Monday, February 28, 2011

How to Fix a Hole in Your (Cashmere) Sweater

I love cashmere sweaters. They're perfect for spring and fall, even in winter when you want to be cozy, but you don't want a lot of layers.

I have slowly collected several colors of cashmere sweaters over the years. I have a problem with them, though. Because my house has very little storage room for off-season clothes, the moths sometimes find them and have a snack.

So, in order to keep my sweaters looking nice (not to mention saving the money I spent on them) I've had to learn how to repair those tiny holes in my favorite sweaters.


Here's what you'll need:
Scissors, thread to match the sweater, needle









  1. Turn your sweater inside out. 
  2. Find the hole and thread your needle, tying a knot at the end of your thread.
  3. Start at one end of the hole and go around the perimeter of the hole with your needle. 
  4. Cinch the thread tight enough to bring the hole closed most of the way. 
  5. Taking tiny stitches, sew the edges of the hole closed. You won't want to make big stitches because they're more likely to show on the outside of your sweater.
  6. Once the hole is completely sewn, tie off the thread by looping your needle back through the stitches you've already made. 
  7. Voila! You're done. 
The sweater, when turned right side out, will show what looks like a small blemish (can you see it in the photo?), but no one will notice. See?

12 comments:

  1. Oh God Bless You! I just found three of my beloved cashmere sweaters have holes and I am crushed! I am so going to try this! Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow!! Looks great...hope I can pull it off...

    ReplyDelete
  3. Two thumbs up on that polished fix! You should be proud of your sewing prowess. With that skill, you can give your garments an immediate fix! In fact, the cashmere sweater looks good as new. People will never suspect that there were holes in the garment because of your amazing patch up job! [Joel Salmon]

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hello, I just wanted to send you a quick note. I linked your instructions on my blog, because I was too lazy to create my own!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I know you posted this years ago, but I just wanted to say it was a lifesaver! I didn't even have matching thread available and you can't even tell.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kate, that's awesome. I am so happy this helped you save your cashmere. I have repaired my sweaters so many times that now I'm beginning to think I need to do a post on how to prevent further damage to them. Thanks for reading!

      Delete
    2. That's great for small holes but on larger holes I've had mine professionally repaired at www.invisiblereweaving.com

      Delete
    3. Thanks for sharing. What kind of further damage can happen to the mended holes? Did you write a new post for that?

      Delete
  6. I love cashmere sweater ! Especially budget friendly multiple options that create more fabulous fashion moments!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I use silk thread to mend my cashmeres, it works great!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I mend all of my cashmere sweaters that way - invest in a cedar chest so you won't have as many hole "munches."

    ReplyDelete
  9. A sewer/mender of everything forever, these instructions are spot on, esp. the cedar chest. Container Store has non mothball packets that substitute for a cedar chest, and are effective. Yay!!

    ReplyDelete

Pin It