Darn It!

     Who darns socks these days?  I do.  Mike has some Field and Stream Brand socks that he likes to wear around the house.  Since he has turned socks into slippers, he has worn a hole in each heel.  He has not been able to find the same socks since the original purchase, so the other day, he asked me to darn his socks.  It's a good thing Mom taught me how to darn many years ago.
     It's a chicken and egg kind of thing.  Did people stop darning socks because manufacturers stopped making darning thread?  Or did manufacturers stop making darning thread because no one darns socks?  Whatever the answer, the thread is nearly impossible to find, even on the internet.  The closest I came was a bunch of "vintage" darning thread.  That stuff could have been fifty years old and dry rotted.  Embroidery floss fills in very nicely for darning thread.  It is multi-stranded, it comes in many colors, and it is 100% cotton.
     The next hurdle to getting started is finding a darning egg (some people use a mushroom shaded tool).  It's basically a wooden egg on a stick.  I inherited my mother's darning egg.  You insert the egg into the sock.  The egg allows you to repair the hole while holding the sock in its natural, rounded shape.  If you can't find a darning egg, you can use a L'eggs stocking container. Oh, wait, when did they stop making those?  You could use an incandescent light bulb, but there is a chance of breaking it, and they are going to stop making those one of these days!  Try an plastic Easter egg or a ball.  Hey, try a hard boiled egg!

Darning Egg

        If you can't find a darning needle, use a blunt tipped needle with a big eye.  Darning is just re-weaving the part of the sock that has worn away.  Remember, don't make any knots.  Weave the thread in and out a few times, then cut it off .  Knots can rub and give the wearer blisters.  Here's a video that shows the process:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nY1jTVyBE0    

     Let's revive the old skills.  Let's make things last.  Let's get our money's worth out of socks.

     That said, does anyone out there know where I can find Field and Stream Brand socks?