my son is a theater lighting engineer. when he was younger he was very proud of his patched jeans. at one time he had a pair that was so repaired that the only original part was one pocket and the fly-front. LOL!

when he moved out after college, he took them with him. he's forty-one and still has them. doesn't wear them because they don't fit anymore. but won't give them up. like anyone wants them :roll:

EDIT: the front pockets were so worn at the edges i had zigzagged over the edge to keep them from getting worse.

and the comment about child abuse is right on target.

Amen, to HAVING to wear holey clothing! The times they are a changing! :lol:

I still repair jeans.

We also grew up in a time when anything NEW (and looked new) was cherished.

If I'm repairing an area from below the front pocket to below the knee, I will use the backs of the legs of a discarded pair of jeans and cut a great big rectangle large enough to cover the area.

I've found that if I use the multi-step zig-zag stitch that I don't need to turn the raw edges in. I put the patch on the outside of the jeans. I will tack down the loose edges of a worn out knee. Hate to get the foot caught in that spot.

I do have an open arm machine, so that makes it a little easier. Sometimes I can do two sides of the patch from one end of the jeans. Then I take them off the sewing table and turn them around and do the other two sides. Access issue.

Clear as mud?