My grandmother was a thrifty soul. She made sure that she got as much use out of every item in her home as possible. So when I put on my new, pink T-shirt yesterday and saw a little hole right in the middle of my stomach, I thought of her. It was only the third time I had worn the shirt and I wanted to save it. (It had been washed twice.)
Ever notice that holes tend to show up right in the middle of your stomach? I think they appear there because we lean against things so much.
I decided to follow Grandma’s example and mend a hole in a T-shirt. It only took a couple of minutes to do.
How to Mend a Hole
1. Select the color of thread you’ll use. Because I used to sew so much, I have a nice collection. As you can see, I had several options to choose from. If you haven’t sewn before, I highly recommend that you acquire some thread in a variety of colors. If you start mending your clothing, you can easily make back the investment.
I chose the bright pink thread at the top-right side of the photo.
2. Thread the needle. Select a small needle. When you thread it, tie the knot in just one string. Don’t knot the ends of the thread together; otherwise, the stitches you’ll make won’t be tiny enough to be hidden and you’ll end up with a lump in your shirt.
3. Start making tiny stitches. As you sew, catch one side of the hole and then catch the the other side of the hole and pull it gently together. See how I am just barely catching the edge? Sew around all sides of the hole in the same manner. Flip the shirt over occasionally to see if all sides of the hole have been repaired.
4. The finished repair. Can you see it? Compare the shirt to the photo above. You’ll notice that the hole was visible before I fixed it. Now I can wear the shirt without worrying that I look frumpy.
A Mending Basket
When I was first married, I always kept a basket with the clothing that I needed to repair in it. Then, when the basket got full, I’d do the mending as I watched TV. I’m not quite sure when I stopped mending our clothing, but I’m taking up the practice again!
Thanks for the great tip. I am definitely going to have to try it on one of my daughter’s shirts that has 2 holes in it from a pin she made. I figured it tossed in the around the house pile or only wearable with a pin but there just might be some hope for it yet.
Thanks for the tip. I bought a new shirt and then discovered it had a couple of small holes in the front. Using your tip here, I was able to fix it up! I’ll definitely have to do this for our older shirts as well.
Thanks I needed this, I would say that 90 percent of my favorite t-shirts have little wholes in the tummy area. You get them when you zip up your jeans (shorts, pants….) and the t-shirt gets knipped by the zipper. I try to be careful but….. It never fails the more I like the shirt the faster it gets snagged.
I thought ahhh a stitch in time saves nine!
Hi, thanks for this informative post. I did a google search on how to darn a t-shirt and found you. I’m looking forward to reading your other posts. Cheers, C ps. Love you old photo banner
Thanks, Candice!
I’ve repaired tiny holes like that, and mended seams, I’m no great seamstress but I do okay. However, I have a gray ‘dressy’ tshirt I’ve worn twice. It was fine last time I took it off, I THOUGHT, but last time I went to put it on, there were 4 holes. On the belly. If it were up on the boob I might put a cute patch with rhinestones on it, but down low on the belly? It’d look stupid. A couple of the holes are tiny like that one and I think I could fix them but one of them is easily thumbnail width and 2/3 as long as that. Do you have any suggestions on how to fix this?! I don’t go out often, I don’t dress up often, I can’t have my few ‘nice’ clothes getting biffed so bad! Pretty pretty please help?
Ugh… why is it always the tummy? Although, I have to say that I’ve noticed that I get a ton more of these little holes ever since we got a kitchen with a granite counter top. The hole is always right at counter level. (Took me a couple of years to notice that!)
About your bigger hole.. I really don’t know, but if I was my grandmother and really wanted to save the shirt, I’d probably come up with some kind of artistic design that started on the bottom of the shirt and moved up and over to the shoulder. Applique or something.
But large hole… small hole… the method of repairing them is the same. It is just that it is harder to hide large holes.
The holes are from pulling your shirt down over a pointy zipper throughout the day.
You know… I’ve never thought of that before! Good point.
Mine are always under the arm, just below and behind the seam, and are about the size of a BB. I thought it was from my deodorant, but it is still happening after I’ve tried several different ones. I’ll try your method to mend them. Thanks for the tip!
Hope it helps. Let me know if you have any questions!