When I started stocking the Soolla Pouches in the shop, I received one that had a tear in the side. I was able to get a replacement from Soolla but I didn’t just want to throw away a pouch that was 98% completely usable. So, I decided to embrace the kintsugi vibe and do some visible mending to make the case completely usable. Kintsugi is the Japanese tradition of making repairs visible and embracing flaws and imperfection.
I grabbed some gradient colored embroidery floss in a contrasting color so that the repair is recognized and acknowledged — part of its journey through life. I started calling it my “FrankenSoolla” because I stitched the repair on the lavender lilac pouch with green thread, like Frankenstien’s monster.
Surprisingly, this repair made me love the pouch even more so this weekend, I decided that the pouch needed even more customization. I’ve been wanting to get better at embroidery — I’ve only ever really done a couple stitch samplers in my life — so I thought I’d take a chance and stitch my astrological sign onto the pocket. Stitching on an already-assembled object is tricky and definitely challenging.
I used a free embroidery pattern from DMC (available on Lovecrafts) and plain black floss. The design was a little quirky and imperfect to begin with so the fact that my skills are just so-so aren’t as noticeable. The design is supposed to look a little wonky.
Now, I’m wondering if I should do more embroidery or sew some patches on as well? What would you do?
Do you like to customize or personalize your stationery items too? Do you stick stickers on notebooks, recover the outside or add other embellishments to make your stuff “yours”? Let me know in the comments!