By Show Me Step by StepPublished
Based on a video by Levi's®.
Sashiko is a Japanese style of hand stitching built from one simple move, the running stitch. It was first used to strengthen and patch worn cloth, which makes it a natural fit for a hole in your favorite jeans. Dyuna Morgan, a Levi's master tailor in New York, backs the hole with a scrap of denim and stitches a white crosshatch grid over it. The repair holds, and it looks good doing it.
The stitches are meant to show. Sashiko thread is thick, soft and matte, so each stitch reads as a little dash on the fabric. The needle is long and sturdy, which lets you load several stitches onto it before you pull through. Traditional work keeps the stitches even, with the top stitch a bit longer than the gap underneath. On a mend, close enough is fine.
Real sashiko thread is the easy choice. It does not split and it sits up nicely on denim. Six-strand embroidery floss or a size 8 pearl cotton will work in a pinch, though the stitches look thinner. White or cream on blue denim is the classic look. Red, mustard or a soft pink give the mend a playful twist. Pick a needle with an eye big enough that the thread slides through without fraying.
Go at least one inch past the hole on all sides. Denim tears where it has already thinned, and that worn zone is often wider than the hole itself. A bigger patch means your stitches land on solid fabric. Use a scrap from an old pair of jeans in a similar weight, so the mend moves with the garment.
The lock at the end is a backstitch, worth learning on its own. Socks wear through too, and darning a sock uses a similar weave of stitches. For more everyday hand repairs, learn to sew a button by hand, and if you want to add a drawn design to a jacket or tote, see how to transfer an embroidery pattern.
10 steps · about 4 minutes.Check off each step as you go and your progress saves automatically.
You need very little for this mend. A long sashiko needle, a skein of sashiko thread and something to cut with are the basics. Dyuna also has fabric shears for the patch, thread snips for trimming, and a finished sampler to show what the stitches look like. Find a scrap of denim for the backing too. An old pair of jeans is ideal.
Tip
White thread on blue denim is the classic look, but any color you love works.
Lay the jeans flat and check how big the damaged area is. Use a clear ruler so you can see the fabric underneath. Measure at least one inch past the hole above, below and on both sides. The denim around a hole is usually worn thin, and you want the patch and stitches to reach solid fabric. For this hole, a 4 by 4 inch patch covers it.
Tip
Measure the thin, faded area, not only the open hole.
Cut your denim scrap to the size you measured. Turn the jeans inside out and find the back of the hole. Lay the patch over it so it covers the hole with an inch to spare on every side. Smooth it flat with your hand. The patch sits behind the hole, so from the outside you see the hole with new denim showing through.
Tip
Pick a scrap in a similar weight of denim so the mend bends with the rest of the jeans.
Secure the patch before you turn the jeans back the right way. A quick and easy way is a safety pin at each corner. Safety pins will not fall out or poke you while you handle the leg. Check that the patch is still square and flat. Then turn the jeans right side out again, so the hole and the patch behind it face up.
Tip
Pin from the outside of the jeans so you can take the pins out as you stitch.
Give yourself some lines to follow. Lay a ruler across the patched area and draw evenly spaced lines with tailor's chalk, first in one direction and then the other. Dyuna draws a grid for a crosshatch pattern. You can also skip the guidelines and stitch by eye. There is no wrong way, but lines help your rows stay straight on a first try.
Tip
Chalk brushes off, so you do not need to worry about marks left behind.
Thread your needle with sashiko thread. Even though the finished look is a crosshatch, every line is a plain running stitch: in and out, in and out along the chalk line. Do all the vertical lines first. Sew through both the jeans and the patch behind it, so each stitch holds the two layers together. Keep the stitches roughly even in length.
Tip
Load two or three stitches onto the needle before pulling through. It goes faster.
Once every vertical line is done, go back over the area and stitch the horizontal lines the same way. Where the two directions cross, you get the crosshatch look. Keep the thread relaxed as you pull it through. Tight stitches pucker the denim, while relaxed ones lie flat and give the mend that soft, quilted look sashiko is known for.
Tip
Smooth the fabric flat with your hand after every row to check for puckers.
Dyuna switches to a denim scrap to show the finish up close. Treat the end of your last row as the final stitch of the project. Bring the needle up through the fabric to the front at the end of the line and pull the thread through. Leave the thread loose enough that you can flip the fabric over without tugging the stitches.
Tip
Practicing the finish on a scrap first takes the worry out of doing it on the jeans.
Flip the garment inside out, or in this case flip the scrap over. Take the needle back through the same hole as your last stitch. That makes a small back stitch, which locks the thread so it cannot pull loose. Pull it snug. Now the end of your stitching is secured and will survive wearing and washing.
Tip
For extra security, make the back stitch twice in the same spot.
On the back of the fabric, cut the leftover thread close to the stitch with thread snips. Leave a short tail so it cannot work its way back through. That is it. The hole is backed, reinforced and covered with a personal detail that makes the jeans yours. Take out any safety pins that are still in place.
Tip
Wash the jeans inside out to keep the white stitches bright.
Keep going
How to Separate Embroidery Floss Without Tangles
How to Sew Sashiko Stitches to Mend Jeans (Visible Mending)
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Bamboo Embroidery Hoops + Needles Set
Five hoop sizes plus a pack of needles, so you can mount any project and start stitching. Smooth bamboo that grips the fabric without marking it.
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DMC Embroidery Floss, 36 Popular Colors
The industry-standard 6-strand cotton floss in a ready color range, with needles included. Colorfast and smooth, so it will not fray as you stitch.
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Similane 215-Piece Embroidery Starter Kit
Hoops, 100 thread colors, aida cloth, needles, and tools in one box, so a total beginner can start today without a dozen separate orders.
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