Is Mighty MendIt really as good as sewing?

PHOENIX -- Its makers promise their gadget will permanently repair just about any fabric, but does it really work?

It's called Mighty MendIt and it's supposed to do just that. It's supposed to mend things that tear, rip or pull apart.

Now, as usual, the commercials look pretty convincing, but does it really work?

You may have seen the commercial before. Mighty MendIt makes some pretty big promises.

It is referred to as a permanent bonding agent and is supposed to be just as good as sewing.

3 On Your Side wanted to test this product so we enlisted the help of Tina Eaves.

Eaves owns a central Phoenix shop called Alterations and Creations and bonding agents are somewhat common in the industry.

"I've been using a permanent boding agent for as long as I've been in alterations," she said.

Eaves said she's never used Mighty MendIt before, but she was willing to give it a shot.

So, 3 On Your Side took in some articles of clothing, including a nightgown with torn lace.

"So we are going to have to apply it to only one side of the fabric," Eaves said.

The second item was a button-up blouse that had a ripped seam.

We also brought Eaves a bag with a torn handle.

Although Eaves didn't have much confidence that Mighty MendIt would work on the handle, she still tried it out.

"This was originally one piece and when it tore, it tore so there is no way this is going to hold again, surely not with out it being sewn," Eaves said.

She said that Mighty MendIt is a great quick fix for people on the go, but she isn't totally confident that it will hold forever.

What happened? Well, the torn lace on the gown actually held.

The blouse with the torn seam wound up holding, too. In fact, you couldn't even tell it was ripped.

And the handle on that bag, well, it worked, too, but Eaves said it will probably rip again down the road.

"I would refer to it as a temporary fix," she said. "I would not use it as a permanent fix because eventually I think it is going to lift."

Regardless, without running any of the items through the washing machine, Eaves said Mighty MendIt does its job.

"Does it work? It works, it does," Eaves said. "It accomplishes what it is set out to do."

Now, we didn't wash the items 50 times, but we did wash them twice and so far, everything has held in place.

In fact, even the bag is still glued.

So in my book, yes, it works!