Kate from See Kate Sew shares a lovely little tutorial showing how to add elbow patches to a child’s long-sleeved tee—and it’s one of those projects that looks far more impressive than the time it actually takes.
This is a great beginner-friendly sewing upgrade and perfect for well-loved kids’ clothes that are starting to thin at the elbows. The technique works just as well on jackets, jumpers, or even grown-up sweaters if you’re feeling inspired once you see how simple it is.
What I really like about this method is that it’s quick and mostly done by hand, so you don’t need to wrestle leather under a sewing machine if you don’t want to. Kate uses pins to hold the leather patches in place while stitching, but if you’re working with real leather (or faux leather) and want to avoid leaving pin holes, there’s an easy workaround. A regular glue stick works surprisingly well for temporarily holding the patches exactly where you want them while you sew.
It’s one of those small, thoughtful details that instantly makes a basic tee feel special—and a bit more hard-wearing too, which is always a win with kids’ clothes.
Head over to her blog to see the full tutorial and step-by-step photos. It’s a great little project for using up scraps and giving everyday clothing a second life. Go to her blog for the tute.
[photo from See Kate Sew]
