Mend and make do

Handbag-rub is wearing out the top left of my favourite skirt, the one in a useful neutral - taupe. Instead of using an applique patch, I flirted with the idea of colourful (but muted) embroidery, then decided to do as subtle a mend as possible, with an iron-on patch underneath and some protective embroidery to cover the thinning area. Trying to match the colour of the fabric was surprising - it needed a much darker colour than I thought, and grey was better than any of the muted purples I had on hand. (Beige of any tone doesn't figure largely in my thread stock.) Mid-grey cotton stem stitch, and an ad-hoc shape ... the repair took about half an hour in total and saved me from the horrors of going shopping (just joking!) (or am I?).