RETHINKING Hand-Sewing

I cleaned through a bunch of stored clothes today. Usually, switching between seasons is fun for me — ooh, look, I get to wear sweaters now! — but somehow not as much this year. Right now, I kind of dislike all of my clothes. Usually, I rely on clothing swaps to add fun new pieces, but those have been another corona casualty; I've gone to a couple outdoor ones, and had a clothing swap rack up in front of my place for the month of September, but it's just not the same. I kind of feel like going all "What not to wear" and getting rid of everything and starting anew, but that's not monetarily or logistically possible right now (I would not even know where to shop without feeling too exposed).

So I think my best bet is to do some changes to what I have. Luckily for me, I have found this gretat new shop, called Rethink Tailoring. It's a great, woman-owned place that opened March 14 (great timing, huh?), and so thus has been re-inventing her company image pretty much from the day she opened. Recently, I was lucky enough to beta-test her Online Hand Mending class, and it was fantastic!

I used to mend all the time and reallyy keep up my clothes, but I had fallen out of the habit. The class reminded me the basics of several stitches, and gave me a chance to practice them, all on the cute little "mending sampler" enclosed. I reminded myself of the best ways to sew on buttons, including making a shank. There were a ton of extras — I learned some easy new ways to tie knots, and some other fun tips. At the end, she showed several examples of how to apply what we had learned, by showing us several projects waiting in her own house, and what mending techniques she would use on them.

If you have never learned to mend (like many people I know, no shame there!) it's a great, no-pressure introduction. If, like me, you just need a little reminder, it's also good. To be honest, I am not always a fan of video classes, but this had time stamps so it was easy to follow, and I enjoyed it greatly.

It has already come in handy. Last night, while watching Enola Holmes with the family, I pulled out two pairs of leggings that had sprung holes and mended them, and I am 100% sure that I took care of it more gracefully than I would have before I took the class. I'm really hoping that attacking my (large) mending pile will return some items to rotation and make me happier with my wardrobe.

I would also like to take some of her other online classes — maybe we could take them "together"!/(apart)

Highly recommended!