There are clothes that don't fit in the closet, they fit in the memory. Even torn, faded, or marked by time, they continue to carry stories, affections, and irreplaceable moments. Instead of discarding them, what if it were possible to transform them into something new, without erasing what they have already lived through?
It is from this idea that Tecendo Memórias (Weaving Memories) was born, an initiative of the Ibiti Project that invites residents of surrounding communities to give new meaning to pieces of clothing through visible mending, a technique known internationally as visible mending.
More than just fixing things, the invitation is to make the repair visible and to value the journey.
The project's starting point comes from a memory of Renato Machado, the creator of the Ibiti Project, who used to ask Dona Odette, the cook at the sugar mill, to repeatedly mend a pair of shorts he loved, prolonging their life to the very end.
Exchange of knowledge
The project involves students from the Fashion Design course at UniAcademia, in Juiz de Fora, who will share ancestral repair techniques with the community of São José dos Lopes, creating a real space for exchange.
Students explore references from different parts of the world:
- o mending, from England
- o sashiko and boron, from Japan
- o kantha, from India
- and himself visible mending, in its contemporary approach
In addition to the presentations, students and registered community members participate together in a workshop on darning and creating with fabric scraps, promoting an encounter between tradition and innovation in handcrafting.
Workshop Weaving Memories
Date: May 16
Location: Community Center of São José dos Lopes
Time: starting at 9:30 am
The workshop, led by Letícia Nogueira Fonseca, coordinator of the Linhas de Minas project from the community itself, will be dedicated to teaching exposed patching techniques, with guidance on how to preserve the original fabric while incorporating new threads and materials.
Next, the community contest will take place on June 20th, open to residents with proven residency in villages, districts, and centers of the following municipalities:
- Lima Duarte
- Saint Rita of Ibitipoca
- Pottery
- Pedro Teixeira
Weaving Memories Contest
Date: June 20th
Location: Casa do Sol — São José dos Lopes
Time: starting at 3pm
Participants must present mended garments using creative interventions that keep the original history of the fabric visible. The selected garments will be exhibited to the public and evaluated by a jury of experts in fashion, design, and the arts. The three best creations will be awarded prizes and will become part of the Ibiti Project's cultural collection, contributing to the preservation of the textile memory of the communities involved.
Awards
🥇 1st place: R$ 3.000
🥈 2nd place: R$ 2.000
🥉 3rd place: R$ 1,000
Culture, memory and regeneration
By extending the life of clothing and valuing personal narratives, the initiative strengthens community ties and promotes new ways of looking at what already exists and can continue to tell stories.
According to Raquel Salgado, an architect and fashion design professor at UniAcademia in Juiz de Fora, and one of the organizers of the initiative, "The idea is to value mending, to remake the weaving as a gesture of care for the garment and for memory. When we keep the patch visible, we are not just repairing a garment, we are preserving its history, recognizing the value of time and rescuing a tradition that has always been part of the daily lives of families."“
This action is part of a set of initiatives by Ibiti aimed at creating a positive impact on surrounding communities, encouraging creativity, autonomy, and the preservation of local knowledge.
