Mending Monday: Darn it

I love hand knit socks.   They fit in ways that commercial socks cannot, at least once you get a couple of pairs under your needles and know how to modify a pattern to get a good fit.   I have only had one pair (my first pair of stranded colorwork socks) not be successful.  And that was just because I didn't account enough for the fact that colorwork doesn't stretch.  For someone with more 'normal' arches, they would have fit fine, but I have high arches and a wide foot and need extra stretch in the instep. 

But I do have to admit, there is down side of only wearing hand knit socks.   When they are damaged, it is heartbreaking.  Especially if they are a favorite pair or a newer pair.

This pair is a favorite pair.  They are the perfect shade of pink to go with one of my most flattering tops that is pink, cream and brown patterned.   They make me smile, and the yarn was dyed by a local dyer.   So when they were snagged (which it totally my fault for wearing them without shoes and going down into the basement), I was determined not to trash them. 

Darning to the rescue.

This is my darning egg, it's a generic Dritz one, nothing fancy or vintage.   I know my grandmother and even my mom had darning eggs.  My grandmother's was a very cool one made out of some black rock, maybe hard coal.  But I haven't come across them.  I think my sister may have the rock one, she was fascinated by it when she was little. 

Basically you do three or four duplicate stitches / Swiss Darning before the snag and three or four after.  The ends will felt down into the original knitting, so just cut the ends off about a quarter of an inch long on the inside.

All better.  This is the same yarn, by the way, the original pair has been washed many times and has faded and stained a bit from being inside of shoes.   It's on the sole, so no worries.