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Five Frugal (mending) Things

This week, I have a 100% mending-themed five frugal things post!

1. I fixed my joggers. Again.

This pair of very old American Giant joggers have appeared before in a Five Frugal Things post.

hole in joggers

I know it would make more sense to just give up on these pants, but at this point, I am just kind of stubbornly fixing them.

The inner thigh fabric had worn thin, and it was about to give way.

Black joggers with thigh seam wear.

So, I sewed a new seam, used some old legging fabric to reinforce the area, and I should be back in business now.

Mended black American Giant joggers.

At least, until the next hole crops up.

(One day, I will cry uncle and I will stop wearing these. That day has not arrived yet, though!)

2. I mended a pair of Stitch Fix jeans

I got this pair of jeans in a very early Stitch Fix.

(When I look at the above-linked post, the photos are all really grainy. I have no idea why, but I will try to fix it later.)

Original photos:

Kristen wearing jeans and a striped sweater.

Wow, they used to be such a dark black!

They’re more of a dark gray now.

Anyway, the last time I washed them, I saw that the top waistband seam had started to come apart.

Black pair of jeans with a waistband hole.

All better!

Just Black jeans repaired.

That repair took about 30 seconds once I had the sewing machine out. I love easy repairs!

3. I fixed a throw pillow

I got a two-pack of these throw pillows at Aldi some years back and one of them sprouted a hole on the seam.

Aldi throw pillow with a hold.

So, I just whip-stitched that shut by hand.

Gray Aldi throw pillow with a seam repair.

4. I fixed a reusable bag.

I do not love those weird non-woven polypropylene bags, mainly because they wear out so fast. I never buy them, but somehow, we still have had some end up in our possession.

Knowing that it’s important to keep using bags as long as possible, I do try to repair them when they break.

Navy blue repaired polypropylene bag.

This one had come apart at the seam, so I zig-zagged that up, which just took a second.

Then I noticed that the bottom had some holes too, so I quickly zig-zagged some knit material from my scrap bag over the holes.

hole patch in bottom of blue shopping bag.

Given that this bag was free, this is really more about reducing trash output than saving money.

But it does speak to the benefits of keeping a couple of old pieces of clothing around to use as patches for holes. 🙂

(See that method in action when I fixed my joggers before.)

5. I fixed an armpit hole

The shirt I have on in this picture is a super old one that I just wear for walking.

Kristen wearing joggers and a tshirt.

It got some armpit holes, so I zig-zagged those closed.

And that concludes this session of mending for me.

Your turn! Share your frugal five in the comments.

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Randi Froug

Wednesday 5th of May 2021

I can't believe this actually worked, but I fixed a hole in my 13-year-old car's upholstery! Luckily, it was along the seam, and I was able to just whip-stitch it up! You can't even see it now, and I feel like I really kept what could have been a very bad thing from becoming worse -- for now.

lisa

Friday 23rd of April 2021

I would love to learn to sew and make a quilt someday. Do you make those types of things, Kristen?

My frugal five:

1) I earned a free backpack from my years of service at my job. It went with me on a trip for days. Savings- $20 2) I'm trying to sell books on ebay...... 3) Took a trip and got a deal on the hotel, despite the resort fee and taxes comprising nearly 70% of the bill. savings- $240 4) I'm still working on a bag of clearance candy from Halloween. savings- $16 5) Got a free pamper session from a skincare store at the mall. savings- $50

Jennifer Y.

Wednesday 21st of April 2021

You make mending look so easy. I have such basic skills with a needle and thread that I cannot even repair holes in socks. I do not have or know how to use a sewing machine. Maybe a future skill to work on.....

Jennifer Y.

Wednesday 21st of April 2021

And my five frugal things:

1. Our local bagel shop spreads way too much cream cheese on bagels. I started to save the spreads for later use. The excess from 4 bagels topped toast for a week.

2. Made a grocery list, shopped the list, prepared meals for the work week.

3. Really love the hoopla app offered by my local library. I can borrow 4 books per month and they have an up to date catalogue. I am new to the audiobook scene and love to listen to books while I take walks, clean up around the house and cook.

4. My son's soccer team has been on a losing streak for the past month. Sunday they won their game. We felt a small celebration was in order and suggested pizza and ice cream. My son surprised us with a request to celebrate at home. So instead of eating out, we grilled burgers and ate store bought ice cream. Much more affordable.

5. Paid off a credit card with a large balance just before the 0% introductory APR expired.

Addy

Wednesday 21st of April 2021

Have you ever tried Oxy Clean Dark Protect? It does a great job of keeping your darks dark, especially black and dark blue jeans.

Randi Froug

Wednesday 5th of May 2021

I know there's also a way to re-dye them using RIT.

Hawaii Planner

Wednesday 21st of April 2021

1) Used our Costco membership reward to get our groceries for no out of pocket spending this week, which was a nice treat. 2) Sold items on eBay & a new candle making set on FB. As always, applied the profits directly to our mortgage 3) We've been eating leftovers for dinner. My parents cooked for us when they were in town last week, and we froze the extras, so it's been like an additional gift from them to have a few bonus meals. 4) Returned a gift that didn't work out 5) The one that saved me the most money but was also frustrating... my son needed new soccer cleats, and wears the most common size. During COVID, they've been very hard to find. I ended up having to pay a lot for a pair at a local sporting good store. They didn't even last 30 days before they fell completely apart. And, these were very, very pricey. So, I contacted customer service, and they said I could take them back for a full refund. In the interim, I'd ordered a backup pair in case the pricey ones didn't fit, and hadn't yet returned them, so the backup pair is working fine (for half the cost) & I don't need to mail them back. Hurrah.

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