Sewing and textiles: from patches to clothes

The sewing machine is the main investment (~€100–300 to start; Pfaff/Singer/W6 are legends — Pfaff from Karlsruhe!). Start by hand: sewing on a button and hemming trousers — two skills saving ~€10 per tailor visit. Patterns free/cheap: Burda Style (German magazine since 1950 — the standard!) or Etsy. First project: a cushion cover — straight seams only, done in an hour, confidence +100. Fabric: the Stoffmarkt Holland travels between cities — ~€8–12/m.

• ●A tailor charges ~€10–15 per hem — the machine pays off in a year
• ●Repair instead of buying: fashion is the planet’s second-biggest polluter after oil
• ●Visible mending — the hole as design, a Pinterest trend