3 Easy Woven Darns to Save Your Knits

I mentioned in a mending post a few weeks ago that Swiss darning (also called duplicate stitch) is a great method for stabilizing knits that are wearing thin but have not broken into a hole. While there are ways to work duplicate stitch over a hole—where there are no longer stitches to duplicate—it is more challenging. Many knitters turn to woven darns when facing an ugly hole in a beloved knit.

All three methods I’ll show you here result in a woven patch, but they are quite different to work, and there are a few key differences in the result. The biggest differences are between Method 1 (shown on the far left above) and the other two. Method 1 includes a few stiches at the edge of each row of the darn that secures the mend to the fabric. It has a speckled appearance, and I also think the behavior of the fabric is different compared to the other clean-edged woven mends. Take a look:

Click on each photo to read more.

I find that Method 1 with its supporting neighbor stitches is less likely to distort the surrounding fabric when it is stretched. Knitted fabric stretches a lot; woven fabric does not. The running stitches that surround a woven mend stretch a bit. So, I might use these mends in different parts of a sweater.

Mend with us!

This is Week 3 of our month-long mend-along, and next week we are planning a live session where we can put some of our recent tutorials to good use. I find that many knitters have trouble deciding which mending method to use, what yarns would work, and so on. We’ll look at a few examples of knits in need of mending, discuss the options, and look at the results.

Week 1: Swiss Darning Tutorial and Tips

Week 2: Build a Basic Mending Toolkit

Week 3: Woven Darn Tutorial (this post)

Week 4: Click to Learn About Next Week's Exclusive Live Session with Kate Larson! Diagnose Your Damage and Make a Mending Plan

Week 5: Mending Inspiration! Freehand Mending Techniques and Tips

Get Started with Woven Darns

Now, grab something from your mending pile and let’s try some woven darns. Here, I’m using a thrifted sweater that I’ve dedicated to mending practice. If you are worried about jumping into beloved knits, try pulling something that is no longer wearable or even knitted swatches that are no longer needed. You’ll be joining a long tradition of mending samplers; check out this Dutch example from 1761.

For Methods 1 and 2 shown here, you’ll need something to hold your knitted fabric that is in need of mending.

Click on either image to learn what Kate uses!