Saving the Shorts

Don't you hate it when perfectly good clothing is ruined by a random hole or stain? And it's even worse when they're still practically new! Well, this is what happened to my new pair of khaki shorts. I have no idea when or how, but I looked down at them one day and realized a nasty hole had been ripped in the back of them. It was big enough to be noticeable, big enough to show the color of my underwear, to be honest, but I hated to throw them away. I hadn't had them for a full month, even, and they weren't cheap. It being a rip in the fabric and not the seam, it wasn't an easy fix, either. I could sew it up, but the new seam would be as obvious as the hole was, and a patch just didn't seem like a good idea...until I remembered what I had done to my daughter's jeans not long ago, in order to patch up the hole. First, I patched it with a plain, boring, denim patch, then I covered that with a patch I cut from decorative quilting fabric. I then, inspired by the pretty fabric, decided to embroider matching pictures (mushrooms and dragon flies) in the same colors around the legs. It turned out awesome, esp. for a pair of old hand-me-downs that now look like an expensive embellished pair I paid top dollar for. So, why not mine? So, I rummaged through my scrap basket, until I found some fabric I liked and would be easy enough to mimic in the embroidery, choosing a print from Anna Maria Horner's chocolate lollipop line. (I just love her!) And this is what I came up with. Though, please ignore the wrinkles from being rammed into an embroider hoop and carted all about the house. They need a good ironing, but I couldn't wait to take the picture.