# How possible is it to re-weave a tear in suit pants?



## Magicman (Oct 6, 2005)

I'm looking at a wool/cashmere blend suit that is brand new but has a tear in the pant fabric. The tear is in an area that would be visible as it is about 12 inches up from the cuff on the side of the leg. The length of the tear is about 3/4 inch or so and it doesn't appear to be a gaping hole. How likely is it that a tailor can re-weave or repair this tear to a near new state? Is this process expensive? I've never asked all that much of my tailor, does it require any special knowledge, or can most tailors perform this task?


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## SuitUP (Feb 8, 2008)

It is possible to reweave but it does require special knowledge and a specialist. From what I understand its not cheap but its less expensive than buying a new suit.


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## &Son (Feb 18, 2008)

Ask a good local clothier, or tailor if there is a good weaver in town, they should be able to recommend someone. Weaving is more expensive than alterations, but worth it if the garment is expensive, or you really like it.

I recently found a 1" x 1" right angle tear on the back of a new wool and cashmere overcoat. $60 (a bargain if you ask me) and two weeks later you can't tell it was ever damaged. It also helps that my coat was solid navy. A pattern would be significantly more difficult than a solid and possibly more expensive.

Is the suit a pattern or a solid?


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## Magicman (Oct 6, 2005)

&Son said:


> Is the suit a pattern or a solid?


It's a solid. I may be able to get it for under $100.00. I would be willing to spend $50 or so to get it repaired.


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## Wizard (Feb 29, 2008)

Many years ago I tore a 1"x1" L-shape hole in a pair of suit pants and had them rewoven. They were a dark brown with a faint red/blue plaid pattern running through them. The reweave is absolutely invisible from the outside and only faintly visable from inside. I was able to provide the matching cloth taken from the remains of having them hemmed (I always save them) so the colors were identical.

Prices sure have gone up though. It only cost me $12.00 back in '94. It seems to be about $80.00 today.


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## rip (Jul 13, 2005)

Current prices from a _capable _ reweaver are probably somewhere north of $100 for a tear of that size (operative word is capable. There are some dreadful ones out there calling themselves _reweavers_ who are only capable of rendering your pants unwearable). These people have a good rep, but IIRC, you have to ship the item to them before they will give you a quote (understandable).


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## wgb (Mar 2, 2007)

Wizard said:


> I was able to provide the matching cloth taken from the remains of having them hemmed (I always save them) so the colors were identical.


Another good reason to request that the tailor return the leftover fabric from hemming the trousers (the other being that keeping a swatch makes it much easier to match colors, etc. when shopping for ties, shirts. etc. -- one doesn't have to carry the suit with them when shopping!


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## satorstyle (Jan 2, 2007)

I had some Brioni slacks with a Gabardine weave done at without a trace. Slightly visible but that is a very difficult weave to reproduce. 98.00


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## 16412 (Apr 1, 2005)

Some tailors can sew it and you won't be able to see it from the outside. But, it also depends on the tear. A ragged tear is much harder if possible at all, unless it is pieced, which makes it even more difficult to do, and the price goes up, and a scrape is necessary for the latter. 

There are three stitches that are used on "seamless jackts". These stitches are used for repairs. Sometimes the cloth has to be stretched, because the raged tear needs to be cut. Be sure not to have the garment dry cleaned first, least the tear becomes ragged or more ragged. If a patch is neccessary this might be done with a seamless stitch or very carefully sewn on with seam allowances, either way it should not show from the outside. Some of the old tailors used some of these seamless stitches in there normal construction on certain parts of the coat (when looking at old coats look at the lapel edge and if it has no seam then the facing was probably "seamlessly" sewn on about an inch away from the edge underneath the lapel.


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## Cordovan (Feb 1, 2008)

I had a specialist do it after a bit of asking around, and although not perfect, it was pretty good and saved a glenn plaid suit jacket.

Cordovan


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## whomewhat (Nov 11, 2006)

I had a Kiton suit made in Super 200's that was damaged at the rear seat of the pants. It cost me $60 for the re-weave. I think the before and after pictures tell the story. It is there, but you have to know it is there and really be looking for it.

Before



After


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## damon54 (Dec 12, 2007)

Nice job Whomewhat!
Who did the work?


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## whomewhat (Nov 11, 2006)

damon54 said:


> Nice job Whomewhat!
> Who did the work?


Giovanni Vitarelli
1075 Monroe St.
Santa Clara, CA 95050
(408) 241-2943
https://giovannivitarelli.com/welcome.html

He is an Old World Italian tailor. His English can be difficult sometimes, but his work is wonderful and very reasonable, in my opinion.


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## cdavant (Aug 28, 2005)

I've actually played at this and small, straight rips and snags can be done invisably in solids. You need either sharp eyes or my lighted 8x magnifier. The technique involves "robbing" strands of fabric from someplace that doesn't show, teasing single threads out and weaving up and across the rip. Snags, where nothing much is actually torn can often be fixed by hooking fibers and pulling them to the inside, then lining them back up. 
I sewed up a 3" rip in a guy's leg yesterday in under 5 minutes. A 3" rip in a pants leg would take hours, so I haven't tried anything major.
Patterns can be much harder to do strand by strand, but if you have saved your leftovers after cuffing or are willing to sacrifice cuffs or extra fabric from somewhere a technique called "French Reweaving" can produce amazing results. You need enough fabric to cover the defect, the individual threads on the patch edges are separated and the patch placed to exactly match the pattern and each thread woven back into the damaged piece.
Almost anything can be fixed by a professional if there is fabric or enough threads available. Anything less than $100 for most repairs would be a bargain. Look what orphaned suit jackets go for on eBay and consider what repairing those pants will save you.


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