"Boro" and" Boho" are both words which
are often used to denote a type of mending or preservation of clothing. They look and sound similar but have different origins.
"Boro" usually refers to a way of life which comes
from Japan, where women traditionally used stitching to mend clothing again and
again to make an item last until it almost had a new life of its own. Creating
a simple beauty, it is characterized by neat, even stitches. The method of
stitching is called Sashiko.
The word "Boho" comes from the word "Bohemian" and often refers to a
style of clothing – and sometimes home furnishings - which uses rich and varied
colors. In the recycling or up-cycling of clothing, people sometimes use colorful patches or combine parts from two different clothing items, one or both of which is often colorful.
In the history of my own country (the USA), we have "piecing"
or "quilting". Quilts were
traditionally made from stitching together pieces of clothing that someone had
outgrown or from the good parts that remained after an original item of
clothing had worn out. Sometimes these were made into patchwork squares and sometimes they were made into varying shapes.
All of these methods of sewing have come to be viewed as forms of art. Some people today create, using these methods, but using all new materials. But there also seems to be a resurgence of using them for their original purpose, the preservation of fabric.
Here is a good video which explains "What is the difference of Boro and Sashiko?"
Mending Matters is a book which gives an interesting and useful look at using Sashiko for textile sustainability.
Do you use any of these methods? Have you come across other ways in which people preserve clothing? Do you ever combine more than one method?
I am neither enough of a perfectionist for Sashiko at this time, nor did I want this patch to be colorful; but I used "visible mending" to repair these jeans for one of my sons, using both a patch and visible hand stitching. I turned the leg inside out to sew on the patch. Then I turned it right-side out and stitched over the patch. The first picture shows the rip and the second picture shows the repair.
