Mending is a quiet act of rebellion you can do from the couch - a way to say a big ‘no thanks’ to fast fashion while giving your well-loved clothes a longer life.
Visible mending lets you wear your values on your sleeve, quite literally. By showing our repairs, we help normalize mending and spark some amazing conversations about slow fashion and sustainability. I love how each stitch tells a new story, making our clothes even more meaningful.
When I’m not mending on my couch, you can find me at Eastside Repair Café, or running workshops and making mending guides. Check here to see what’s coming up.
Learn
Visible Mending
for the planet,
& for warmer feet.
Ways to learn visible mending with me…
downloadable Pocket guide
Tuck this zine-style pocket guide into your sewing kit. Learn fun, easy steps to visibly darn your fave woolly clothes back to life.
Download it here.
On-demand mending mini-workshops
[Coming soon]
Cozy up with an on-demand mini-workshop. Learn to creatively darn and patch your well-worn duds, at your own pace.
Mending mentoring
[Coming soon]
Let’s video chat for an hour - I'll teach you the skills you really want to learn and help you tackle your specific mending dilemmas and throw in a free mini-workshop too!
Custom Visible mending workshop
Gather your friends, club, or community - I’ll come to you to share hands-on mending skills. Reach out here to create a custom mending workshop.
Photo: Jo Bird
A happy workshop review…
“Nat ran a relaxed and enjoyable visible mending workshop at my home for a small group of my friends and family. Although our sewing skills ranged from basic to very highly skilled, each of us learned a lot from Nat. With the support of her fabulous printed resources, we started applying our new skills and sharing photos over the next weeks.
Nat’s gentle and skilled approach to teaching was empowering and motivating. Nat was so organised and flexible that planning a bespoke program to suit participants’ interests and needs was easy and enjoyable. I would highly recommend hosting one of Nat’s visible mending workshops for a group of your friends.”
— Robyn E.
the Latest Mending Stories
Visible mending FAQ
What is visible mending?
Visible mending is repairing clothes using methods that embrace the repair as part of the garment’s story, rather than trying to hide it. Using colorful thread, creative stitching, or contrasting patches makes your mend stand out on purpose. It’s an act of rebellion against the toxic and wasteful fast fashion industry… and it’s fun.
What is the difference between patch mending and darning?
Patch mending and darning are two trusty methods for fixing different kinds of holey dilemmas.
Patch mending is where you cover a hole with a scrap of fabric - like giving your clothes a fabric bandaid. It works best on clothes made of woven fabrics like denim, linen, or cotton (hello, worn-out knees and elbows!)
Darning, on the other hand, is like weaving a small thread patch right over the hole. It’s perfect for knitted things like socks, jumpers, and even polar fleece. It’s by far the most popular technique that folks are keen to learn at my workshops.
Do I need to have sewing experience to learn visible mending?
Not at all! I love to teach visible mending using beginner-friendly techniques and simple, affordable tools. The beauty of it is that it’s all about creativity, not perfection, so you don’t need fancy skills to get started. Unlike invisible mending, visible mending embraces the charm of imperfection, making it perfect for beginners.
On the flip side, a lot of experienced sewers find the loose rules of visible mending super freeing. After sticking to patterns and neat stitches for years, it’s fun to break the rules a bit. Visible mending lets you play with colours, textures, and stitches - it’s all about freedom and fun.
Do I need special tools like a ‘Speedweave’ loom or a darning mushroom to start mending?
Nope! Those tools are definitely not essential. You can start mending with just a needle, some thread, and fabric scraps.
A ‘Speedweave’ loom or something similar can be fun to try, but I’ve found that you get more flexibility and a stronger mend when you skip it.
An orange, or a ball with a hard surface can stand in for a darning mushroom - you just need a curved surface to help with visible darning. The best tool is whatever you already have on hand, mending is all about making do and getting creative.
Is spending time mending really worth it?
Absolutely! Each stitch is a little protest against fast fashion, which puts one garbage truck of textiles into landfill every second, a lot of which is still wearable. Isn’t that gross?
Mending gives your loved clothes a whole new life. It’s a small act with a big impact. It’s cheaper than shopping, kinder to the planet, and oddly satisfying. It’s a small action toward a slower, more thoughtful way of living.
Is your name really Nat Mendham?
Yep, it’s 100% real. I married into it, then happened to fall in love with mending. It was a total coincidence, but I’m clearly meant to be a mender!
A few recent visible mending projects…
Below is a collection of mends that I’ve completed for family and mates over the past few years.
I’m deeply inspired by the Japanese concept of wabi sabi and their culture of mending and caring for well-crafted items.
For me, visible mending about resourcefulness, where utility and necessity meets art.
I think letting go of perfection, seeing beauty in the simple stitches you’ve made with your own hands, and embracing the impermanence in all things, especially clothing, allows us to sink into a wonderful mindset to start mending.
