How to Fix a Woven Tear

Some Kowtow pieces made from woven, non-stretch organic cotton like shirts, dresses and pants can sometimes have small tears occur.

Here’s a technique to use on these woven fabrics to repair and enclose the tear, by only using a needle and thread.

Equipment: Needle, thread and scissors.

Instructions: 

1. Start by cutting a suitable amount of thread for the size of the tear. Then thread the end through the eye of the needle, and bring the two ends together to tie a knot. Depending on the thickness of the needle, you can tie two knots to make it really secure.
   
   
2. You want to have the outside of the garment facing up, and start about 1cm below the bottom of the tear, slightly to the left. Thread the needle from back to front so the knot is on the inside of the garment. To help the seam blend in better, taper the stitch length at the bottom and top of the tear.
   
   
3. Start small then make the stitch length longer over the tear itself. Take the needle across to the right side of the tear, creating a small horizontal line. Thread the needle front to back, then back to front, creating a vertical line on the inside of the garment. Make sure the vertical stitches over the tear line up with each other for a neater finish.
   
   
4. Repeat this pattern of horizontal and vertical stitches until you reach the top of the tear. Taper the stitch length at the top of the tear, similar to the bottom, and finish 1cm above the top of the tear.
   
   
5. Gently pull the needle and thread so the tear starts to close up, the stitches should disappear and the edges of the tear will meet neatly on the back.
   
6. There will be raw edges on the inside of the garment, so you can blanket stitch the edge to stop the fabric from fraying. Start by threading the needle from the outside to the inside. Just below the raw edge, bring the needle through the front halfway, wrap the thread clockwise around the needle (as the thread is coming from the left side), hold the thread with your thumb and gently pull the needle through to secure the stitch. Then repeat the blanket stitch along the raw edges.
   
   
7. Once you get to the end, tie off the thread by creating a loop, threading the needle through and tightening. Repeat this twice and then trim the thread close to the knot. Give it a gentle press to flatten/soften the area.