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When I was a kid, my mum had me darn my brothers' socks, sew on buttons, iron on patches or make patches from old jeans for knees of other jeans, etc. I can't recall the stitch, which looked a bit like embroidery (which I don't do, by the way) for tears in odd places of a white dress shirt, for instance, in which a patch might be too obvious... or, on the toes/heels of socks where one wants any mending to lie as flat as possible for comfort. The stitch she showed me back then looked a bit like a button-hole one would create with a sewing machine, for lack of a better way to describe it.
I have a few nylon shirts, made of that thin, t-shirt type material or sheer silk-ish material, with holes in them. Upon subsequent washings (by hand, no less), the small holes have become larger, rendering the shirts unwearable out-of-doors. I dislike those thin materials today, but living in CA, they're certainly functional & they also seem to be the norm in stores. In any case, I've a few of them with holes. I tried iron-on patches, but sadly, they don't stick to nylon... yep, I tried anyway, hoping it might work. All of them are on the front & to one side, caused by the velcro on a thumb brace I have to wear from time to time which scrapes & snags & the holes are not coverable by embroidery-type patches, etc, due to esthetics. Besides, the little rose 'thing' or whatever character I've seen with these patches which cover the outerside of a garment aren't me anyway... they'd look quite silly. I can & will wear a cotton, unsnagable shirt in the future when I need to wear the thumb brace... but, I still need to fix the 3-4 shirts I've ruined.
I recall darning stitches, done by hand but sadly, it was so long ago I don't recall how it was done & my 80-yr old mum, who was a seamstress, cannot remember much about her sewing days... she stopped about 30-yrs ago.
I'm sure there are some YTube videos out there showing exactly what I need (if I could figure out proper search terms... any ideas?), but when I pull up mending stitches, it's basically videos for men who look like frightened children, who've never encountered a needle & thread before... with finished results which are temporary at best & certainly not practical for the front of a garment, only a hidden seam. The rest are for sewing seams... simple. I could also goodle sewing tips & tricks to find websites, but again, am having trouble locating what I need as I'm not sure what darning might be called today... the dilema of growing up in the 'old days', when things were done right & mended not replaced.
As an aside, one 24-yr old neice recently threw away a shirt with a small snag, which she wore once. I told her to take a small crochet hook to pull the teeny, tiny snag through to the other side... she rolled her eyes, took the hugest of breaths & half-glared at me, mouth agape, as if I were giving her instructions on how to bombard atoms... then disgustedly tossed the shirt into the bin. I then asked why she didn't cut it up & use the material for trim or save it for mending... she ran away as fast as her chunky platforms could carry her like I was Dr. Frankenstein with a scalpel. If she were my size, I'd have dove into the bin to retrieve it. I'm guessing I'm an old prairie woman & these farm mending skills aren't appreciated much these days.
I don't need a bunch of t-shirt rags or kick about clothing, so can any sewers out there recall some sort of darning (is that a word today?) or mending stitch name so I can google search? At this point, I realize the stitching will be seen upon close inspection, but it's still better than a big, funky button or kooky patch, which would both look silly & my style is more clean, classic lines anyway... not much fad in my closet.
Also, does anyone have a favorite sewing site, blog, YT chanel they'd like to share? I'm a complete DIY-er, from baking to sewing to arts & crafts & everything else in-between. So much so that I chase away 20-yr old girls in chunky platforms.
Well, I just use one of 2 stitches, depending on the hole.
If there's enough of the warp left, you just do a weaving stitch - put in a new weft (starting away from the hole.) Even if there's not much warp left, you can weave from the opposite side to make a solid piece.
Or if there's nothing left, use a running stitch around the hole, pull it tight to close the hole, then put a few weaving stitches across. I think I just made this up on my own, but it works fine. You can buttonhole stitch it but that just makes the hole not grow bigger.
I looked on YouTube - entered "darning a sock", and came up with several useful videos. Also there's "darning a hole", which is pretty much like how I do it.
The important thing is you need to match the right weight thread to the fabric - you can't use just ordinary thread. This is actually the hard part. I tend to like crewel embroidery thread.
A darning egg is useful, but I just cut a little piece of white cardboard and put it underneath so that I can see what I'm doing.
Anyway, you can't do really big holes this way - just small ones. But I figure big holes are an excuse to cut up fabric for rags or unravel it for knitting.
