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120 reviews for:
Mending Life: A Handbook for Repairing Clothes and Hearts
Nina Montenegro, Sonya Montenegro
4.56 AVERAGE
120 reviews for:
Mending Life: A Handbook for Repairing Clothes and Hearts
Nina Montenegro, Sonya Montenegro
4.56 AVERAGE
informative
slow-paced
Nina and Sonya are amazingly talented artists and wonderful humans. I loved their mending class and want to keep up the work without them. The book is super easy to follow and thoughtful.
I picked this up to get more familiar with the terms in this crafting field. and loved to read some details about the techniques. Loved the examples, the descriptions, and also the cute designs.
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Kintsugi is the ancient practice of fixing a broken piece of pottery with gold lacquer, highlighting the mend instead of trying to hide it.
Pa says he doesn’t necessarily set out to fix things to save money or for the sake of our environment, although both are important outcomes of a repair. Rather, it is the intellectual challenge of fixing the things he uses that inspires him. When something breaks, he sees it as a chance to play.
In Korea, there is a beautiful textile tradition known as jogakbo. Small scraps of cloth are pieced together in an irregular, improvisational way, and the resulting patchwork wrap (known as bojagi) is used to carry everything from food to clothing. Given as gifts, the cloth wraps are believed to bring good luck because while making jogakbo, the sewer wishes for the recipient’s good fortune and well-being. In the same way that metta meditation (the Buddhist practice of sending loving-kindness to all beings through a series of mantras) benefits the meditator as well as those around her, the effects of jogakbo on the person sewing are powerful.
Patches on clothing have seen a wayward journey in meaning. They were essentially a symbol of poverty until the 1960s, when this symbolism was subverted by the hippies and later by the punks who adopted them as an expression of rebellion. Nowadays, sporting a patch suggests that you are mindful of the environment. Patches are even en vogue!
When we mend, we are participating in the healing of the world, as mending is a profound act of restoring integrity to an object and our relationship to it.
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Kintsugi is the ancient practice of fixing a broken piece of pottery with gold lacquer, highlighting the mend instead of trying to hide it.
Pa says he doesn’t necessarily set out to fix things to save money or for the sake of our environment, although both are important outcomes of a repair. Rather, it is the intellectual challenge of fixing the things he uses that inspires him. When something breaks, he sees it as a chance to play.
In Korea, there is a beautiful textile tradition known as jogakbo. Small scraps of cloth are pieced together in an irregular, improvisational way, and the resulting patchwork wrap (known as bojagi) is used to carry everything from food to clothing. Given as gifts, the cloth wraps are believed to bring good luck because while making jogakbo, the sewer wishes for the recipient’s good fortune and well-being. In the same way that metta meditation (the Buddhist practice of sending loving-kindness to all beings through a series of mantras) benefits the meditator as well as those around her, the effects of jogakbo on the person sewing are powerful.
Patches on clothing have seen a wayward journey in meaning. They were essentially a symbol of poverty until the 1960s, when this symbolism was subverted by the hippies and later by the punks who adopted them as an expression of rebellion. Nowadays, sporting a patch suggests that you are mindful of the environment. Patches are even en vogue!
When we mend, we are participating in the healing of the world, as mending is a profound act of restoring integrity to an object and our relationship to it.
I'd like to hold this up as a companion volume to Erin Lewis-Fitzgerald's "Modern Mending" -- if that one shows you how to mend, THIS one will make you understand WHY you should want to mend the clothes you already own and inspire you to learn to do it yourself. This one is less flashy but more inspirational. Hand-drawn artwork produces quietly compelling illustrations, but it is the text that drew me in most forcefully: there is a lesson here in cherishing rather than discarding our belongings, which may begin to change US along the way as well. Well done.
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
I adored Mending Life. It is simultaneously incredibly sweet and heart-warming, and very practical. Mending is such an important skill, especially as people are starting to realize the issues with fast fashion. Mending is one alternative, taking care of your clothes so it will last. Even if you've never done any mending or sewing before, you can get started with this book and just a few tools. There are great instructions as well as practical illustrations. If you have any interest in mending your clothes this is a great start.
*I received a free copy through Netgalley, but the review is my own opinion*
*I received a free copy through Netgalley, but the review is my own opinion*
Loved it so much I bought a copy from the local bookstore as this one is the library’s. Hoping to try my hand at some mending!
hopeful
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
I am so excited to have this book as a resource going forward to become more adept at mending! I’ve done basic patches on jeans, but a lot of the more complex ideas here are new to me and I’m excited about the section on repairs to down jackets and sleeping bags! The illustrations are gorgeous and the writing about incorporating mending as a philosophy of life is inspiring.
informative
medium-paced
THIS BOOK IS SO BEAUTIFUL!!!!!! Both teaches you how to mend and provides beautiful illustrations to look at. must buy!!