Published

2 years ago

April 18, 2024

Alice Rush

Last Updated on April 18, 2024

One of the most sustainable things you can do is just use what you have. That pertains to clothing items too: Simply shopping your closet first can make a big impact.

Why? Well, did you know there are enough clothes on the planet right now to dress the next six generations of humanity?

What is Visible Mending? +5 Simple Techniques

According to the EPA 11.3 million tons of textiles ended up in 2018 alone – can you imagine what that number looks like now with the rise of places like Shein, Skims and Temu?

One way we can rebel against this is by caring for the clothing items we already have. This can look like many things (getting that nice blouse dry cleaned; removing stains when you see them; following the laundering instructions to the T) but one fun way to do this is through visible mending.

Visible mending is catching on in popularity, and rightfully so. It adds personality to your clothes, all while repairing and fixing them.

Visible mending can be anything from sewing a patch on your jeans to embroidering a flower over a tear on your shirt. Aka, mending you can see.

By practicing visible mending, you’ll keep the clothes you already own around you longer, which reduces waste. It’s a great way to add some individuality to a piece, or spruce up a thrift find that might need some extra love.

Here’s everything you need to know about visible mending and how to do it yourself.

what is visual mending?

Visible mending is a form of repair, usually on textile items like clothing or bedsheets, that is deliberately left visible (compared to invisible mending).

The goals of this practice are to repair the item, but also to enhance its beauty. Through this celebration of mending, you are allowed to express your creativity and add character to a piece.

You can visibly mend:

Shirts and blouses
Jeans and shorts
Socks and undergarments
Dresses and suits
Bedsheets and linens

The possibilities are endless.

Some ideas for attractive visible mends include embroidering flowers, butterflies, fruits, vegetables, geometric shapes, or abstract designs. It all depends on your skill level, technique, and how much material and space you have to work with.

what is the best visible mending stitch?

The best visible mending stitch varies based on what you need it to do – and personal preference.

However, a blanket stitch is generally considered a great embroidery stitch to know. You can use it for sewing on elbow patches, decoration, edges, or for keeping holes but making them secure.

what is the Japanese art of visible mending?

Sashiko is the Japanese art of visible mending. The idea behind it is repairing fabric with geometrical patterns – this is said to give it strength and beauty.

It’s a bit similar to the kintsugi technique (also Japanese) of repairing objects with gold.

There’s also Boro mending, which was done more out of necessity for poor families. We’ll discuss both techniques further below.

how do you visibly mend a hole?

You can visibly mend a hole in many ways, but the easiest is probably visible darning. You can use a color of thread that doesn’t match the fabric you’re repairing, so it stands out. We’ll discuss this technique more in-depth below.

what are the different types of visible mending?

Glad you asked! There are several different types of visible mending, but below I have listed the most common and popular forms, plus linked tutorials on how to do them.

1. embroidery

Perhaps the most common method of visible mending, embroidery is used to decoratively cover up a hole or tear with stitches and patterns.

There are so many embroidery stitches, but a few of the most popular are:

Backstitch
Running stitch
Straight stitch
French knot
Stem stitch
Satin stitch

You can use colorful threads to create a beautiful pattern or display (like a flower or butterfly) over a tear or hole. Here’s a wonderful tutorial that teaches you how to embroider over a hole or stain.

2. visible darning

Visible darning is when you repair holes or worn areas with decorative, colorful stitching. You’ve probably heard of “darning a sock” before – this specific technique uses a needle and thread alone.

A simple darning stitch by hand usually means you use a running stitch along the grain of the fabric and stitch a ‘weaving’ style technique to fill in the gaps.

For visual assistance, be sure to check out this YouTube video that shows how to darn a sock by hand. To make it “visible” all you need to do is use thread that doesn’t match the color of the sock – so it pops out.

You can also use visible darning on sweaters. Here’s a great tutorial on fixing holes in sweaters (and socks) using visible darning.

3. patches

Patches are a fun way to dress up a jacket or bag – and they can also be used to cover a hole or rip. There are so many different ones to choose from, and many can be glued or ironed on.

For iron-on patches you will need a pattern, two pieces of fabric, and two pieces of a paper-backed fusible web.

There’s also felt patches you can make yourself. This patch style requires minimal edge finishing because the felt won’t fray like other fabrics. It’s also sewn in place, so you know that your stitching won’t go anywhere.

To make felt patches, all you need is the felt to embroider on, a marking method, and thread to attach it with.

Last but not least, there’s self adhesive patches that you can attach like a sticker. To make these you will need the fabric you are stitching on, a piece of heavy stabilizer, and permanent peel-and-stick fabric adhesive.

For full step-by-step instructions on how to make all these patches, and more, check out this tutorial.

4. sashiko

Sashiko is a Japanese embroidery technique that uses only running stitches to create patterns, typically geometric in design. You can use it to mend and reinforce fabric.

In visible mending, sashiko can be used to create stunning designs over rips, holes and worn clothes. It’s most popularly used on denim, like denim jackets and jeans.

Here’s a full tutorial on how to mend jeans using sashiko methods.

