Repair a Hole in Your Clothes

I'm not sure if I tore this hole in these pants, (must have been sleep walking) or if the washing machine ate it. But I didn't discover this hole until after the garment had been washed. You should always try to repair a rip before washing your garment. The rip is cleaner in most cases, and it is much easier to fix. So, this hole is the worst case senario. A gapping hole with frayed edges.

I was lucky to find a package of ready made iron-on patches that goes with this fabric and the style of the pajamas very nicely. So, first I need to perpare the hole before patching. I do this by snipping the frayed edges all the way around the hole so that the iron-on patch will adhere properly,

Next I found a scrap of light weight fabric, that I had in the cabinet, and cut a piece much bigger than the hole, to use as a backer. I need a backer so that the iron-on patch will have something to iron-on to in the area where the hole is. This will make a better, more premenant, attachment of the patch by using all of the glue on the back of the patch.

I attach the backer, centered over the hole, with straight pins near the edges of the backer. That way the pins won't interfere with my pressure foot when I sew the backer to the pants.

Okay, I'm ready to sew. This is my sewing machine. It is a Pfaff 130 head. My mother bought it brand new. She told me once that she bought this machine because it was the only machine available, at that time, in the United States, that sewed a zig-zag stitch . It is the very machine that I sewed my first stitch on, at the tender age of seven. This machine was passed to me when my mother left this life in 1974. It has since traveled many thousands of miles north, south, east and west, as I vagabond around this country, making my living by sewing at every stop. Some of that traveling was done in the original carrying case (that I still have), and when I stayed in one place long enough, it has lived in this, it's original white maple veneered cabinet. It has been the work horse of all types of projects, for my mother and I alike, since 1954.

Phew! Boy, did I get off on a tangent there, or what?

When ever you start a new sewing machine project you should make sure that you have the appropriate size needle for the fabric that you are working with. For this project I have selected an 80/12 needle. This size is for light weight fabric, just right for this job.

Now that I have threaded my machine and needle, I make sure that the threads are pulled to the side. I do this so that they don't get taught in the pressure foot, stitches, get pulled into the bobbin, or anywhere else that they don't belong. That could cause your stitches to get bunched up, make a knot, or any number of other issues, we don't want to go there.

I carefully slide my project under the pressure foot and arange it so that the needle is close to the edge of the hole. Then I lower the pressure foot and start to sew close to the clean edge of the hole. When I get to where I started I will lap over my first stitches for a 1/2" or so. This will help to keep the stitches from coming loose while I iron on the patch.

After I cut the threads and pull the project out from under the pressure foot, I trim the excess backer fabric away, leaving about 1/4" past the stitches, all the way around.

Now it's time to choose the right size patch. Aren't these cute? What a find. I have chosen the smallest one. It covers the hole well and extends onto the good fabric of the pants far enough to get a bond.

I set my iron to a high temperature, the setting for linen is good, then wait for it to get good and hot. This may vary from one iron to the next. If you're not sure what the temperature is like on your iron, you may want to test it on scrap fabric before using it on your project. An iron can get too hot and scorch the patch, your garment, or both. So use caution here. And don't burn yourself either. It's easy to do, especially when your holding on to a small patch like this.

Start on the edges and use the tip of the iron to set the patch. You can check to see if it is bonding by trying to pull the edge gently. This glue is not set yet, so don't pull it off. Once you have the patch set where it needs to stay, slowly move your iron over the patch, keeping it moving to avoid scorching. Go over it a few times.

Because this was such a big hole, and I used a backer, I'm going to turn the garment inside out and iron the patch to the backer as well, using to same technique.

There it is, done. Viola! Now I can wear these pajamas again. I've missed them.

Look for more sewing tips hubs in the future.

Thanks for reading,

Sundance