SASHIKO mending

It is our Thanksgiving long weekend here in Canada so we are spending time with the family.  My mother-in-law gave my daughter and I two summer quilts made with the women in her church group.  She has been gone now for 35 years.  The quilt is falling apart so my daughter is afraid to wash it in order to avoid further damage.  In the last few years I’ve learned about the Japanese art of SASHIKO mending.  It is a visible mending technique whereby patterns are stitched on fabric being mended.  I’m doing my own version of this visible mending technique and using the few simple embroidery stitches that I know.  I think the quilt pattern would be called a “six patch” but I’m not sure.  I’ve made a start on this square and have added 3 small patches of  unbleached cotton.  I’m re-enforcing the rest with my stitches as the fabric appears stable to my eye.  Some of the threads have fallen apart on the white fabric so I’m adding stitches there too.  This will be a very long project that I will work on when we visit.  I’ll be interested to see how my stitching morphs over time.  Let me know if my project inspires you to try it for yourself.