Community Chat

[mollybgood]

Have you ever darned socks?  I did it once or twice way back 

when I learned how to do it in an 8th grade Home Ec class

around 1960.

[qualitygal]

Yes, and I have the old wooden piece that we use to put down to the toe part to make that mending easier and I've used it many times over. 

[Big Sister]

I never did but my mother used to do the darning, and I have the wooden piece that she used over 60 years ago.  Many people would not know what it is for.

[NicksmomESQ]

  My mom & grandma used to do it.I never have .I don't have the time or the patience. I toss & replace torn socks.

[Blk&GoldFan]

Never did, but watched my grandmother and mother do this often.  While clearing out my mother's home, we found the wooden darning egg and a brand new box of darning thread and needles.  I kept them!  Grandchildren didn't know what a record player or record was so they were intrigued with this "new" item.

[Poodlepet2]

Funny you should bring this up@mollybgood! Knitting socks is more popular than ever among knitters and I am seeing more crochet patterns for them....sock looms abound...but NOBODY ever talks about earning them! I think I know how I might approach it with wool, but blends that don't play together so easily, I'm not sure.

So far, I have not had to darn my handmade socks, but I have always wondered. I never thought to look this one up on the net...

Are you a knitter?

Poodlepet2

knitting, machine knitting, crochet-various techniques, rigid heddle and tiny loom weaver: "Jack of all trades, and master of none!"

[Yardlie]

I remember my mother or grandmother trying to teach me to darn socks as a young child. All I could think of was...why don't you throw them out and buy new ones? That's what I've always done.

I could see if money was really tight, darning would save a family money. However, I could always feel the spot where the sock was darned, and it bugged me...even though it was neatly and finely darned.

[Gram W]

My mother taught me very young.  Dad always said I did the best job and it became my task.    We were not poor but my mother loved sewing, crocheting, knitting, etc and she taught my sister and i.

[HerRoyaLioness]

I have never darned socks, but have done plenty of jeans, pants, shorts where they have a worn out area or torn in certain spot. 

I do it all on the sewing machine.  Been doing it ever since I learned to free motion machine quilt (with the feed dogs dropped down).  One pair of my sons's jeans had torn by the pocket where he put his wallet in, and when I got done with them (this was a difficult one) I held them up and asked which side was torn, he couldn't even tell!

I've  saved many a pair of favorite jeans, shorts, hunting pants, etc. this way.  I consider it a challenge.  Other types of sewing, besides quilting, like hemming I am NOT a fan of, but this is my specialty!!

Oh, and I do have one of those old wooden things that they used for darning socks and I use it for decore in my house!

[deepwaterdotter]

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@qualitygal wrote:

Yes, and I have the old wooden piece that we use to put down to the toe part to make that mending easier and I've used it many times over. 

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I also have my grandmother's darning egg and still use it to mend the toes of socks.