r/Visiblemending • u/Texan_in_London • 27d ago
DARNING Swiss darning on badly damaged cashmere
Hello! Delighted to discover that this group exists. My wardrobe was badly attacked by moths some time ago and I’ve been on a (slow) quest to reclaim some of my beloved cashmere. Here is one of my projects from 2023, I hope you like it.
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u/waltzing-echidna 27d ago
Such a cute sweater, way cuter than before your mend!!! Please consider posting to r/ImprovFiberArts. Or would you mind if I crossposted?
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u/tiemeinbows 27d ago
This is so lovely! Your color choices are excellent. What type of thread did you use?
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u/Texan_in_London 27d ago
I used cashmere mending yarn from Flora Collingwood Norris
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u/innerbootes 26d ago
I have her book! I have a similar sweater with moth damage, thanks for the inspiration.
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u/Pookie5858 23d ago
Have you taken a class with her? I'd love to do that one day.
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u/Texan_in_London 23d ago
I took the advanced Swiss darning course from her a few months ago… honestly I did not get much out of it at all and thought it was weirdly paced. This was done before that course and I got much more out of the book and the paid online tutorial videos she offers on her website, but of course everyone learns differently!
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u/elveejay198 27d ago
This looks SO great! Those color overlaps are so pretty, it really makes it so much more cheerful and interesting than it was before — it’s like a gorgeous bespoke piece
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u/Malsperanza 26d ago
This is spectacular. Moths got 10 of my cashmere sweaters and I've been doing a crap job of darning them. Can I ask if you used a darning loom or did these patches by hand?
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u/Texan_in_London 26d ago
I’m doing them by hand. Darning looms are really only for plain darning, which might be why yours are not looking right to you? Swiss darning is an elastic repair that means the patch stretches like the rest of the sweater does. It’s a pain in the butt but I think it’s worth it.
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u/yellowposy2 26d ago
Stunning! And I’m so inspired- just received a lovely hand me down cashmere sweater with a small hole that I’ve been wondering how to visibly mend in a visibly pleasing way. Thank you for sharing such a beautiful idea!
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u/No_Cryptographer5870 26d ago
This looks awesome. This made it a way better sweater, I’d buy this as a design!
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u/ejectorcrab 27d ago
Yesss thank you for using swiss darning on a knit! It came out great, and looks very cheerful
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u/Slipguard 26d ago
What exactly distinguishes Swiss darning from other darning styles?
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u/Texan_in_London 26d ago
Swiss darning is elastic, so it stretches with the garment you’re repairing. Plain darning is a woven patch, and not flexible. Plain darning tends to sort of pucker and drag when the rest of the garment flexes around it.
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u/y-e-e-t-h-a-w 26d ago
Wait ! I think I have this same shirt, it needs patching up too and this just gave me an idea, thank you OP
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u/georgealice 27d ago
That is so cute! I think it’s a better sweater with the patches