I have the joy of co-hosting a CWA mending afternoon every few months in Bermagui and let me tell you: rebellion doesn’t always look like protest signs and megaphones. Sometimes it looks like darning jumpers, hemming pants, threading new elastic into a waistband or patching up a down sleeping bag so it can live to see another adventure.

In a world built on fast fashion, constant upgrades and landfill mountains, sitting around a table with people of all ages quietly stitching feels deliciously subversive. Every line of thread whispers, ‘We refuse to toss it out.’ Every patched hole declares, ‘This garment still matters.’

One of my favourite parts of the afternoon isn’t the projects themselves, though they’re impressive, but the conversations across generations. Young mums learn tricks from grandmothers, middle-aged women swap elastic hacks and younger hands help older eyes thread needles. These friendships across decades feel rare in our modern, compartmentalised lives, yet here they bloom over fabric scraps and snacks.

I don’t take that lightly. I have a goal age of 103 and I’m convinced that intergenerational friendships are part of the secret recipe for longevity. Laughter with someone who’s lived twice your years or the spark you get teaching someone to fix a hem, that’s the kind of life-giving energy that keeps us held together too.

The truth is that mending days aren’t just about saving clothes. They’re about refusing a system that tells us we’re only as good as what’s new and shiny. They’re about slowing down, connecting and finding joy in the imperfect, and recognising that care for our garments, our planet and each other is powerful.

Join us for our next CWA Clothes Mending Workshop on 8 November, from 1.00 pm to 4.00 pm at the CWA Hall, 10 Corunna Street, Bermagui.

Rhiannon Simmonds

Photo caption: Always good to know how to hand sew.