Fix Your Clothes

by Raleigh Briggs

"Unless you wear seamless, zipperless indestructible coveralls, you'd had to deal with the fact that clothes are mortal. We love them but they fail us in myriad ways...the seam that busts when you bend over. The zipper that slips down to reveal your underpants to your co-workers." Raleigh Briggs (Make Your Place) takes us on a mending journey through stocking your supplies, quick fixes, types of knots and stitches (like the classic punk whipstitch!), buttons, mending seams, patching holes, darning holes, hemming, fixing zippers, waterproofing canvas, leather, and nylon, resources, and so much more! As always Raleigh's style is simple, playful, friendly, fun, and builds your confidence.

Genres: Nonfiction, Reference, Sewing, How To, Crafts, Fashion, Art

64 pages, Pamphlet

First published July 1, 2012

About the author

Raleigh Brigs is the best-selling author of Make Your Place: Affordable, Sustainable Nesting Skills and several DIY zines. She lives with her husband and two needy cats in Seattle, WA.

Reviews

[Matte Resist · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this book not so much because I have clothes I need to fix, but because I like reading DIY books/zines and this one looked fun. It is. There's not a lot I didn't already know, but I've been mending my own clothes for quite a while. I did learn a trick for patching holes that I didn't know. There were also some tricks for fixing zippers that I had never thought about. And the last couple pages have some recipes for waterproofing fabric, which I may just try out on my canvas 'courier' bag that I sometimes use because it's not as large as my massive waterproof one. Oh, and I learned the proper way to darn! That may just come in handy one of these days!

This is a fun book. (zine?) It's all handwritten and illustrated. It's a quick read (I read it in its entirety over lunch) but written well enough to be entertaining, even if you're not trying to figure out how to fix your clothes. If you don't read DIY books or zines just for fun, you'd probably only need this if you hadn't ever attempted to repair your clothes. I think it would be a great primer for kids/teens who have clothes that need buttons, repaired seams, etc... but don't know how to do it themselves (and want YOU to do it!)

[Lori · Rating 2 out of 5]

Almost the lamest book I've ever read. Super short n sweet, and will be useful for total newbs. It is extremely basic, and takes about 30 minutes to read. It is probably perfect for kids, though if you pay more than the .50 cents I did, you're getting ripped.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Practical, straightforward. Zine-style, with handwritten text and illustrations. A portable reference for very basic mending techniques, good for someone who hasn’t done this on their own before. I found it a bit too concise, but there are plenty of resources in other books or YouTube videos once this gives you the clues of what to look for.

[Elizabeth Humphreys · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5?
The book is cute and small and had a lot of great tips, but also, some of the instructions did not have enough information. Most of the stitches I would need to watch a video or look at more pictures to understand
Cute factor and illustration is a 4 star but info and instructions were a 3 star

[Dana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I suppose this would be a good introduction to knowing the different methods of fixing your clothes, but, and as a librarian I hate to say it, I don't think a tiny book with drawings is the best way to teach this subject. I find videos much more helpful.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good info. A little too twee on the presentation side for me, though.

[Jeannie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I now feel inspired to try darning!

[Lisa Daleiden-Brugman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thin little book showing you, as advertised, how to fix your clothes. Pretty basic.

[Owen Haines · Rating 3 out of 5]

All the homies hate Thomas Kinkade

[westley · Rating 4 out of 5]

very beginner friendly and 101 level. i’ll need to consult some other resources for more in-depth instructions but i loved how this was put together!

[Cathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Helpful little book for novices.

[Laurla2]

- more of a beginners book, but with some good tips.
- hand drawn diagrams, no pictures. and the print is 'handwriting' rather than print.

- i enjoyed the attitude of this book.

"clothes are mortal and fail us in myriad ways."

"if you think you dont need a thimble, just try to hem jeans without crying."

"after sliding thread thru beeswax, run over your thread with a warm iron to melt the wax into the thread. this might seem fussy, but the ironing is important - it removes any waxy residue and creates a strong, tangle-free threat with plenty of glide." (i've never heard or read this before).

"create an emergency mending kit filled with mcgyver-y supplies to hold you over until you can do some real mending."

"are you having trouble sewing a straight line? use a ruler and tailors chalk to create a guide before you start."

"how to patch the 'fancy way' and the'quick and dirty way'."

"a toothbrush can be used to remove chalk lines."

"a zipper that wont stay up, spray it with hairspray."

"dont inhale, eat, mainline, or otherwise absorb your waterproofing formulas. natural does not equal friendly."

[Rachel Bridgeman · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am posting here as for some reason Amazon will not let me.post my 1 star review and I think it is necessary to see the books fone wrong as well as books that you want to push on.people like some type of book pimp...
Anyhow this book is not a book. It is a pamphlet with advice you can freely find online and has little to offer anyone who has more than basic sewing skills.
It is thin,small and looks like a child wrote it in that it has illustrations that fill up the pages where information could go.
It is not sustainable magic as a v.quick internet search would be more environmentally friendly than buying this book . It is also an American book for those who are interested and it took so long to arrive that my expectations of this being good were dashed and I just plain didn't like it. Sorry but it was a waste of money.
It might be good for a child sewing as a beginner but not a fully grown woman looking to reduce her carbon footprint.

[San Diego Book Review · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reviewed by Gretchen Wagner for San Diego Book Review

More and more people are finding it desirable to learn the old-fashioned art of mending and fixing clothes, rather than continually buying new ones to replace slightly damaged ones that can easily be fixed. If you have an inclination to frugality, want to do your part to keep clothes out of the landfill or reduce your environmental footprint through using less – or even just want to make that perfect clothing piece last just a little longer – then the little book will help.

You can read this entire review and others like it at San Diego Book Review.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the zine -type layout. The book is very accessible and much less intimidating than other books on mending. It's also more lighthearted and takes itself less seriously. Still, I didn't necessarily find myself turning to it as a go-to reference. We'll see if it makes it eventually to my permanent library.

[KJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good tips; this helped me flesh out my small sewing kit I keep for repairs. I feel like this could have benefitted from more diagrams or illustrations; it's kind of hard to picture the stitches being described if you aren't familiar with them.

[Bookthreat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read our review at https://bookthreat.com/2017/05/05/lov...

[Ligaya · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very little new information that cannot easily be found elsewhere. This would be a good book for a child. Barely 60 pages and lots of those are illustrated or blank.