little-house-inspired pretty mending

This is the kind of fabric that I remember from my childhood. If you watch episodes of Little House on the Prairie, you see prints like this quite a bit. My mom was a big fan of these kinds of calicos, and I had clothing made from similar prints, so when I found this old fabric, I had to use some this week as I share some things inspired by Little House.

Now, in addition to pretty fabrics, I love that in the days of Laura Ingalls Wilder, people not only mended the things they had, but they mended them in a pretty sort of way. Which is where my calico comes in!



I have had this coat for years. It was given to me second hand, and I love everything about it...except the pockets. One of them has always had a tear, so I've just not used it. The other is fine except that it's just too shallow. Why has it taken me years to fix this? I don't know. But now I've mended the pockets, and made them much more lovely than they ever were!

Here's how I did it, although it would be a little different depending on the style of pockets already in a coat.



I measured the opening and pinned the fabric where I needed the seams.



Here are the stitched pockets. After the fact, my mother (a very wise sewer) said I should have stitched over them an extra time. Oh well. I'm not planning on shoving lots in these pockets...just perhaps some gloves or hand warmers.



Then I hand sewed the pockets along the openings.




And now I have two working pockets, with much more beautiful linings! Do you have something that needs a bit of repair? Mend it pretty!

(If you like calicos like this, you'll love this digital kit! I HAD to buy it even though I don't scrapbook!)