your mend pile just growing bigger and bigger? And now you are wondering: Is it worth repairing, or shall I just replace it instead?
In this week’s video, as well as in this blog post, I hope to give your clarity and guidance on how to judge when a garment is worth repairing or not.
First of all I want to say that I can totally relate to the feeling of being uncertain if you should repair or replace the garment. Despite being a fashion designer I am not always sure if a garment repair is worth my time or not. And yet I have always been someone that has repaired clothes, even tights, as long as I can remember.
Time vs. Final result
You always need to look at each garment individually when you do judge how much time the repair takes vs. the final result. With final result I mean not only in terms of the finished look – but also how long the repair will last.
For example I recently repaired a pair of wool tights (I told you I repair tights! And in most instances I totally recommend that you do too!) and I spent 30 minutes stitching the crotch area together. Within 1 hour of wearing the tights they ripped in the crotch. I literally spent half the time of what I got to wear them doing the repair. As this was not the first time I repair them I decided it was not worth my time repairing them again as they probably would rip as quickly again.
In contrast I spent many hours relining my husband’s winter coat. It definitely was a more extensive and time consuming repair but the result was a coat with brand new lining that will last years to come.
Most repairs are actually simple
However most repairs are not as extensive as relining a coat or jacket. According to Greenpeace Germany 95% of clothes discarded could easily be repaired or upcycled.
The majority of repairs require very basic sewing skills. But as sewing is no longer a skill that most people possess I understand why it might be hard for many people to know if it is worth repairing and if so how to do it.
The majority of repairs include things like replacing a zipper or button, repair a small hole or rip or wear in the crotch area of your jeans. These are repairs that you can easily can learn how to do yourself or bring to a tailor to extend your garments life.
Despite being considered an advanced sewist rather than a beginner myself. I am a huge fan of bringing things I do not have time to repair, or that are more advanced repairs to a tailor. It’s a great way to both support a local business, as well as building a more sustainable wardrobe.
Although I think most of us at least should learn how to replace buttons at least! There is no point in bringing a garment that only needs a button replacement to a tailor.. 😉
No tailors near you?
If you live in a very rural area you might not have a tailor local to you. Luckily there are nowadays online repair services out there where you can send off your garments, they repair them and then send them back to you.
Repamera (SWE) https://www.repamera.se/
Alterknit New York (US) https://alterknitnewyork.com/
Loveyourtailor (CA) https://www.loveyourtailor.ca/
If you know of any other online repair services not mentioned here please leave a comment below and let me know! I would love it if we could get together a more extensive list to help each other out all over the world!
Still not sure?
In this week’s video I am taking you through my thought process when it comes to some of my own garments in my mend pile. I wished there was a simple answer how to know if it’s worth it or not but I do not think there is one.
You really have to look at each garment individually when you do your judgment. But I hope taking you through my thought process will help and guide you:
Steps to follow if you are unsure if a clothes repair is worth it:
I created an infographic that I hope will help you out when you are unsure what to do. I am super passionate about not only mending clothes we already have – but also different ways on how we can keep textiles out of landfill through for example upcycling.
Make sure to subscribe to my Youtube-channel if you haven’t already to not miss any upcoming videos on how to repair or upcycle your clothes. Also make sure to follow my board Remake, Repair & Recycle on Pinterest for inspiration.
I would love to do some more garment repair videos and I want them to be as helpful to you as possible. Therefore I would love if you let me know in the comments below what you do currently have in your mend pile.
I also would love to hear in the comments what is stopping your from repairing your clothes. Is it A) Skill level B) Time or C) Procrastination? It is definitely procrastination for me!
Want to save it for later? Pin it!
I like that you said that getting clothes repaired by a tailor is a great way to be more sustainable and support a local business at the same time. My husband has worn through one of his suit jacket elbows, but he doesn’t want to throw it away since it’s his favorite one. I’ll have to look into tailors I could take it to to have it repaired so that he won’t have to worry about it anymore.