Get Premium
Dark mode theme is available exclusively for premium users. Learn more about the benefits of subscribing.
No fees, cancel anytime.
Dark Mode 
No fees, cancel anytime 
30 Times People Mended Their Ruined Things Very Visibly And Only Made Them Cooler (New Pics)
Interview With Expert
Just because something gets broken, torn, or old doesn't mean we need to throw it away. 92 million tonnes of textile waste ends up in landfills in the U.S. every year as it is. But there are ways to prolong the life of an item of clothing. One of them is mending, and it can be quite an art form, too.
People in this Reddit community know that. They're into what's called 'visible mending,' the art of repairing clothes, furniture, textiles, and in some cases even cars by displaying their flaws instead of hiding them. So, scroll through this list of stunning mending projects and perhaps it'll inspire you to prolong your garment's life too!
To know more about the benefits and joys of visible mending, Bored Panda reached out to fiber artist and author of Mending Matters and Make Thrift Mend Katrina Rodabaugh. She kindly agreed to tell us why mending clothes instead of throwing them away can be so joyous and shared some practical tips for aspiring menders. Read her insights below!
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Embroidered Couch Repair!
Greenmantle 2 years ago
My old cat would've made an attempt to scratch the new design, get a claw caught, then panic
RELATED:
#2
Third Attempt At Darning!
Manic Mama 2 years ago
As an older person who still darns things, I have to say Job well done.
#3
Short Had Holes. Made Some Fish About It
#4
I Covered Up A Wine Stain On My Favorite Dress With A Cross Stitch Flower (X-Post From /R/Crossstitch)
#5
Fixed A Small Hole In The Sleeve Of My Boyfriend’s Jacket. Do I Tell Him Or Let Him Find It?
#6
Really Happy With How This Came Out, Dandelion Seed Head Over Some Small Tears In A Shirt
#7
First Visible Mend!
#8
My Boyfriend’s Mom Had A Medical Emergency And The Emts Cut Her Favorite Jacket. I Mended It For Her Christmas Present
#9
Advice Please! A Great Idea Or Absolutely Horrendous?!
#10
Denim Opus Complete!
#11
Patched A Hole In The Crotch Of My Jeans
#12
Fixed Some Holes With Bees
#13
I Sewed Some Doilies Into Both Knees Of My Jeans (My First Mend Ever)!
#14
Had A Stain On A Shirt, Fixed It With A Little Ducky!
#15
Cold Snap Here, So I Needed To Patch A Hole In Favorite Winter Coat
#16
First Attempt At Sashiko, Covering A Grouping Of Stubborn Stains
#18
My First Visible Mend And First Embroidery Ever!
#19
First Time Mending & Embroidering!
#20
My Favorite Pair Of Shorts Ripped And So I Thought I’d Give Vm A Try
#21
A Snail To Fix A Torn Pocket Corner
#22
Added A Little Strawberry To My Daughter’s Damaged Shorts
#23
Mended My Toddler's Shirt With Some Mushrooms!
#24
Been Going Through It; Mending My Clothes As An Attempt To Mend My Self
#25
The Adhesive That Holds Together The Covering On My Headphones Ear Cups Came Apart
#26
Darning Pattern
#27
Salvaging A Sentimental Sweatshirt
#28
Promised To Mend My Husband's Pants Forever
#29
Rescued My Favourite Hoodie
#30
I Thought You Guys Might Appreciate My Pants
#31
Flowers To Cover Up The Stitches From Closing Two Holes
#32
First Attempt At Darning, I’m Into It! I Tried To Make It Look Like A Consistent Plaid Pattern Across Two Big Holes And A Few Small Ones
#33
“Mended” Taxi
Traveling Lady Railfan 2 years ago
I did the same on my car. Stitches outta zip ties. Works great on cracked plastic part.
#34
I Don't Know If This Counts, But These 25¢ Shorts Didn't Fit Right So I Added Side Panels. Now They Fit Like A Dream
#35
They Were Getting So Threadbare They Were Practically Translucent
Traveling Lady Railfan 2 years ago (edited)
Good for you. I have a favorite pair of jeans and I keep mending them too. Could I replace them? Yes. Do I want to? No. Will I keep them going? Yes! It's a challenge now! Mine, like these, have more character than ever now!!!