Well the above probably wasn't very helpful! I do have a book of historic stitches that I'll try to find and enter the title for you tomorrow. I'm more of a book than an internet person.
Thin, stretchy fabric is totally different...you might want to use a sheet of tissue paper behind it to hold it in place while you're sewing it. If the tear is really narrow, you can turn the shirt inside out and just sew the edges together. You can get a very fine, clear thread that's almost invisible. There's a stitch that's good for bringing edges together, where you're going over one side, under the other, alternating almost like lacing up a shoe. I can't remember the name of it, I'll have to find my sewing book and see if they describe it.
For holes that aren't going to be in a really obvious place, I usually just use the satin stitch on my sewing machine. That works pretty good for when the hubby has gotten a tiny little rip in the back of his pants. For bigger holes like that, the iron on patches or mending tape will work.
Well, I just use one of 2 stitches, depending on the hole. If there's enough of the warp left, you just do a weaving stitch - put in a new weft (starting away from the hole.) Even if there's not much warp left, you can weave from the opposite side to make a solid piece. Or if there's nothing left, use a running stitch around the hole, pull it tight to close the hole, then put a few weaving stitches across.
Hiya 601... Thank you for responding. I'm not really understanding this... looked up warp & still don't absorb the definition... And by weft, I think you believe an extra piece of the same material is available, which sadly, isn't the case... there isn't enough hem to spare a bit of fabric. It's a very sheer material (as are my other hole-y projects), akin to a thin men's dress sock. Some are more like sheer curtain panels. And, sadly the holes all just above the navel as they're all caused by the velcro on my hand brace catching on the fabric, so anything done won't be hidden.
None of the garments are expensive or worth trying to search out remnants of other materials for patching. It's just a shame that it happened to so many, most brand new & I didn't notice so many things were being ruined until I was ready to handwash the lot of them.
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I looked on YouTube - entered "darning a sock", and came up with several useful videos. Also there's "darning a hole", which is pretty much like how I do it.
I looked at those videos, too & they all seem to be for knitted garments. I'm obviously missing something or have a block about understanding how this can be done.
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Well the above probably wasn't very helpful! I do have a book of historic stitches that I'll try to find and enter the title for you tomorrow. I'm more of a book than an internet person.
It seems my best bet is going to be just gathering either end of the hole & sewing the edges from the underside, regardless of the finished outcome. At least the hole will be patched & not getting bigger. It will be obvious, but those iron-on patches don't stick & the style of the tops don't suit to wearing with a belt. Ah, well... it's a stiff cotton button-down from now on, on days I must wear the hand brace.
Hiya HH... Thank you for replying. Right, it's not at the seam & I don't have extra patching material (see above response), sadly.
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Thin, stretchy fabric is totally different...you might want to use a sheet of tissue paper behind it to hold it in place while you're sewing it. If the tear is really narrow, you can turn the shirt inside out and just sew the edges together.
I'll keep this in mind for the future. The holes aren't narrow, but I probably will do as you suggested in just turning it over & sewing right sides together utilizing as little fabric loss as possible. I don't see any other way to do it. I wish I could recall that stitch my mum used... it was cleverly done & with same-color thread, even though there'd be a 'caterpillar-ish' thread pattern, it wasn't as evident as the way I seem to have to do it, which may leave a bit of a pucker. Oh, well...
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For holes that aren't going to be in a really obvious place, I usually just use the satin stitch on my sewing machine. That works pretty good for when the hubby has gotten a tiny little rip in the back of his pants. For bigger holes like that, the iron on patches or mending tape will work.
I looked up satin stitch & found a pic, which looks similar to the stitch my mum did.
It's called an encroaching satin stitch, which you may know, but it's new to me. Of course, she only did 1 row to patch a hole in an obvious place. I didn't explain it well, but that's what I meant by it being a button hole stitch, prior to it being cut in the middle. Sorry, I'm really a self-taught sewer, so am not savvy on the garment industry's tech talk. I'm not sure I have the talent to sew a fabric this sheer on the machine sans some backing material to hold it intact. Perhaps interfacing might work?