5. boro

Boro mending is another Japanese technique that involves patching and stitching together worn-out fabrics, creating intricate layers.

This form of mending was born out of necessity in Medieval Japan. Boro is the result of repetitive Sashiko stitching to make clothes last longer.

Cotton was not common in Japan until well into the twentieth century, so when a kimono or sleeping futon cover started to wear thin, poor families would patch it with a small piece of scrap fabric using Sashiko stitching.

This would be done repetitively, to the point the common observer would be unable to recognize where the original fabric began.

This ensured the clothing would be passed from generation to generation. Ironically, what was once done just to get by is now being honored as a style statement.

Here is a helpful tutorial on Boro inspired visible mending.

So, will you be giving visible mending a try? Which method is your favorite? Let me know in the comments!

The post What is Visible Mending? +5 Simple Techniques appeared first on Going Zero Waste.

What is Visible Mending? +5 Simple Techniques

Green Living

Best of Sustainability In Your Ear: Dandelion Energy CEO Dan Yates On How Geothermal Leasing Could Transform Home Heating and Cooling

Published

1 day ago

April 20, 2026

Alice Rush

Read a transcript of this episode. Subscribe to receive transcripts.

Return to one of our most compelling interviews of 2025. Amazingly, the same Congressional bill that gutted residential clean energy tax credits also led to a major breakthrough in financing home geothermal systems. Dan Yates, CEO of Dandelion Energy, explains how the Big, Beautiful Bill introduced changes that, for the first time, allow third-party leasing of residential geothermal systems. He shares why this policy change could help ground-source heat pumps grow the way leasing helped rooftop solar. Geothermal heating and cooling is four times more efficient than a furnace and twice as efficient as air-source heat pumps. Yet only about 1% of U.S. homes use it because the upfront costs for new geothermal systems have ranged from $20,000 to $31,000. The new leasing model means new homeowners can get geothermal systems for just $10 to $40 per month on a 20-year lease, which is usually far less than what they save on energy.

Dan Yates, CEO of Dandelion Energy, is our guest on *Sustainability In Your Ear*.

Dandelion is working with Lennar, one of the largest homebuilders in the country, to bring geothermal to more than 1,500 homes in Colorado over the next two years. This will be one of the biggest residential geothermal projects in U.S. history. The benefits for the power grid could be even more important than the savings for homeowners. Geothermal systems use only 25% of the peak power that air-source heat pumps need, which is a big advantage as AI data centers increase electricity demand. Yates explains that the Earth works like a huge thermal battery, storing heat in the summer for use in the winter. Geothermal lets utilities reduce peak loads on the grid throughout the year, freeing homeowners from the cost of the most expensive power.

You can learn more about Dandelion Energy at dandelionenergy.com.

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Editor’s Note: This episode originally aired on December 29, 2025.

The post Best of Sustainability In Your Ear: Dandelion Energy CEO Dan Yates On How Geothermal Leasing Could Transform Home Heating and Cooling appeared first on Earth911.

https://earth911.com/podcast/sustainability-in-your-ear-dandelion-energy-ceo-dan-yates-on-how-geothermal-leasing-could-transform-home-heating-and-cooling/

Green Living

56 Environmental Innovations in the 56 Years Since Earth Day Began

Published

4 days ago

April 17, 2026

Alice Rush

The first Earth Day was celebrated on April 22, 1970 — 56 years ago — and, goodness, how the world has changed since then. We’ve come a long way since the days of burning our trash and pumping our gas guzzlers with leaded gasoline. In honor of those 56 years, here are 56 important changes and milestones since the first Earth Day.

Legislation

The U.S. government has led much of the environmental charge, starting with the implementation of the EPA (1) in July 1970. Later that year, the Clean Air Act (2) targeted air pollutants, followed by the Clean Water Act (3) in 1972 and the Endangered Species Act (4) in 1973.

Some lesser-known national laws included the Safe Water Drinking Act (5) in 1974, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (6) in 1976, the Toxic Substances Control Act (7) in 1976, the National Energy Act (8) in 1978, and the Medical Waste Tracking Act (9) in 1988.

In some cases, states have led the charge. Oregon passed the first bottle bill (10) in 1971, Minnesota’s Clean Indoor Air Act (11) was the first law to restrict smoking in public places (1975), and Massachusetts required low-flush toilets (12) for construction and remodeling in 1988.

Green Innovations: The Early Years

In order to comply with all the laws from the 1970s, we needed new technology to ensure consumers could adhere to the new standards. Consider:

The “Crying Indian” PSA debuts in 1971 (13)
Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) gets banned in 1972 (14)
The energy-efficient compact fluorescent light bulb launches in 1973 (15)
Cars begin displaying fuel economy labels in the mid-1970s (16)
In 1975, all cars are manufactured with catalytic converters to limit exhaust emissions (17)
Chlorofluorocarbons are banned from aerosol cans starting in 1978 (18)
The first curbside recycling program begins in New Jersey in 1980 (19)
In 1986, McDonald’s switches from foam to paper food containers (20)
Mercury is removed from latex paint in 1990, providing a viable alternative to banned lead paint (21)
Earth911 launches the first U.S. recycling directory in 1991 (22)
Energy Star certification debuts in 1992 for appliances and electronics (23)
The U.S. Green Building Council begins in 1993 (24)

The Political Movement

The Green Party (25) launched in 1984, which was just the beginning of green issues entering the mainstream. One Percent for the Planet (26) was founded in 2002 to challenge businesses to donate to environmental causes, and the ISO 14001 standard (27) established environmental management. Companies are now facing pressure to allow employee telecommuting (28).