#36
Creative Way To Close Up Puppy Holes In Jeans
#37
Parchment Holes In A 14th Century Manuscript Repaired Using Embroidery. Circa 1417 Ce, Now Housed At The Uppsala University Library In Sweden [500x375]
![Parchment Holes In A 14th Century Manuscript Repaired Using Embroidery. Circa 1417 Ce, Now Housed At The Uppsala University Library In Sweden [500x375]](https://static.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/66ffa64ce54f1_84xdefafzcpd1-jpeg__700.jpg "Parchment Holes In A 14th Century Manuscript Repaired Using Embroidery. Circa 1417 Ce, Now Housed At The Uppsala University Library In Sweden [500x375]")
#38
I Finished Patching My GF's Pants With A Puppy Patch
#39
When Life Gives You Lemons
#40
I Didn't Do The Best Job Possible, But I Think It Looks Pretty Cute
#41
Applying The Pattern To Jeans Repair
#42
Girlfriend's Hoodie Had A Stain That Wouldn't Come Out So I Turned It Into Another Tiny Friend 🥰
#43
Three Or Four Layers Of Repair Into Not Paying Another $35 For Replacement Padding For My Headphones
#44
Laced-Up Tear
Justin Tyme 2 years ago
This one should be higher for its uniqueness. There is a lot of redundancy in the ones above it.
#45
I Sacrified My Pants On A 100 Degree Day
#46
Replaced My Old Shoelaces With Crochet
#47
A Cheerful Little Mend For A Ripped Belt Loop On My Favorite Jeans
Meagan Glaser 2 years ago
I like that it's subtly giving a "tada!" effect, since OP just pulled off a sartorial magic trick
#51
My First Stab At Embroidery For This Visible-Ish Mend!
#52
At This Point, I Keep Patching It Just To See How Ridiculous It Can Get. (Be Kind, I'm Pretty New To Darning)
#54
I Only Wanted To Cover A Small Stain First But Ended Up Liking The Concept Too Much
#55
Long Time Lurker, First Time Poster, I Covered The Flaking Faux Leather Headband Of My Headphones With Constellation Fabric
#56
First Attempt At Sashiko On My Friends Worn Out Trousers!
#59
Update On Temporarily Patching The Hole In My Toddler’s Backpack
#60
Idk How To Knit, So I Fixed My Sweater With A Simple Whip Stitch 😃
Judy Reynolds 2 years ago
And if you do the same thing on the other sleeve, it becomes a design element, not a patch!
#63
I Gave My Child A Quilt For Her 18th Birthday And Then Her Pet Rats Managed To Chew Holes In It, So I Fixed It For Her 19th Birthday
#64
Husband Asked For His Pants To Be Repaired. Finished Product. I Am Not Sure If The Colorful Yarn Is A Good Idea
#65
Kid 1st Time Hand Sewing (Aka She Needed Knee Patches)
#66
Accidentally Ripped A Hole In My Favorite Jean Skirt, Sashiko To The Rescue!
#67
Finally Finished Visibly Mending My Husband's Jeans. He Had Blown Out Both Pockets And The Knee
Fire Singer 2 years ago
I love that men are willing to wear these! So many I know would be like "Uh, no that's too colorful." Love it!
#68
Patched Jeans After Rabbit Attack
#69
Start ‘Em Young
#71
Second Attempt With Cute Bird Fabric. 🦜
#73
My Husband Said That They Don't Make Clothing For Grown Men That's "Joyous" And He Wanted Some
Stephanie Did It 2 years ago
Any husband that uses the word 'joyous' about something as mundane as clothing is definitely a keeper.
#74
Check Out My New (Dumpster) Cardigan!
#75
Idk If It Still Counts As Mending If The Distressing Is Self Inflicted But Here’s A Jacket I Made Regardless
#76
Almost Invisible Shirt Repair
Sandra Bartsch 2 years ago
Check the pictures on the original post - these are two different projects!
#78
My Cable Was Damaged From Both Sides, Then It Was Too Fun To Stop
#80
Maybe My Ugliest Mend Yet
#81
Got Sick Of My Phone Never Fitting In My Pockets So Took Matters Into My Own Hands
Add New Image
What do you think ?
Related on Bored Panda