I guess I'll have to choose one garment I don't mind sacrificing in the event of any accidents & just test it out. I've moved so many times over the past 5-yrs, I gave away most of my sewing accessories, remnants & fabric bolts. Even my machine had to be left behind... I have a new Brother I haven't even taken out of the box yet. These are the times I wish I could afford a tailor, or like the neice I mentioned in my initial post, could sans an attack of guilt, just toss garments into the bin. I suppose the upside is if I ruin 1 garment, I can perhaps use pieces of it to patch others down the line. Or, I'll just sew the holes in pish-posh kind of way & have a wardrobe of tops to be worn for housework only. Not what I wanted, but I dislike waste & don't need a pile of rags for anything.
What about a decorative lace applique over the hole, and a couple more in other spots on the shirt, to appear random?
Since you mentioned tiny crochet hooks, if you know how to crochet small lacy pieces (with crochet cotton rather than yarn), that would be perfect. You could stitch around the edges of the hole, then sew the lace over and the hole would look like part of the design.
The warp, in this context, is just the threads going one direction, and the weft is the weaving you do up and down over and under the warp threads with whatever thread you're using.
Actually, by putting in a satin stitch you're putting in a warp that's attached to the stable fabric on top and bottom. If it were me, I'd do a second satin stitch horizontally across the first one - in effect, creating a weft.
I can't find my stitch book - it's probably in my other house. Isn't that the way?
Anyway, experiment and have fun! If you create your own stitch that works really well, tell the rest of us about it!
What about a decorative lace applique over the hole, and a couple more in other spots on the shirt, to appear random?
Since you mentioned tiny crochet hooks, if you know how to crochet small lacy pieces (with crochet cotton rather than yarn), that would be perfect. You could stitch around the edges of the hole, then sew the lace over and the hole would look like part of the design.
Hiya HH... I love that you believe I could actually crochet. Sadly, I've no such talent. I have crochet hooks for fabric pulls in sweaters only... a trick my mum taught me. Because of the placement of the holes (right over the navel on all the shirts), I think any attempt at covering from the outside would look odd unless a child were to be wearing it... like little flower appliques 3" apart all around the shirt. Makes me wish I had a little girl around me so I could cut them down into little dresses... but, then most parents don't dress their little ones in dark olive, smokey gray & black... haha.
I even thought of folding the fabric over, like a horizontal pleat... or perhaps 2 or 3, but again, with the design of the shirts, it just wouldn't work. Too bad I weren't 15... I could have a whole new wardrobe of summer crop tops.
Cheers for brainstorming with me. I really do appreciate your help.
The warp, in this context, is just the threads going one direction, and the weft is the weaving you do up and down over and under the warp threads with whatever thread you're using. Actually, by putting in a satin stitch you're putting in a warp that's attached to the stable fabric on top and bottom.
Hiya 601... Now I get it, thank you!
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I can't find my stitch book - it's probably in my other house. Isn't that the way?
Anyway, experiment and have fun! If you create your own stitch that works really well, tell the rest of us about it!
I just found a 1965 booklet that was probably from an old library sale. It was free from the Dept of Agriculture. What they had to do with sewing is beyond me... The booklet is entitled Clothing Repairs & has some instructions with pics. It talks about the exact stitch I was mentioning, called a lacing stitch. However, when I google lacing stitch, it's something completely different. Here's the booklet, found by googling 'lacing stitch 1965'.
Hopefully, I'll find an esthetically pleasing solution & I'll be sure to let you know how it worked out. Cheers again for your help!
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I then asked why she didn't cut it up & use the material for trim or save it for mending... she ran away as fast as her chunky platforms could carry her like I was Dr. Frankenstein with a scalpel. If she were my size, I'd have dove into the bin to retrieve it. I'm guessing I'm an old prairie woman & these farm mending skills aren't appreciated much these days. 
Just bumping once...
And by weft, I think you believe an extra piece of the same material is available, which sadly, isn't the case... there isn't enough hem to spare a bit of fabric. It's a very sheer material (as are my other hole-y projects), akin to a thin men's dress sock. Some are more like sheer curtain panels. And, sadly the holes all just above the navel as they're all caused by the velcro on my hand brace catching on the fabric, so anything done won't be hidden. 
Sorry, I'm really a self-taught sewer, so am not savvy on the garment industry's tech talk. I'm not sure I have the talent to sew a fabric this sheer on the machine sans some backing material to hold it intact. Perhaps interfacing might work? 