Things really developed after the release of Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth (29) in 2006. NBC debuted Green Week (30) in 2007. Carbon offsets (31) alleviated corporate green guilt. Bisphenol A (32) made us all question plastic purchases. Hybrid vehicles (33) generated tax credits and gas savings. Plastic bag bans gave rise to a reusable bag (34) craze. Fracking (35) and the Dakota Access Pipeline (36) were two of the most hotly contested news stories of the decade, at least until the 2016 election.

Green Tech: The Next Wave

Smart house controller on tablet and happy family

In the past 10 years, emerging green tech has made eco-friendly a way of life, including:

LED light bulbs (37)
Portable solar panels on backpacks and watches (38)
Plant-based plastics (39)
Motion sensor lighting (40)
Faucets with automatic shut-off (41)
Low volatile organic compound (VOC) paint (42)
Recycled plastic clothing (43)
Ride-sharing mobile applications (44)
Natural cleaning products (45)
Biodiesel engine vehicles (46)
Food waste composting (47)
Portable air purifiers (48)
Europe’s Green Deal introduced global recyclables shipping regulations to reduce pollution in low-income nations (49)
Corporate borrowers headed toward $500 billion in bond financings for the renewables transition (50)
President Biden rejoins the Paris Climate Accord on his first day in office. (51)

The Latest Five: 2022–2026

The pace of innovation has not slowed. Five more milestones have reshaped the environmental landscape since that 51st Earth Day:

The Inflation Reduction Act (52), signed into law in August 2022, became the largest climate investment in U.S. history, directing roughly $370 billion toward clean energy tax credits, EV incentives, methane reduction, and domestic clean manufacturing. Analysts projected it will drive more than $4 trillion in cumulative capital investment over a decade and put the U.S. on track for a 40% emissions reduction by 2030. Sadly, many of its key provisions have been defunded or eliminated by the Trump Administration.
The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (53), adopted by 188 governments in December 2022, set the most ambitious biodiversity protection commitment in history. Its headline “30×30” target calls for conserving 30% of the planet’s land, freshwater, and ocean areas by 2030, a goal that would require doubling current protected land coverage and quadrupling marine protections.
America’s first commercial direct air capture plant (54), opened by Heirloom Carbon Technologies in Tracy, California in November 2023, marked the arrival of atmospheric carbon removal at commercial scale on U.S. soil. The plant uses limestone to absorb CO₂ directly from the air, with the captured carbon injected into concrete for permanent storage. In May 2024, Climeworks activated the world’s largest direct air capture facility, the Mammoth plant in Iceland, with a design capacity to remove 36,000 tons of CO₂ per year.
Solid-state batteries (55), a next-generation alternative to conventional lithium-ion technology, moved from laboratory promise toward commercial reality between 2022 and 2026. Unlike liquid-electrolyte batteries, solid-state versions are less flammable, achieve higher energy density, and degrade more slowly. In early 2025, Mercedes-Benz began road-testing a prototype EV powered by a lithium-metal solid-state cell that extended driving range 25% over comparable liquid-battery models. Multiple automakers and cell manufacturers now target commercial production between 2027 and 2030.
Perovskite and tandem solar cells (56), a new photovoltaic technology that pairs conventional silicon with thin perovskite layers, pushed solar efficiency into territory once considered theoretical. By 2024, tandem cells in laboratory settings exceeded 34% efficiency — well above the roughly 22% ceiling of standard silicon panels only a few years ago. manufacturers in Asia and Europe began scaling pilot production lines. Because perovskite cells can be printed on flexible substrates, they open the door to solar surfaces on buildings, vehicles, and everyday objects that conventional panels cannot reach.

The past 56 years have been huge when it comes to saving the environment. Expect more to come, including a resurgent EV industry, nuclear fusion, regenerative agriculture, restorative forestry, and more, as costs and the cool factor improve.

Editor’s Note: Originally published on April 18, 2018, this article was most recently updated in April 2026.

The post 56 Environmental Innovations in the 56 Years Since Earth Day Began appeared first on Earth911.

https://earth911.com/eco-tech/eco-friendly-innovations/

Green Living

Earth911 Inspiration: Forests Are the Lungs of Our Land

Published

4 days ago

April 17, 2026

Alice Rush

This week’s quotation is from Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd president of the United States: “A nation that destroys its soils destroys itself. Forests are the lungs of our land, purifying the air and giving fresh strength to our people.”

Earth911 inspiration posters: Post them and share your desire to help people think of the planet first, every day. Click the poster to get a larger image.