Is your favourite jumper looking a bit worse for wear?
With the cost-of-living pressures hitting our wallets left, right and centre, and a push to support more sustainable fashion, you might think twice before you ditch it — but good news, you could fix it.
As a professional clothes mender, Melbourne-based Erin Lewis-Fitzgerald spends her days breathing life back into run-down garments.
"You're going to feel like a magician once you've tried them," she says.
Bobbles be gone
Those tiny little bobbles of fuzz can really make you reconsider reaching for that go-to jumper.
Ms Lewis-Fitzgerald says they often build up under the arms, or other high-friction areas.
A plain old fabric comb should do the trick, but a heavy-duty fabric comb or an electric option will also peel off pilling.
"Just use whatever you have access to and hold it flat against the fabric," Ms Lewis-Fitzgerald says.
Simply lay your garment flat, comb it gently in one direction until the fuzz comes away, and make sure you try to avoid the seams.
For jumpers really on their last legs, Ms Lewis-Fitzgerald recommends the electric option.
"It will probably take me five mutes to de-pill the whole thing, and then it's ready for another season," she says.
Don't part with pongy threads
Sprits aren't just for happy hour — Ms Lewis-Fitzgerald says they can also combat whiffy wears.
She recommends a mixture of one part vodka to one part water.
"Start with a little bit and if you need more, you add more," she says.
"Then gently mist everywhere. Essentially, what it does is get rid of nasty smells."
Leave it in the sun to dry, and if it's still a bit pongy, repeat the process.
"It's far more effective than trying to get rid of the smells in your washing machine."
Replacing a button
Trying to track down a matching replacement button can seem futile. Instead, Ms Lewis-Fitzgerald says you could instead swap out all the buttons.
How long should the piece of thread be? When hand sewing, Ms Lewis-Fitzgerald recommends the thread be no longer than the distance from the end of your fingertips to your elbow.
"And that's just because the act of pulling the thread in and out while sewing any longer than that is likely to get tangled," she says.
You can also strengthen the thread by pulling it through beeswax or soap.
"And that means it's less likely to have knots and tangles," Ms Lewis-Fitzgerald says.
When you've found the perfect position for your new button, first loosely sew it to the garment.
"You don't want your new button to be too tight, otherwise you're not going to be able to get the fabric with the buttonhole over it."
Ms Lewis-Fitzgerald says once the button is sewed on, she normally opts for three or four loops through the button before winding the thread around the fastener to keep it secure.
"And then I'll just tie a knot and snip it off," she says.
Removing tough berry stains
There's a magic trick to getting stubborn berry stains out of clothing, according to Ms Lewis-Fitzgerald.
"The trick is boiling water," she says.
"The other trick is you have to do it within 24 hours, otherwise it's likely to set."
Ms Lewis-Fitzgerald also says, unfortunately, you can't use the same hack for other food stains — it only works with berries.
"It's the opposite of what you want to do [with most stains], but for some reason that no-one has been able to explain to me, berry stains come out with boiling water and it's almost instant," she said.
"You don't even need soap."
Ms Lewis-Fitzgerald says she normally lets the material soak until the stain has visibly lifted.
Happy mending!
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