I found a plain Pringle cashmere scarf at the last-chance thrift store. Even though it was riddled with moth bites, it was just too soft and luxurious to let go to the city dump. So I bought it, popped it into a plastic bag and into the freezor (to kill any additional moth larve) and washed it in conditioning shampoo. I wasn't sure about how to cover the holes though.
At first I thought embroidery. I actually took some wool yarn and worked a little on a design. Then I found a pitiful white cashmere coat, badly stained and again, with the nasty little moth nibbles. My next thought was appliques.
I finally went with cutout flowers from the white cashmere. I attached them to the scarf with French knots of old silk twist. There are actually more flowers than nibbles; they were so much fun to make that I couldn't stop myself!
A word of caution: I do not normally advocate the cutting up of vintage clothing. The only time I would ever do it is if the item is totally unusable, or if it has no value beyond being an object of clothing. I've said this before, damaged vintage CAN have value if it is an example of an important designer or is a rare example of a style. Know what you have before you cut, please.
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