Mending Holes in Wool Clothing
Find out how to easily mend small holes in your wool sweater or cardigan. Practical tips for repairing holes caused by moths or wear and tear in knitted garments.
Did you spot a tiny hole in your favourite wool sweater? Don't panic—and definitely don't throw it away! With a little perseverance, you can mend the hole in no time. Read on to learn how to repair your beloved knitwear quickly and neatly.
- Subject
- Mending Holes in Wool Clothing
- Causes of Holes
- Moth damage, scuffing from belts or zippers, or wear and tear
- Benefit: Quick Recovery
- Extends the lifespan and prevents further fraying
MEND before you spend—and by that we refer to mending holes :-).
DOES THIS SOUND FAMILIAR?
You’re feeling cold and open your closet, looking for that one cozy sweater or cardigan you practically lived in last year. Shock! Horror! There’s *%$*# a hole in it!!!!! Now what? Most people can’t bring themselves to part with it and just put the sweater back in the closet. Something along the lines of… “Maybe I’ll fix it someday or something?”
Chances are you already have more items like that lying around. It naturally turns into a little pile, and those little piles… keep growing. But with a little TLC, that growing pile can become a little pile again. How? Wel…
STOP BEFORE YOU SHOP
Clothing is too valuable to just throw away—the media keeps hammering this point home these days, and rightly so. We know you by now: you shop with both your heart and your head—you invest in beautiful pieces that last a long time. With us, you’ll find your favourite merino wool items—timeless pieces you’ll cherish for years to come. But even super-durable merino wool—and other types of wool—can get damaged over time. Moth holes (they really do still exist), snags courtesy of your lap cat, a finely knitted sweater that gets caught in the zipper of your jacket or jeans: as fun as shopping for something new may be, most damaged knitwear can be worn again after a simple repair.
Did you know that in the old days, girls were taught how to mend holes in school? It was part of their upbringing. Thrift and diligence build houses like castles. We get that you’re not going to dig out your entire sewing basket for a sock with just one small hole, but your beautiful woolen clothes definitely deserve that care. Don’t know how to mend holes? Let us help you out with a quick little clinic. A la Plein Clinic ;-)
TIPS AND TRICKS: THE TRADITIONAL METHOD
- Find a thread that matches the colour of your damaged garment. For small holes, it doesn’t even have to be a woolen thread—thin sewing thread works too. It can sometimes even result in a more invisible finish.
- Turn the garment inside out. Oh, and first place a smooth, round object under your work (the rounded side of a small bowl, for example). We have sewn our projects to our knees before. Just saying…
- If the hole is a bit larger, first sew a reinforcing thread around the edge of the hole.
- If you see distinct loops at the edge of the hole, thread the needle through them: work from the bottom up and back again. Fill the hole this way with parallel threads. Not enough “filling”? Then follow the same procedure in the opposite direction, threading your needle through the stitches you made earlier. Don’t pull too hard—you don’t want it to become a hard little ball.
- Fasten off, and voilà!
- A picture to go with the explanation? Here you go.
NEW-STYLE REPAIR
In addition to invisibly mending holes, there is also a counterpart: visible mending. Originating in Japan—like so many trends—under the name Kintsugi. It is a Japanese technique in which broken porcelain or ceramic tableware is repaired using epoxy and gold powder. This leaves the cracks visible. The underlying idea is that the cracks and repairs become part of the piece’s history, making it even more beautiful and valuable. This actually applies to everything in life. What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.
If you opt for a striking repair in the Kintsugi style, there are several ways to go about it.
- Repair your knitwear with yarn in a completely different colour. Turn it into a colourful ball, and for fun, add a few more so that a snazzy polka-dot pattern emerges. Or go wild with colorful flowers. Okay, your repair isn’t super eye-catching, but it’s stylishly disguised. Think of it as “Kintsugi Light”:
2. Is there a hole in your elbow? Sew on an old-school elbow patch made of leather or suede. You can find them at online fabric stores. You’ll also find fun strawberry-shaped appliqués or ’90s smileys there—and they’re definitely not just for kids. Go crazy!
3. Have you ever heard of wool filler? It’s wool in felt form: loose fibers that you poke into the knit using a needle. Thanks to the scaly structure of wool fibers, the old and new fibers interlock well, allowing you to “fill in” even larger holes. Want to see? Here’s a link to a video.
So, you’ll have plenty to do in your free time. Love your clothes; repair them with love. In other words:
Mend—before you spend
Love, Ilse & Nicole
FAQ
How do you fix a hole in a wool sweater?
Use a needle and a thread of matching wool yarn. Sew the loose loops around the hole together. Work from the bottom to the top and back again, filling the hole with parallel stitches. Not enough “filling”? Then follow the same procedure in the opposite direction, threading your yarn through the stitches you made earlier.
