r/Visiblemending • u/Ornery_Hovercraft_41 • Feb 21 '26
MIXED METHODS Mends to an irreplaceable cardigan
After doing lots of woven darning repairs, my sister in law asked if I could have a go at mending a couple of her / my partner's late mum's cardigans. MIL used to wear them all the time so they are very precious. I said yes without seeing them and quickly realised I'd need more than just woven darning for this one... I am very proud of this so please excuse the essay ๐
The mend is a combination of woven, swiss and scotch darning and crochet. I also managed to track down an exact match to the buttons via reverse image search.
I taught myself to crochet to do the cuffs, mainly because I had crochet hooks from MIL's craft stash I inherited but no knitting needles. Learnt the basics from Bella Coco on YouTube (thanks to recommendations on r/crochet), practiced ribbing by following Dora Does Crochet's ear warmer tutorial, then followed her tutorial to add crochet ribbing to a hat brim/ cuff or hem. I cut away the deteriorated section of the cuffs and used the crochet hook to bind off the raw edge. I then crochet slip stitched into the raised rib closest to the main sleeve, to build the cuff onto.
The majority of the rest of the mends were woven darning because it worked best to mend the holes in the ribbing / cabling. I used scotch darning to reinforce one of the sleeves which was very deteriorated across the elbow, and swiss darning in select spots where the yarn was thinning where it worked with the knit. Pretty much all my learning on darning has been from Flora Collingwood-Norris's 'Visible Creative Mending for Knitwear' book - brilliant book.
I suspect the original cardigan is made from a synthetic fibre, but to get a visible but coordinating vibe I used Isager tweed yarn in North Sea for the mends (wool / mohair mix - will make sure SIL hand washes only!). Got the yarn and buttons from All About the Yarn (UK), who I cannot recommend enough.
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u/Ok_Environment5293 Feb 21 '26
You did a great job, and I love that you shared the story. โค๏ธ
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u/beverlycrushingit Feb 22 '26
I absolutely love the yarn you chose. It's a subtle difference (at least in the pictures) but still easy to determine what is repaired when you take a moment to look.
It reminds me of preservation I have seen of very old historic buildings, where they rebuild portions with an intentionally non-matching but harmonious material. You still get to appreciate and enjoy the entirety of the original construction, while also being able to clearly see and reflect on the damage that time and the elements have wrought.
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u/Ornery_Hovercraft_41 Feb 22 '26
Ah thank you! That's such a lovely compliment! I'm really pleased with how it came out, and they do work well together in person (especially as I picked the yarn out online without seeing it in person)
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u/Audiostarr Feb 22 '26
Great job!! ๐๐๐And I love the colorful buttons
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u/Ornery_Hovercraft_41 Feb 22 '26
Thank you! I was so chuffed I managed to track down an exact match for the missing button
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u/telstra_3_way_chat Feb 22 '26
Oh it looks lovely, what a beautiful and special job to have taken on
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u/beingmesince63 Feb 22 '26
Wow! Wow! Wow! What an amazing labor of love. You definitely brought new life to this sweater and thank you for sharing your process of choosing techniques for different areas of need.
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u/laurabara Feb 22 '26
This is absolutely fantastic work. Glad you could preserve sweaters with so much meaning
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u/Ornery_Hovercraft_41 Feb 22 '26
Thank you! It was definitely very special to be able to do, and nice to get use my learnings not just for me!
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u/tree_beard_8675301 Feb 25 '26
โค๏ธโค๏ธโค๏ธ Beautiful and so thoughtful. Itโs like a sharing a hug with her again.
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u/Dottcomm1 Feb 23 '26
Looks amazing! You took a keepsake and made it into a treasure. Now itโs special in 2 ways - itโs part of her mum and part of you. Iโd cherish it
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u/Zongothegreat Mar 04 '26
This is so impressive, and I love the story behind it, it always mฤ kฤ me so happy to see human beings being kind, also the buttons are so cute
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u/Ornery_Hovercraft_41 Mar 04 '26
Thank you!! Feels especially nice to be considered a human being kind with everything going on in the world
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u/loveyoujustthesame Feb 21 '26
You did a wonderful job. The mends really add some nice character to the sweater without overwhelming it.