2022 Mend and maintain-along

AntBee · December 2, 2022, 12:20am

I haven’t revisited the sweater yet, but I’m trying out a new “intention” with my overfull mending pile. Having to move it for Thanksgiving stirred up more than just dust bunnies. I want to get my act together better over here, so for December (but starting yesterday for good measure) I am taking the item on top of the pile daily and processing it that day. Either mend it or move it out. No more dithering.
Yesterday I stitched up a knit hat for my husband and today is to be a torn throw pillow I rather like.

Hopefully by January 1 my pile will be no more. We’ll see.
November 30- warm up mend: hat
December 1: pillow

imperfect but done.
Day 2: button on a shirt

(turned into 3 buttons as they all started falling off as I worked but… done!)
Day 3: darn a sock
Done
Day 4: Rudolph Stuffie

Done (plus a loose seam on an antler)
Day 5: seam on an old lightweight dressbarn sweater

Autumn pillow

Day 6: seam on a prairie bonnet

It needs its elastic replaced, too, but I’m considering it done both because I do not have any elastic and also because it is a play dress-up hat. She can use it without it getting more damaged now and I’m calling that done.

Also: drawstring bag (my mother made to send with me to Girl Scout sleep away camp in 1987)

Not pretty, but the draw string now draws. So

Day 7, an easy one:
Moved two pairs of kidlet leggings to the fabric pile… she grew out of them before I got to them again! I might be able to use them for future legging repairs.
Day 8-14:
Missed a few days in here with silly adulting stuff taking up head-space and time. But managed to whittle out a couple of things I am just not going to mend and moved them to the rag box for ickier mess needs.
Day 15: That sweater is staring me down. I looked it over again but I can’t figure out how I want to proceed. So I shoved it aside and took a dress-up princess arm band thing from the pile that’s really just junk and tossed it back in the costume box. She doesn’t care that it’s missing a flower, and I need to get this momentum back.
Day 16-26: no mending, just Christmas prep
Day 27: fixed elephant nose:

Day 28-30: nothing of note
Day 31: Happy New Year!

Total mends: 13

Annchen · December 2, 2022, 9:13am

I like your mending pile challenge @AntBee I usually don’t do well with keeping up ”one thing a day” type challenges, but a couple days here and there of mending or getting rid of is better than none at all.

Camelama · December 2, 2022, 9:18am

Oh oh, perfect, there is a christmas decoration my grandmother made that I have been meaning to clean & repair! Anyone have a lead on truly vintage Christmas sew-on sequins?

AntBee · December 2, 2022, 12:19pm

Thanks! That’s my thinking, too. December is such a busy month, there will likely be days where I dont get one done, but I figured if it was a little game for me to try then at least more days than not would see some mending happen and that is way more than was happening before- so a win either way!

J-squared · December 2, 2022, 12:27pm

I hear ya on the mending pile. Mine is staring at me from the dining room (not used for dining ) table as I type. I get held up on my completion of it by the ones that require more than some quick stitching. I think, “ugh I don’t have time for this today”, and then put it back on the pile.

Magpie · December 2, 2022, 1:27pm

Try the use it or lose it topic!

By vintage, do you mean the smaller ones? I think I have some.

AntBee · December 6, 2022, 1:05pm

So far I have mended 8 things from the pile and “processed” another by moving it to the laundry first.
This daily challenge is definitely helping me to just get it done.

Magpie · December 6, 2022, 1:08pm

You are so inspiring! I have zero comfy pants to change into when I get home, all the swants I made are holey. The mending pile is right beside the bed, I just ignore that sucker every day! I gotta fix some stuff, my laziness is keeping my legs from comfy after-work relaxation. The injustice of the thing, ugh.

AntBee · December 6, 2022, 1:23pm

Where are the holes, can you mend them while wearing them? lol

I double dog dare ya!

Magpie · December 6, 2022, 1:55pm

Literally everywhere. Yoga’s been combined with everything else, why not sewing? Lol

AntBee · December 6, 2022, 2:06pm

Haha! I was hoping one had just like a knee or something. Figured you’d at least have one then.

AIMR · December 6, 2022, 3:02pm

Very inspiring!

I let the mending pile sap so much energy from me with feeling twinges of guilt for not repairing them! Most of the mends are simple…

My game will be…mend a thing, start a new project. That would motivate me…

I shortened the sleeves of many of my PJ tops so now I need to take in the waists of the bottoms or at least put in a drawstring or tighter elastic. I’ll start there and aim to get three pairs done by the weekend!

TheMistressT · December 16, 2022, 2:46pm

The little tree skirt for the Irreverent Tree has had failing fasteners since shortly after I cobbled them together! That gold elastic was a PITA!

KrampusTreeSkirt01

Then just this week I received a suprise box of notions from my cousin that came with these fancy hook and eyes which I immediately put to use mending the skirt. WOOT!

FixBlackTreeSkirt03

Camelama · December 16, 2022, 3:01pm

Perfect! Huzzah surprise notions!

AntBee · December 16, 2022, 4:13pm

How’s the malasana mending pose going?

Magpie · December 16, 2022, 5:44pm

Torn rotator cuff says no

AntBee · December 16, 2022, 8:00pm

Bah humbug!

Annchen · December 18, 2022, 5:25pm

You’re doing great! I didn’t realise you went back and filled in all those days.

I sort of crafted using the december prompt:

A bit of previous prompts too. A couple weeks ago I tossed a moth nibbled cardigan into the hot wash (on purpose). Today I used a ginger bread cutter as a guide to cut out two heart shapes, and then stitched them together. I used the buttoned up front for extra flair.

Bonus sacrifice, I cut up a very worn sock to hold a bunch of lavender in the heart:

It’s wonky, but kind of festive I think.

AntBee · December 18, 2022, 5:53pm

Definitely festive, I love it!

marionberries · December 28, 2022, 2:54pm

I mended our linen sheets yesterday. They only last so long and with my wiggly feet, I wear out a patch every time. I poked a foot through a couple of days ago.
Patching soft thin linen is an art. Especially since it’s just close enough to the corner gathered area to fight back and I have to go out quite a bit from the hole. But I managed to use iron on interfacing to secure the hole, sew a larger piece over the hole, and do extra stitching around the hold. I now have a 2.5 x 2 foot piece of extra fabric at my feet. And yes, making sure we turn the sheet top to bottom frequently would help…but it’s hard to see until the fabric gets thin. And we tend to have only one set at a time…they are expensive!
We will replace the sheets before summer when the cool linen is most needed, but for now we have a respite from holey sheets. Then I’ll have extra linen fabric to sew with. The top sheet is usually in good condition and parts of the bottom will be useable as well.
I’d post a picture, but the bed is already made and slept in, and it’s not a pretty patch. Here, this will do.