Instructional dESIGN / app / ecosystem design
StitchLab: Fabric
Repair Initiative
About Project (2023)
This project modernizes a WWII-era mending technique, adapting it for today’s users. It challenges stereotypes around repair by recontextualizing mending within a social, design-led system—bringing it back into the contemporary product cycle.
Generational skills are disappearing and there is no social endorsement towards repair so people become less likely to engage in mending
TOPICS:
-
Sustainable fashion cycle
-
Modernising outdated techniques
-
Individuality
METHODOLOGIES AND AIMS:
-
Ethnographic and Auto-ethnographic research
-
Physical prototyping
-
Instructional design
FINAL TOPIC:
How to reintroduce an element of the product life cycle ( repair ) to a modern user
01
Let’s identify the Topic and Problem
Need to strengthen interpersonal bonds in a progressively online environment
Consumer Perceptions Related to Clothing Repair and Community Mending Events
Nowland, R., Necka, E.A. and Cacioppo, J.T., 2018
Perspectives on Psychological Science, 13(1), pp.70-87
Wearing repaired clothing has historically been a signifier of financial hardship
Fashion and Sustainability : Repairing the clothes we wear
Parise, S., Guinan, P.J. and Kafka, R., 2016
Business Horizons, 59(4), pp.411-420
Consumers do not repair clothes, as they are socially conditioned out of the making process
Research on the influence of ' negative emotional communication during the COVID-19 pandemic
Lu, D. and Hong, D., 2022.
Frontiers in psychology, 13, p.931835
02
Observational research + interviews
Repair Cafés are community initiatives that promote repair and sustainability by providing a space for people to fix broken items. The Ealing Repair Café, founded by Mary, Lone, and Yvonne, focuses on teaching clothing repair to empower individuals and reduce waste. I observed the event, balancing brief conversations with participants and appreciating the strong community bonds that formed naturally.
Participant #1
23 years old, Student
Two years after a traumatic dog attack that ruined her jumper, she found a similar one at a thrift shop, but with a small hole. Mary taught her to mend it, and she later traveled across the city to join a repair club. She told me the act of mending wasn’t just about the jumper, it was part of healing.
Participant #2
Female, 29, Energy consultant
After ruining her favorite silk shirt in the wash, she couldn’t throw it out. A local high-school biology teacher, she saw a poster about the meetings and decided to try—despite having no sewing experience. Now, she comes every other Monday to mend, enjoy a glass of wine, and relax.
Participant #3
73 years old,
Her granddaughter’s red cardigan had a couple of moth holes and she was making tiny darning patches because her daughter loves it so much. She has been coming to these events since they started 5 mounts ago. She said it made her feel less lonely after her husband passed away.
Participant #4
45 years old, Biology teacher
She brought a 1970s bath mat that had followed her to every home. Easy to replace, but she joked she’d never lived without it—and it made her house feel like home. After seeing a Facebook post, she came along. Mary taught her to darn, and she fixed it. A year after moving, she said the club felt like a community.
03
Auto-ethnographic research + prototype
To prevent the fabric from scrunching while stitching, I explored various stabilizers—paper, tape, even 3D-printed molds. In my research, I came across a 1917 sewing guide by Lydia Trattles Coates, American Dressmaking Step by Step, which recommended using paper as a support while darning: “Do not draw the thread too tightly… baste the part to be darned with thin oilcloth or heavy paper before darning.” This historical insight validated my approach and informed my final method
Method Modification + Testing
I then started experimenting with different types of paper - from receipts to heavy 300g paper and different lamination possibilities. As the author suggests, heavy paper works best to resist the pressure from the tread, but I have found that if a layer of tape or some sort of vinyl is applied on top it protects the integrity of the paper. What is more by after the user goes all around the patch, perforating the fabric, the patch detaches itself .
Outcomes of using the original instructions
0
1.
Thread tension was hard to control—too tight damaged the fabric, too loose caused tangling and mess.
0
2.
Stitch spacing relative to thread thickness affects patch density—too loose or too dense, and it won't match the original fabric. This can cause discomfort and functional issues for the wearer.
05
Topic research and insights
Add paragraph text. Click “Edit Text” to update the font, size and more. To change and reuse text themes, go to Site Styles.
0
1.
Solving the crisis of immediacy: How digital technology can transform the customer
0
2.
Solving the crisis of immediacy: How digital technology can transform the customer
0
3.
Solving the crisis of immediacy: How digital technology can transform the customer
0
4.
Solving the crisis of immediacy: How digital technology can transform the customer
0
5.
Add paragraph text. Click “Edit Text” to update the font, size and more. To change and reuse text
0
6.
Solving the crisis of immediacy: How digital technology can transform the customer experience
0
7.
Solving the crisis of immediacy: How digital technology can transform the customer experience
0
8.
Solving the crisis of immediacy: How digital technology can transform the customer experience
Add paragraph text. Click “Edit Text” to update the font, size and more. To change and reuse text themes, go to Site Styles.
04
Design Concept
inovative system for a repair cafe that eases the darning onboardign process and encourages creativity
I designed an app that lets users create custom fabric patches by selecting size, pattern, and color to match their repair needs. After customizing a patch, the app generates a printed instruction card with clear, step-by-step visuals and guidance. The card is pinned directly onto the damaged fabric, allowing users—even with little sewing experience—to repair items confidently while learning sustainable, hands-on skills.
05
User Persona and Interaction Storyboard
Jordan Nilsen
“I’m not crafty — I’m just trying not to throw my stuff in a landfill. I’ve had this hoodie for years, it’s soft in all the right places. It’s not about looks — it’s about comfort, memory, and not buying more when I don’t need to. I don’t want to learn to sew like a pro, I just want a way to fix the things I already love without making it a whole thing.”
Demographics
Data
Tech comfort
Occupation
Location
Study area
He/him (21)
Average
International student
Imperial Uni London
Bio-engeneering
Values
Practicality
Sustainability
Community
Fashion
Individuality
......
......
......
......
......
Frustrations
Finds it intimidating to start DIY projects at home
Doesn't want to buying a lot of supplies
Goals
Better connection with friends back home
Creative ways to share experience with friends
Distributed effort for a long lasting connection
06
App design with p5.js generative code
Add a Title
07
Instructional design
Instructional design
Wavelenght is a parenting community app designed to connect young parents and offer support trough easy childcare, financial help and mental health support
Instructional design
Wavelenght is a parenting community app designed to connect young parents and offer support trough easy childcare, financial help and mental health support
08
Degree show
Add a Title
Repair Cafe Installation
For my degree show, I created an interactive installation where visitors could explore my app and textile patches. A large, distressed canvas hung from the ceiling, full of holes waiting to be mended. Nearby, a table with sewing materials and two chairs invited guests to sit down, design a custom patch on a tablet, print it, and physically repair the fabric by patching a hole of their choice—bringing the digital and tactile experience together.
Check out my other work
HERA APP
Describe the service and how customers or clients can benefit from it.
VR x AI
A collaborative project that aims to look at the intersection of VR and AI.
Sillicone body
Describe the service and how customers or clients can benefit from it.
Let’s Connect
I'm always open to new opportunities, collaborations, or just a friendly chat. Whether you have a project in mind or simply want to say hello, feel free to reach out via email or through the form below. I’ll get back to you as soon as I can!
kalinapanova21@gmail.com
+359895271594
E26PF London