darn it

Ever since Susannah posted about her Speedweve Darner I had to have one.

This is the Canadian version, The Darn Easy.

It goes nicely with the mending wool I recently acquired. And darn easy it is. I was able to darn my sock in about 5 nanoseconds and that includes me having to look back at the directions the whole time. Way easier (and cheaper) than running to target to get a new pair.

And it looks super neat and tidy. I just need to figure out exactly how to tie off the ends so that they look just as neat.

And have I ever mentioned that darning is a good skill for me to have?

My toes eat hosiery for breakfast.
I think I am going to be getting a lot of use out of my new gizmo and doing a lot more darning. Why did we stop darning in the first place?

V is for Victory

and D is for Darning.





















I have been wondering and hunting for some darning wool. I was beginning to think it would be impossible to find and I would have to attempt to dig up the stash of it I got at an estate sale when I was a child. If it is still in will all my childhood belongings at my parents' house. Then last week I went to Loopy Yarns to pick some more yarn for my Sartorialiste scarf (which I have completely frogged and have re-started) and there in the sock room in the back corner it was. A whole display of unassuming neutral colored cards of darning yarn looking exactly as I remember them looking when I was a kid. They are selling it more as re-enforcing yarn to carry along with your main yarn when knitting toes and heels but it is also labeled "darning yarn." I was so excited I could hardly contain myself. I wanted to buy one of every color. I stuck to just buying one, in a olive green, because I just busted a hole in a pair of green socks and have yet to actually try my hand at darning. I would say that it is relatively inexpensive at $3 a card compared to buying (or knitting) a new pair of socks. And don't forget the priceless joy of learning a new skill and reveling in being a grandma waaay before your time.