I have started to mend the Indian bedspread. After some lines on paper to plan how I would reinforce the fabric and repair some of the rents on the outside I chose to use simple untidy running stitches that are wonky and without much of a pattern.
I needed coverage for irregular tears, stitching that would suit their shape and complement the overall appearance of the bedspread.
Like me they travel west to east, north to south so that they show up on both sides. I’m not one for taking the needle through to the back and then to the front . . . I scoop, several stitches at a time. I guess this has been my approach to life . . . take a stab, draw up all you can and trust that it will all come through okay.
The side with rents in it, now mended, now strengthened.
The side without holes but still strengthened and lending it’s strength to the injury.
The birds in the centre have a problem. The sun has eaten their orange feathers so some patching is needed . . . some soft unbleached calico set into the holes and leave the edges raw? Perhaps. Or patch them over with some old table linen I have found in my efforts to clear out the things that are trying to take ownership of me.
A bright bird . . . it wisely hid in the fold and was protected from the sun.
The sun has weathered away the orange feathers . . . it has lost its ability to fly.
I’m loath to hide their scars, the ravages of time, any more than I feel the need to hide what time is doing to me. And so the metaphor continues . . . time has an impact that can be read if you use eyes, and ears and heart.
There are many who would simply discard this cloth, deciding that with so many holes (about 30) it has reached the end of it’s decorative life. But it can still serve its purpose because I have turned it over to the birdless side. It has a place keeping warm someone who remembers as she stitches.
late start studio 
Is it useful or beautiful? Define beauty. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Age is beautiful. Consider the Acropolis, the medieval ruined abbey the face of a loved grandparent. Your cloth is beautiful and useful! Cherish your cloth.
I think it is both although it’s use was becoming limited the more tears it acquired. It has taken on a new beauty, one that speaks of it’s loved history . . . rather like people do. Beauty & usefulness, beauty versus usefulness . . . now there is something to consider!
Good solution and love how you articulate your process.
Thank you Lynette, it’s a very relaxing thing that causes me to think a lot.
love the colour matching in your repairs so far will be interesting to see how you patch the birds tail, I’m all for leaving the edges raw but held strong and firm
I was thinking of an old shirt that I have held on to because the fabric is so soft . . . it may be a good colour. Raw edges demand gentle handling and I can arrange that.
oh no, I couldn’t bear to discard this either. You are working it beautifully Wendy.
One side now has no holes and by next summer when I want to use it again, the 31 holes on the other side will be patched . . . patched so you can see the scars.
Belatedly coming to visit via Spirit Cloth … love what I see here and will look forward to returning.
Hi Liz and welcome! We shall meet again here or there in Texas.
design is mending if you think about it. even if you look at it as patching thoughts. and then as we progress, refining and mending our original intentions.
Design is mending and mending a design, amending what was there. The design of the mending is changing with the spaces. Some of the birds have calico patches and are waiting to preen their new feathers.
Mending with love – perfect!
Mending is opening the way to making.