Enjoy the gentle art of sashiko mending: using simple hand stitches to add strength and sustainability to cotton/linen clothes and textiles
Ticket price: £20 + booking fee (concession tickets available)
Come and learn the relaxing and playful art of simple sashiko repair! In this beginners' workshop, you will be shown how to repair and revive your summer clothes and homeware textiles, such as torn pillowcase or cushion covers, a linen shirt or light cotton skirt or trousers.
You will learn how to mend both small and large holes and tears using patches of reclaimed materials and the traditional sewing techniques inspired by traditional Japanese boro and sashiko methods.
The sashiko mending style originated in Japan, where sashiko (‘little daggers’) describes a simple running hand stitch that's surprisingly easy to learn and opens up a world of creative possibilities. The repetitive movement of the sashiko stitch is a practice used by many as meditation, giving our brains and bodies the chance to relax, switch off and reset.
We will start with a sampler so you can practise the technique and them move on on to repairing items you have brought to repair. If you don't have anything suitable for repair we can provide an item for you. NB There's no 'right' way to repair. Come along, relax, experiment and have fun :-)
You will learn:
- a short introduction to the philosophy of traditional Japanese mending.
- the simple sashiko hand-stitching technique.
- how to select and prepare your fabrics.
- which needles and other tools can be used.
We will provide:
- all sewing equipment.
- fabrics and threads for sampling and patches.
- examples of sashiko-style mending to get your creative juices flowing!
- hot drinks and biscuits
What to bring
- Items that need mending, if you have them. This technique works best with natural fabrics such as cotton and linen. PLEASE LET US KNOW IF YOU'D LIKE US TO PROVIDE YOU WITH AN ITEM FOR MENDING
- Your own sewing kit if you have one.
This relaxed pace, small group workshop will be led by Karen Bentley-Brown, business and wellbeing coach, founder of Simply Repair South Lakes and Future Fixers CIC and a Green Sketch Ambassador. With a background in Geography and environmental education, Karen has a passion for connecting people with nature and with themselves. She loves to share her experiences of mindful mending, sketching nature and journalling.
Being accessible and inclusive to everyone is important to us at Simply Repair. If you want to join us on any of the workshops but financial circumstances prevent this, please get in touch at
aW5mbyB8IHNpbXBseXJlcGFpciAhIG9yZyAhIHVr so we can help. All requests are confidential, and we offer a no questions asked policy. We will do our best to accommodate but, in the event where the workshop is already full, we can discuss future options.
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