u/Hatdogkoitim

Hey r/visiblemending! Back with another update.

The back panel is finished, Our Lady of Guadalupe in sashiko surrounded by boro patchwork. It’s been a long process getting here and there are definitely things I would do differently if I started again but I’m happy with how it turned out overall.

The cross stitch sashiko pattern on the center panel framing her came together in a way I wasn’t expecting I think it ties the figure into the surrounding boro work reasonably well.

Next up are the sleeves which are still completely plain light wash denim so there’s still a good amount of work left before this is actually finished.

Will post again once the arms are done. Thanks for following along!

Hey r/visiblemending! Major update on the back panel, she is nearly finished!! 🥹

Honestly I can’t believe how far this has come from that shaky freehand tracing a few days ago. Hoping to have the back wrapped up by next week then next are the arms.

What’s left:

•	The rays on either side of Our Lady, I already drew them on but they are SO painstaking to stitch and I’m genuinely debating whether to do them or leave it as is

•	A few line streaks still to fill in

•	Thickening up the cherub’s face at the bottom which still needs some work

One thing I’m actually kind of happy with, instead of doing traditional sashiko dots for the embellishment detail I ended up just filling in the spaces between existing stitching lines which gives it this almost braided rope texture. It wasn’t planned but I think it works.

But my main question for the community, should I do the rays? I already have them drawn on so they’re committed to the fabric. But it’s an enormous amount of stitching at this stage and I’m so close to the finish line. Part of me wants to push through and complete the full image, the other part of me is just exhausted lol.

What would you do?

Hey r/visiblemending! So after the overwhelming response to my last post about the back panel decision… I went for it.

Shoutout to u/BuckTheStallion whose comment about framing a painting in boro patchwork basically sealed the deal for me. I traced the Our Lady of Guadalupe outline directly onto the denim center panel and I’ve started stitching her out in sashiko running stitch.

This is very much still in progress,you can see in the photos the outline is done and I’ve started filling in some of the detail work. There’s still a LOT of stitching left to go but the direction is clear now and I’m genuinely excited about it.

The boro patchwork framing around her is also coming together on the back panel which I think is going to make the whole composition really strong once it’s all filled in.

No idea how many hours this is going to take but at this point I’ve fully accepted this jacket is a long term relationship

Will keep updating. Thank you all for the encouragement 🙏

Hey r/visiblemending! Back with another update on the boro jacket saga.

So I’ve started working on the back and as you can see the sides are coming along in the same style as the front the boro patchwork and distressing is extending naturally around the jacket which I’m pretty happy with.

But now I’m stuck on the big empty center panel and I genuinely don’t know what to do with it 😅

I have two directions I’m considering:

Option 1 — Put an Our Lady of Guadalupe image in the center back. I love the idea of having that as a focal point and it would give the whole jacket a really strong identity. But I’m not sure how to execute it in the context of a boro piece without it looking out of place or forced.

Option 2 — Just boro the entire back the same way as the sides and front. Keep it consistent, let the textile work speak for itself, no central image.

Both feel right in different ways and I genuinely can’t decide. Has anyone done figurative imagery in a boro or sashiko piece before? Would love to hear thoughts from the community on this one 🙏

Hey r/visiblemending! Back with another update on the boro jacket saga.

So the front is pretty much finished minus the collar which I still need to work on. Also the pocket flaps are still folded in the photo haven’t gotten to stitching those down yet so ignore how they’re sitting for now 😅

Honestly standing back and looking at it I’m pretty happy with how the front has come together it’s taken a lot of iteration to get here.

I want to shout out the comments from my earlier posts a few of you advised me to stop trying to directly replicate the Kapital boro jacket and just let the piece develop its own identity. I took that advice and honestly I think it was the right call. It’s starting to feel like its own thing now rather than a copy that falls short.

Still a long way to go with the sleeves, collar, and back but the finish line is at least visible now for the first time lol 🙏
As always feedback welcome!

Hey again r/visiblemending! Posting an update on the boro jacket WIP I shared a while back.

So… progress is happening but I’ll be honest, looking at it next to the Kapital inspiration I’m replicating, I am HUMBLED That jacket is on a completely different level and I think I underestimated just how long this journey is going to be.

A few things I’ve noticed so far:

The sashiko thread I used is pretty thick and bulky, it’s not quite giving me the fine, dense look I was going for. I’ll probably go back and modify those as I go, it’s not a dealbreaker but it’s something I want to fix.

I did manage to use some darker raw denim panels on the upper torso area which I’m actually pretty happy about that’s closer to the darker tone I was going for originally. The lower half is still very much a work in progress though.

Also… I kind of messed up the pocket area lol. Not going to say more than that, it is what it is

Overall I’m maybe like 40% satisfied with how it looks right now but I know this kind of piece takes time and a lot of iteration. Still committed to seeing it through!

Will keep posting updates. Any feedback or advice still very welcome 🙏

Hey r/visiblemending! Long-time lurker, first-time poster.

I’ve been working on this boro-inspired denim jacket using sashiko running stitches and patchwork from salvaged denim and fabric scraps. Super happy with the texture and the stitching so far, but I made a rookie mistake I didn’t plan my fabric colors carefully enough before starting.

My inspiration is the Kapital Boro jacket (bottom photo), which has that deep, dark, aged indigo patchwork look almost like the fabric has been lived in for decades. Mine (top photo, WIP) is coming out much lighter and more washed, which completely loses that moody, worn character I was going for.

So my questions for the community:

1.	Should I overdye the whole jacket once it’s finished, or would it be better to dye individual panels/patches before assembling more?

2.	What dye colors would you recommend to get closer to that deep aged indigo + earthy brown/olive tone? I’m thinking maybe indigo + a dark walnut or black overdye, but I honestly have no idea.

3.	Has anyone here actually overdyed a boro or sashiko piece after finishing it? Did the dye take evenly across different fabric weights and weaves, or did you get blotchy results?

Any advice appreciated I’d rather ask before I commit to something I can’t undo! 🙏